St. Paul recorder. [volume] (St. Paul, Minn.) 1934-2000, 1940-12-13
Carriers Plan
Secret Drive
on Red Caps
RAILROADS PLAN SECRET
DRIVE TO EXCLUDE RED
CAPS FROM WAGE
HOUR LAW
BY Ernest Galloway

From a source close to the inner
councils of Americas twenty-four
billion dollar industry, it has been
learned that the powerful machin-
cry of the railroad lobby is being
well-oiled for a heavy campaign at
the next session of Congress to
pass amendments to the Wage and
Hour law, designed primarily to
exclude red caps from the Act.
Secret Planning
Although plans for this new
move on the part of the railroads
are being formulated with utmost
secrecy and caution, the informa-
ton has been able to leak through
certain reliable channels to ranking
officials of the United Transport
Service Employees of America, the
red caps union. From all indica-
lions, the Association of American
Railroads will be used as the
'hatchet" in this drive to return
red caps to their old tip status,
prior to the passage of the Fair
Labor Standards Act.
The preparation for this next
move of the railroads against their
red cap employees indicates an ap-
prehension on their part that the
Interstate Commerce Commission
will soon declare illegal the 10c
bag fee and thereby eventually
force bona fide compliance with the
Fair Labor Standards Act. Not to
be done out of their scheme, the
railroads will make this new legis-
lative effort to re-establish the old
status of red caps, that of depend
ing directly upon public gratuities
for their income and support.
r. RS Admit Public Dissatisfied
A number of lesser railroad off
Gals are privately admitting that
the unfavorable public reception of
the 10c bag charge has been a
source of real concern for the high
er-ups in an industry which is in
great need of public goodwill to-
day. Many railroad companies
have strenuously opposed the intro
duction of the hand baggage fee
placed upon passengers, but have
been whipped into line by the AS
ISOLATION of American Railroads,
which yields great influence and
power in the determination of pub
lie policy for the railroads. The
western roads, having maintained
previous high standards of passen-
ger service have been in actual re-
volt against this new charge which
they feel has affected the quality
of their service. One road in par
ticular, the Atchison, Topeka and
Santa Fee, quietly dropped the
charge few weeks ago.
Seek Senate Resolution
The United Transport Service
Employees Union has been strenu-
ously seeking the adoption of a
senate resolution calling for an ex-
tensive investigation Of the illegal
income garnered from railroad pas
sengers through the 10c bag
charge. The resolution was intro
duced recently by Senator Ebert
D. Thomas of Utah and was re-
ferred to the Senate Committee on
Education and Labor. Due to the
controversy on congressional ad-
journment the difficulty of secur-
ing a committe quorum has threat
ened action on the resolution. How
ever, the Wage and Hour Division
is in the midst of preliminary in
vestigations at the Washington
Terminal and the Grand Central
Terminal in New York City. The
Washington Terminal investigation
has revealed that during the first
51z months, red caps have collect
ed from passengers $94,677.3S
against company payroll expendi-
lures of ST., 1884, leaving a gross
profit for this period of $22,877.49
or $4,149.54 per month. It is esti-
mated that the annual profit from
the bag charge for this one sta
ton would run we'll over $4,000.
The Association Of American
Railroads, which is the usual legis-
latiye agent of the railroads for
both back-door and front-door
work, is now again trying to ex-
clude railroad workers from the
benefits of present railroad pros
perity. Nettled because their at
tempts to evade the law have been
consistently defeated by the red
caps organized in the UTSEA, the
railroads seek to exclude red caps