Cornell University Library HD8039.M62U671 The coal miners' insecurity; tacts about 1 1 III 111 1 1 II II II II f" Ml II II Mill II II II M ft^io^^X THE MARTIN P. CATHERWOOD LIBRARY OF THE NEW YORK STATE SCHOOL OF INDUSTRIAL AND LABOR RELATIONS AT CORNELL UNIVERSITY ■?i.r 1913 1914 X.WM 1916 1917 1918 , Wl^ I92I9 , 1&?1 : THE. IRREGULAR PRODUC|lifc OF SC^ COAL IN TilE LAST Nll^ YEA^S - RUSSELL SAGE FOUNnAirt^%«~i ^ NEW YORK: V,'V <'?-./■■ / ^'S A|>ril, 1^ ,--v«^' ^fri^e $fter ^^ / mis /^^ 1, 100 ' V y \ 1910 1920 1925 Diagram 3. — Miners employed, tonnage produced, and average number of days operated by the bituminous coal mines in the tfnited States, 1890 to 1921, by years 18 been maintained the average annual production at the same daily rate would have been about 688,000,000 tons, an excess of 181,000,000 tons, or 36 per cent. This excessof capacity over pro- duction represents a surplus of many thousand men employed in the industry. For instance, in 1918, when the average output per miner was high, 942 tons was the average amount of coal pro- duced per man,' and at that rate it would take about 192,000 mine workers to mine the 181,000,000 tons, which was the difference between actual and full-time production in 1919. The increase in demand for coal has not resulted in the more regular operation of mines already open. New mines have been opened and more men employed, while the number of working TABLE 3.— NUMBER OF BITUMINOUS COAL MINES AND TON- NAGE PRODUCED IN THE UNITED STATES IN 1913 AND IN 1917, BY CLASSES OF MINES^ Mines Tons produced Mines producing 1913 1917 1913 1917 Num- ber Per cent Num- ber Per cent Number Per cent Number Per cent Less than 10,000 tons 10,000 and less than 50,000 tons 50,000 and less than 100,000 tons 100,000 and less than 200,000 tons 200,000tons and over 1,728 1,558 959 837 694 29.9 27.0 16.6 14.5 12.0 2,193 1,966 1,044 914 792 31.7 28.5 15.1 13.2 11.5 6,280,271 42,292,052 69,018,483 118,475,544 241,463,241 1.3 8.9 14.4 24.8 50.6 8,824,023 51,596,000 74,894,269 129,485,524 285,365,741 1.6 9.4 13.6 23.5 51.9 Total 5,776 100.0 6,909 100.0 477,529,591 100.0 550,165,557 100.0 » Data from United States Fuel Administration, Report of the Distribution Division, 1918-1919, Part I, Distribution of Coal and Coke, p. 19. ' United States Geological Survey, Coal in 1918, Part A, Production, p. 717. 19 days has shown no appreciable increase. Diagram 3 shows the dead level of days of operation while total tonnage and the num- ber of miners have both grown steadily larger. Moreover, as Table 3 shows, the small mines increased in num- bers in the period between 1913 and 1917 more rapidly than the large ones, — a fact which makes more complicated the problem of stabilizing the industry, since regulation of small, scattered and unstable operations is difficult. Table 3 shows the changes between 1913 and 1917 in the number of mines and in the total production of coal in mines of different sizes. In these facts for the period through 1917, the full effect of our participation in the war was not yet evident. Table 3 shows that in 1917 the mines in the United States numbered 6,909, which was an increase of 1,133 mines or 20 per cent over 1913. In 1917 the smaller mines were more numerous, in proportion to large ones, than in 1913, when the number pro- ducing on the average less than 50,000 tons annually was 3,286, or 57 per cent of all mines. By 1917 this number had increased to 4,159, or 60 per cent of the bituminous mines of the country, but these 60 per cent produced only 11 per cent of the total ton- nage. In 1917 the mines with an output of 100,000 tons or more constituted 25 per cent of all the mines but produced 75 per cent of the total output of coal, while the other 75 per cent of the mines together produced only 25 per cent of the coal. Increase in Miners That the increase in mines has been accompanied by an in- crease in miners, rather than by more regular employment for those already in the industry, is clearly indicated again in the following table. Table 4 shows how the number of employes in the bituminous industry has increased and how the days of opera- tion have varied since 1890. As in Table 2, the figures are given in five-year periods and the average number of days of mine opera- tion is brought forward from that table. The number of employes in the industry has increased since the five years ending with 1894 from 217,000 (in round numbers) to 592,000 or 173 per cent. All through those five-year periods from 1890 to 1919, the average number of days of mine operation, or, expressed in terms of the miners' interest, the opportunity for employment, has remained depressingly low, the averages for 20 TABLE 4.— AVERAGE AND RELATIVE NUMBER OF EMPLOYES AND OF DAYS OF OPERATION FOR BITUMINOUS COAL MINES IN THE UNITED STATES FROM 1890 TO 1919, BY FIVE-YEAR PERIODS^ Employes Days of operation Period Average Relative Average Relative 1890-1894 217,174 100 211 100 1895-1899 251,739 116 205 97 1900-1904 373,655 172 223 106 1905-1909 492,144b 227 213 101 1910-1914 561,866 259 216 102 1915-1919 591,801 273 224 106 * Data from United States Geological Survey , Coal in 1918, Part A, Production, p. 717, and subsequent publications. <> Average for four years. Data for 1909 lacking. the five-year periods varying from 205 to 224 days in the year. Again the facts show work spread thin over the year and covering not much more than two-thirds of it. Although a slight increase is shown in the number of days of operation during the period from 1915 to 1919 as compared with 1890 to 1894, the year 1921 has shown the greatest loss of working time of any year in the last three decades. These figures are for the country as a whole. In Illinois, as Table 5 shows, the opportunity to work has actually decreased while the number of men employed has more than doubled. TABLE 5.— AVERAGE AND RELATIVE NUMBER OF EMPLOYES AND DAYS OF OPERATION FOR BITUMINOUS COAL MINES IN ILLINOIS FROM 1890 TO 1919, BY FIVE-YEAR PERIODS* Period Employes Days of operation Average Relative Average Relative 1890-1894 33,610 100 186 100 1895-1899 36,251 108 173 93 1900-1904 46,825 139 182 98 1905-1909 66,400 198 178 96 1910-1914 78,197 233 166 89 1915-1919 82,937 247 169 91 * Data from State of Illinois, Department of Mines and Minerals, Annual Coal Report, 1919, p. 100. 21 From an average of 186 days of operation of the mines in the five years from 1890 through 1894, the opportunity to work and to earn fell in these mines to 169 in the five years from 1915 through 1919, while in that period the number of miners increased from 33,610 to 82,937. The increased demand for labor has not lengthened the excessively short working year. Intermittent Employment and its Causes The data given in several tables thus far in the discussion have covered long periods in order the better to show broad tendencies as measured in total capacity for production, numbers employed, and the regularity of operation of mines. These statistics have obscured the fluctuations within shorter periods which reveal the influence of general business depression, and of seasonal variation in demand. Table 6 shows the number of days lost by the bituminous mining industry throughout the country each year since 1890, and Diagram 4 shows in graphic form the days of mine operation each year.^ TABLE 6.— DAYS LOST BY THE BITUMINOUS COAL INDUSTRY EACH YEAR, 1890 TO 192 !» Year Days lost Year Days lost Year Days lost 1890 78 1901 79 1912 81 1891 71 1902 74 1913 72 1892 85 1903 79 1914 109 1893 100 1904 102 1915 101 1894 133 1905 93 1916 74 1895 110 1906 91 1917 61 1896 112 1907 70 1918 55 1897 108 1908 111 1919 109 1898 93 1909 89 1920 84b 1899 70 1910 87 1921 134b 1900 70 1911 93 « Based on figures of the United States Geological Survey for average days of mine operation, assuming a full year of 304 days. The figures from which Table 6 has been derived are those for average days of mine operation, of which use has already been made in Tables 4 and 5 and in Diagram 3. The days lost were ascertained by subtracting the days of operation from the standard of a full operating year which we have adopted, that is, 304 days. ^ Based on preliminary figure for days operated. ^ In Diagram 4 the average days of operation each year are illustrated by the upright columns, and the distance between the tops of these columns and the "full year" line at the top of the diagram represents the number of idle days. Both in the diagram and in Table 6 the recurring business depressions of the last three decades stand out conspicuously. 22 Daya 304 300 Full Year t ♦ 800- 100- 1890 tabs = •^33 CM C «M ™ 01 Si . o to Low production in November, 1919, was due to the general strike in the bituminous industry in that month. While monthly figures for the entire United States are avail- able only since 1913, a longer record of monthly figures can be secured for Illinois mines. The data for the eight years from 1906 to 1913 inclusive are significant because all the abnormal condi- 27 tions of the period of the war and afterward are excluded. It is true that Illinois is an extreme illustration of seasonal variations in the bituminous fields. Most of the eastern districts show some sea- sonal rhythm but the range from high to low is less marked than in the Mississippi valley and the peak does not always come in the same month. Illinois is also affected, as are its neighboring states, by the fact already noted that the most violent extremes occur just before and after the dates of expiration of the biennial wage agreements, which normally occur on April 1st in the "even years." The sequence was interrupted during the war. Table 8 shows the comparative output in the mines of Illinois each month in each of the years from 1906 to 1913, when seasonal fluctuations were unaffected by war production. TABLE 8.— MONTHLY PRODUCTION OF BITUMINOUS COAL BY SHIPPING MINES OF ILLINOIS FROM 1906 TO 1913 » Month 1906 1907 1908 1909 1910 1911 1912 1913 Average Am Dunt in T housands of Tons January 4,289 4,852 4,408 4,641 5,722 5,038 6,005 6,020 5,122 February 4,336 4,255 4,567 4,108 5,552 3,957 6,435 4,941 4,769 March 5,378 3,731 6,055 4,149 7,026 4,209 7,836 4,965 5,419 April 392 3,572 1,401 3,470 24 3,671 43 4,263 2,104 May 659 3,785 2,082 3,146 110 3,549 2,890 3,924 2,518 June 2,556 3,394 3,463 3,067 1,637 3,474 3,365 3,875 3,104 July 2,884 3,545 2,978 3,304 1,770 3,688 3,914 4,347 3,304 August 3,245 4,113 3,809 3,739 2,414 4,449 4,857 4,692 3,915 September 3,479 4,223 4,299 4,413 3,580 4,583 4,944 5,360 4,360 October 4,283 5,279 5,020 5,235 5,451 4,293 6,318 6,358 5,280 November 4,344 5,098 4,523 5,219 5,877 5,700 6,125 6,152 5,380 December 4,613 4,837 4,748 5,243 5,769 5,810 6,370 5,862 5,406 Total 40,458 50,684 47,353 49,734 44,932 52,421 59,102 60,759 50,681 Per cenfof Annual Production January 10.6 9.6 9.3 9.3 12.7 9.6 10.1 9.9 . 10.1 February 10.7 8.4 9.6 8.3 12.4 7.6 10.9 8.1 9.4 March 13.3 7.4 12.8 8.3 15.6 8.0 13.2 8.2 10.7 April 1.0 7.0 3.0 7.0 .1 7.0 .1 7.0 4.2 May 1.6 7.5 4.4 6.3 .3 6.8 4.9 6.5 5.0 June 6.3 6.7 7.3 6.2 3.6 6.6 5.7 6.4 6.1 July 7.1 7.0 6.3 6.7 3.9 7.0 6.6 7.2 6.5 August 8.0 8.1 8.0 7.5 5.4 8.5 8.2 7.7 7.7 September 8.6 8.3 9.1 8.9 8.0 8.7 8.4 8.8 8.6 October 10.6 10.4 10.6 10.5 12.1 8.2 10.7 10.5 10.4 November 10.8 10.1 9.6 10.5 13.1 10.9 10.4 10.1 10.6 December 11.4 9.5 10.0 10.5 12.8 11.1 10.8 9.6 10.7 Total 100.0 100.0 100.0 100.0 100.0 100.0 100.0 100.0 100.0 ■ Data from State of Illinois, State Mining Board (now Department of Mines and Minerals), Annual Coal Reports, 1906 to 1914. 28 Table 8 shows that in Illinois production and employment are concentrated in the winter months. The average annual pro- duction of bituminous coal in Illinois in the eight years covered in Table 8 was, in round numbers, 50,681,000 net tons. Over three-fifths of this tonnage, namely, 62 per cent, was produced in the six months of January, February, March, October, Novem- ber and December; while the remaining 38 per cent was taken out of the mines in the slacker months of April, May, June, July, August and September. Inevitably for the miner this means lost, or reduced, opportunities to earn during the year. The mines in Illinois were equipped with men and machinery for an average maximum production of nearly five and a half million tons in the busy fall and winter month, while their average monthly production was a little less than four and a quarter million, and the average in the month of least demand, April, was little more than two million. To attribute all of this difference between the extremes in March and April to seasonal variations in the demand for coal, however, would not be accurate. It ignores the effect of the biennial wage adjustment, to which reference has already been made. In Diagram 7 two sets of facts are shown for comparison : (1) the average monthly production in the entire period, as al- ready given in Table 8 ; and (2) the average monthly production in the four alternating years when wage adjustments were not due. Comparison of the averages in the odd and even years shows that in the "even" years of biennial negotiation the swing up or down from average production is much greater than in the "odd" years, when seasonal demand is not accentuated by forced buying in anticipation of a strike. With revision of wages expected on April first every other year, the abnormal buying of coal forces up production in March and earlier, while output is correspondingly decreased in April and May, even though no strike occurs.^ The lower portion of the diagram which eliminates this disturbing factor may be said to picture accurately the seasonal variations. * In a statement issued for the newspapers by the Bureau of the Census of the Federal Department of Commerce on March 23, 1922, appears this para- graph : ' ' Coal production continued to increase during the second month of the year. Even with the smaller number of working days the output of bitum- inous coal was 3,000,000 tons greater than in January. This increase was in response to the demand for consumers ' stocks in case of prolonged labor diffi- culties. " 29 Jan. Feb. March April May June July Aug. Sept. Oct. Nov. Dec. Average Monthly Production in Per Cent of Total Annual Production in Eight Years, 1906 to 1913 Jan. Feb. March April May June July Aug. Sept. Oct. Nov. Dec. Average Monthly Production in Per Cent of Total Annual Production in Four "Odd" Years, 1907, 1909, 1911, and 1913. in which the Biennial Wage Adjustment did not Occur Diagram 7. — Seasonal fluctuation in the production of bituminous coal in Illinois mines, 1906 to 1913 30 Seasonal variations in the coal industry and the remedies for them have been discussed frequently by engineers and ofificial commissions. These comprise such measures as storage at the place of use to make purchases feasible in advance of need, and lower freight rates from the mines during months of least con- sumption in order to encourage buying. Seasonal variations constitute a major cause of irregular employment. The increased demand in winter tends to keep more men in the industry than would be needed if the work were more evenly distributed throughout the year. This excess in numbers of men employed tends in turn to make employment irregular and uncertain, re- gardless of variations in market demands. It is important to realize that increased storage facilities, reduced transportation rates during the slack months, and other means of eliminating sea- sonal fluctuations, desirable as these improvements are, would not wholly regularize the operation of the coal industry. From esti- mates of the Geological Survey already quoted it is shown that seasonal fluctuations are responsible for 47 in every 100 days of idleness in the mines during a year, but 37 in every 100 are lost through what the Geological Survey calls "sheer over-develop- ment." These estimates are more or less speculative, because the three big problems of seasonal demand, over-development, and recurrent business depressions are so related to one another that the effect of each on the industry cannot be accurately deter- mined. It is safe to conclude, however, that the soft coal industry is functioning irregularly, and that its instability causes unem- ployment and uncertainty for the men who earn their living in digging coal. Instability affects also the efficiency of the coal business and tends to raise the price of coal and hence the cost of all articles dependent upon coal for manufacture or transportation. So little information is available, however, on the various factors entering into the price of coal that it is possible only to suggest, but not to demonstrate the effect of instability in bituminous coal mining upon business in general. That the coal miner and his wife and children are the first to feel the effects of this irregular functioning of the industry needs no elaborate proof, despite the fact that data on earnings are as meagre as are many other relevant facts about the coal industry. 31 Earnings of Bituminous Miners Facts about miners' earnings, and the suflfering which unem- ployment causes, can be understood only if conditions of life in a mining camp are known. In many mining communities the mine is the only place of employment. To find another job in dull periods means moving to another town. Moreover, a miner's family lacks the economic safeguards of life in a com- munity with several varied industries, in which other members of the family, including wife and daughters, find work to help to secure the necessary income. However desirable, or undesirable, the employment of women and young girls outside the home may seem to the public, it is still the means of maintaining the households of many wage-earners, when dependence upon the insecure employment of one bread-winner in a seasonal indus- try becomes too hazardous. For many coal miners, this resource is lacking. The industry necessarily becomes responsible for insuring sufficient income to the men in the mines to maintain their families throughout the year. This fact must never be forgotten when comparisons are made between the rates paid in mining and those in other industries. What, then, are the earnings of miners in the bituminous coal industry, and what effect has the irregular operation of the indus- try upon the miner's annual income? Available facts concerning actual earnings are incomplete. The Geological Survey collects data on production, but does not include wage statistics in its reports. Special inquiries into wages have been made from time to time by the Bureau of Labor Statistics, but these have been limited to comparatively few mines and have not covered a period as long as a year. Miners' Statistics of Earnings Information concerning annual earnings was presented to the President's Bituminous Coal Commission in 1920 by the organiza- tion of the miners, the United Mine Workers of America. These facts related to the union scale of wages as agreed upon in con- tracts between the United Mine Workers and the operators' associations in the unionized central competitive field, which includes the states of Illinois, Indiana, Ohio and the western part of Pennsylvania. Non-union mines were not included. As the material was compiled before the increase in wages which fol- 32 lowed the award of the Bituminous Coal Commission, it does not show the earnings under the wage scale in effect from 1920 to 1922 and similar data are not available for this period.^ The main point in which we are interested, however, is the effect of instability and irregularity of employment upon the miners' earnings, and for light on this point a comparison of actual and possible earnings in the years from 1913 to 1918 is as useful as if it covered the most recent period. The wage data presented to the Bituminous Coal Commission by the United Mine Workers of America^ were based on the amounts paid as dues to the organization by its members in the bituminous mines. Through the offices of the coal companies by the so-called "check-off" system, the local unions of the miners in the various districts collect from their members a percentage of their gross earnings for the support of the national organization. This assessment affords a basis for calculating the annual average gross earnings of the miners. Out of his gross earnings the miner must pay for powder, and for certain other expenses in connection with his work. The actual contents of his pay envelope are, there- fore, less than the gross earnings upon which the union dues are calculated. Table 9 shows annual earnings as computed by the United Mine Workers from assessments and size of membership in each of the four districts constituting the central competitive field, and also the average number of days of mine operation in these districts as given by the Geological Survey for the six years from 1913 through 1918. The average annual earnings for the period of six years in Western Pennsylvania, where they were highest, were only $988. In the war year of 1918, when the days of operation were at a maximum of 260,' the average earnings in that district were 1 In a forthcoming report of the United States Bureau of Labor Statistics, data on earnings in this period will appear, but they are not available as this manuscript goes to press. ^ The same data were presented to the Senate Committee on Manufactures in the hearings on the Calder coal regulation bill, in testimony by William Green, Secretary-Treasurer of the United Mine Workers of America. His testimony has been published by the union in a pamphlet, — Statement of William Green, International Secretary-Treasurer, United Mine Workers of America, to the Senate Committee on Manufactures, January 24, 1921. ' The reason for the larger number of days of operation in Western Pennsyl- vania, not only in the war period but in every year considered in Table 9, in com- 33 $1 ,583. Indiana miners came next in that year with an average of $1,5 16, while in Illinois the men averaged $1,390 and in Ohio $1,364. TABLE 9.— AVERAGE ANNUAL EARNINGS OF MINERS AND AVER- AGE DAYS OF MINE OPERATION IN THE FOUR DISTRICTS OF THE CENTRAL COMPETITIVE FIELD, 1913 TO 1918 Western Illinois Indiana Ohio Pennsylvania Year Aver- Aver- Aver- Aver- Aver- Aver- Aver- Aver- age age age age age age age age annual days annual days annual days annual days earn- oper- earn- oper- earn- oper- earn- oper- ings ated ings ated ings ated ings ated 1913 $867 237 $705 189 $708 190 $766 206 1914 776 207 650 173 630 168 405 108 a 1915 781 210 672 179 672 179 528 142 1916 895 229 775 198 732 187 771 197 1917 1,027 251 995 243 904 221 859 210 1918 1,583 260 1,390 228 1,516 249 1,364 224 Average $988 232 $865 201 $860 199 $782 181 » Low number of days operated in Ohio in 1914 is partly explained by the strike in Ohio mines in that year. The average annual earnings varied from state to state with differences in the number of days of mine operation. The simple average for the six years was lowest in Ohio, $782 with 181 days of operation, as compared with Indiana's $860 and 199 days, Illinois' $865 and 201 days, and the maximum of $988 and 232 days in Western Pennsylvania. Differences from year to year in days of operation are also re- flected directly in differences in earnings. In the period covered in Table 9, the miners of the central competitive field received in- creases in their rates of pay in 1914, 1916, and twice in 1917. In spite of the increase in rates in 1914, the average wages were lower in 1914 and in 1915 than they had been in 1913. This was evidently because the days of mine operation decreased in 1914 and 1915 owing to the business depression in those years. The parison with other states, is probably the wider market for coal of this district, which includes Canada, New England, and the entire Atlantic seaboard, as well as the iron, steel and other industries of Pennsylvania. 34 significant point is that the average annual income of miners, like that of wage-earners in other irregular industries, is reduced by lack of opportunity for employment, and irregularity of work may more than nullify increases in rates of pay. This should not be understood to mean that increases in rates of pay are unimportant to the miner, or that he can be indifferent to decreases. Quite the contrary is true. The fact that he works so much less than full time is his justification for seeking higher rates. Aside from the effect of irregular employment upon earnings, which Table 9 has been used to indicate, the facts are important as showing actual annual income. To be sure they are averages, and they are compiled by one side in the wage controversy, the miners. How closely they correspond to the operators' figures will be shown later. Meanwhile it is interesting to compare them with data for 1919 derived from the United States Census. These are for the same states, except that the census figures are for the whole of Pennsylvania and not merely the western district. In 1919, according to these calculations, the average earnings of the miners in Pennsylvania was $1,318 and the days of operation 218; in Illinois $1,110 in 160 days; in Indiana $1,062 in 148 days; and in Ohio $1,102 in 164 days.i These earnings are distinctly lower for each state than those given by the union for 1918. The year 1918 was more prosper- ous for the miner than 1919, because he had more days of work and this would account mainly for the differences. Certainly it does not appear that the union understated the miners' earnings in order to make a case for an increase. The data both from the union and from the United States Census give no evidence of high annual earnings, even in Western Pennsylvania, where the earn- ings were highest.^ In order to picture the effect upon income of the loss of so many working days, which characterizes the industry, the facts about ' Fourteenth Census of the United States, Mines and Quarries, 1919, Bulle- tins for Pennsylvania, pp. 16 and 17; Ohio, pp. 6 and 7; Indiana, pp. 10 and 11; Illinois, pp. 14 and IS. The average earnings were ascertained by dividing the total wages paid in the year by the average number of wage-earners in 1 months, January to October, 1919. This avoided the months affected by the strike, November and December, 1919, when the number employed was not normal. The data on days of operation were supplied by the Geological Survey. ' Earnings are affected by conditions in the mines, such as thickness of the seam of coal, efficiency of machinery, availability of mine cars, etc. To some degree conditionsare equalized by the differentials in rates which are agreed upon in applying the general wage scale to a particular district. 35 average annual earnings in Table 9 are used as the basis for esti- mating the difference between the income which the miners actually earned and that which they would have received had they worked 304 days, losing no time because of the failure of the mine to operate. It should be pointed out that since Table 9 shows the average earnings, which were actually received by the miners, allowance is already made in those averages for all causes of lost working time, whether due to the idleness of the mine or to the absence of the miner from work for illness or other personal rea- sons. These averages include the earnings of men who were not employed regularly every day when the mine was in operation. In every wage-earning group days are lost through sickness, through change of job from one place of employment to another, or through other personal causes. The days of employment shown in Table 9 were not days worked by the men but days when the mines were open for work. How many days of work these miners in the central competitive field actually put in, we do not know, but the amount which the men individually failed to earn through not working every day when coal was coming over the tipple is already discounted in the averages of actual earnings. If then, from these statistics of the wages actually received by the men in the specified days of mine operation, the possible earnings be esti- mated for a full-time working year of 304 days, the difference be- tween actual and possible earnings represents fairly though roughly the tax upon the miners' income made solely by the idleness of the mine. The result of this estimate of possible full-time earnings as shown in Table 10 should be regarded merely as a vivid picture of what irregular employment means in reduced earnings. It has all the weakness of trying to prophesy what might happen if con- ditions of employment were radically different. Actually, greater stability might produce even more startling possibilities in in- creased output for the miner, or wage rates might be decreased without any disadvantage to the miner provided his opportunity for employment were substantially increased and made more certain. Thus Table 10 becomes a measure of present waste rather than a prophecy of a future possibility. According to Table 10, the miners in Illinois earned in the year 1913 only 62 per cent of the amount which would have been possi- ble had they dug as much coal per day in 304 days as they dug in 36 the 189 days when the mines were open. They actually averaged about $705 in annual earnings. At the same rates of pay and with the same regularity on their part, with full-time operation of the mines, they might have averaged $1,134. The difference was $429 in the year. In Western Pennsylvania, where the mines were open for work the largest number of days in the year, 237 in 1913, the estimated difference for each man was $246. In 1918, which was the year of maximum production during the war, the days of mine operation were decidedly higher than in 1913. TABLE 10.— ACTUAL EARNINGS AND ESTIMATED FULL YEAR EARNINGS OF MINERS IN THE FOUR DISTRICTS OF THE CENTRAL COMPETITIVE FIELD IN 1913 AND IN 1918 District Average annual earnings Days of mine operation Average earnings per day of mine operation Possible earnings at this rate in 304 days Difference between actual and full year earnings Per cent actual earnings are of full year earnings 1913 Illinois $705 189 $3.73 $1,134 $429 62 Indiana 708 190 3.73 1,134 426 62 Ohio 766 206 3.72 1,131 365 68 Western Pa. 867 237 3.66 1,113 246 78 1918 Illinois $1,390 228 $6.10 $1,854 $464 75 Indiana 1,516 249 6.09 1,851 335 82 Ohio 1,364 224 6.09 1,851 487 74 Western Pa. 1,583 260 6.09 1,851 268 86 Nevertheless, though higher basic rates and more regular work resulted in higher average earnings in 1918 than in 1913, the days of operation were still considerably less than a full working year, and the actual earnings were less than the estimated possible earnings for 304 days by $268 per miner in Western Pennsylvania, $335 in Indiana, $464 in Illinois, and $487 in Ohio. The estimated possible annual earnings in 1918 were $1,854 in Illinois and $1,851 in each of the other districts. Operators' Statistics of Earnings The National Coal Association, on behalf of the operators, submitted to the President's Bituminous Coal Commission data 37 regarding the earnings of miners in certain selected mines in the ten months from January to October, 1919. These mines were located in the same districts, the central competitive field, for which the statistics of the union were given though they were not for the same year. The operators stated that many of the men did not take full advantage of the opportunity to work while the mines were open and that this voluntary idleness accounted for low earnings. In their statistical tables they classified the earn- ings separately for several groups, according to the regularity of their attendance at work on days when the mines were operating. The number of calendar days each mine loaded coal was taken as " 100 per cent opportunity for labor to work." A certain pro- portion of the men in each occupation were recorded as "working more days than the mine loaded coal," which means that these men worked in the mine every day of mine operation and also on days when coal was not being hauled out. The operators' figures were for daily and monthly earnings, classified to show the "percentage of full opportunity" which each group worked. We have compiled from the tables, which the operators submitted, figures showing the earnings of those men only who worked "more days than the mine loaded coal." The average daily earnings of this group were closely similar to those of the group "working from 75 to 100 per cent of full oppor- tunity," but they were distinctly higher than the daily earnings of the men who worked less regularly during the time that the mines were operating. We have used in Table 11 the average earnings of the group working at least all the days the mines were open, because their wages presumably show the maximum opportunity for earnings offered to the men by these mines in 1919. According to the table, the machine miners, who are relatively few in number, had the highest earnings and they averaged daily $7.07 in these fields. The hand miners averaged $6.34 daily, the loaders $5.99 and the day laborers inside the mine $5.13. The highest average in any field included in the table for machine miners working "full opportunity" was $8.72 a day and the low- est, $5.32. Hand miners averaged $7.28 daily in the best field, and $4.90 in the field of lowest average earnings. The union's figures showed a daily average for all occupations in 1918 of $6.09 in three states and $6.10 in the fourth. The operators did not give a general average for all occupations but 38 the range of their averages for the four groups of "inside" mine employes in 11 sub-divisions of the central competitive field was from $4.86 to $8.72 for those groups only who worked the full time that the mines were open. The resemblance between the operators' figures and the daily averages obtained in Table 10 from the union data is sufficiently close to indicate that the union did not underestimate the annual earnings. In making this com- parison of daily earnings in 1918 and 1919 it should be recalled that the wage rates remained the same during those two years; TABLE 11.— AVERAGE DAILY EARNINGS OF MINERS WORKING FULL OPPORTUNITY DURING THE TEN MONTHS, JANUARY TO OCTOBER, 1919, IN SELECTED MINES IN THE FIELDS COMPRISING THE CENTRAL COMPETITIVE FIELD, BY FIELDS a Field Number of Hand Loaders Machine Inside day mines miners mmers labor Pittsburgh Thick Vein 7 $7.15 $5.77 $8.04 $5.21 Pittsburgh Thin Vein 14 6.02 5.90 6.80 5.23 Eastern Ohio 18 6.06 5.55 6.15 5.22 Southern Ohio 32 7.28 5.95 7.04 5.04 Indiana 23 7.20 6.93 7.47 5.21 Southern Illinois' IS 7.14 7.88 5.37 Southern Springfield 9 6.53 6.62 7.60 5.04 Northern Springfield 9 5.54 5.56 5.32 5.05 Fulton-Peoria 6 6.23 5.41 8.72 5.01 Northern Illinois 4 4.90 4.86 6.40 4.89 Fifth and Ninth Districts, 111. 13 6.46 6.22 6.36 5.18 Average 11 fields $6.34 $5.99 $7.07 $5.13 Highest field 7.28 7.14 8.72 5.37 Lowest field 4.90 4.86 5.32 4.89 Annual earnings at these rates in 249 days, the average number of days bituminous mines in the United States operated in 1918 Average 11 fields Highest field Lowest field $1579 $1492 $1760 1813 1778 2171 1220 1210 1325 $1277 1337 1218 • Compiled from tables furnished by the Bureau of Coal Economics, National Coal Associa- tion, showing average daily earnings as reported by the operators of selected mines in each field, by occupations, and by percentage of full opportunity worked. The number of days each mine operated is counted as full opportunity. The operators made no statement of annual earnings. If their daily averages be multiplied by the average days of mine opera- 39 tion in 1918/ as is done at the bottom of Table 11, the resulting range of average annual earnings is from a maximum of $2,171 for the most regularly employed of the machine miners in the field of highest earnings to $1,210 for the loaders in the field of lowest earnings; while the average in all fields is $1,579 for hand miners and $1,492 for loaders. Absenteeism The chief difference in the testimony regarding earnings offered by operators and union officials to the President's Bitu- minous Coal Commission was that the operators stressed the effect of voluntary idleness of the miner, which they contended was the chief reason for low earnings. We have already noted that in their statistics of earnings the operators classified the daily wages according to the time which the miners worked in pro- portion to the days the mines were open. Table 12 shows the TABLE 12.— ADVANTAGE TAKEN OF FULL OPPORTUNITY TO WORK BY EMPLOYES IN SELECTED BITUMINOUS COAL MINES IN THE CENTRAL COMPETITIVE FIELD IN THE TEN MONTHS, JANUARY TO OCTOBER, 1919 Average number of men working specified portion of days the mines loaded coal each month Less than 25 per cent 25 to 49 per cent 50 to 74 per cent 75 to 100 per cent More than 100 per cent Total Miners Company men 1,650 1,158 2,989 1,126 3,457 1,005 16,808 4,329 1,677 7,030 26,581 14,648 Per cent Miners Company men 6.2 7.9 11.3 7.7 13.0 6.9 63.2 29.5 6.3 48.0 100.0 100.0 proportion of miners and of "company men" who worked the various percentages of "full opportunity," according to the operators' reports. Miners here include only the men who dig coal, — the hand and machine miners and the loaders. "Company men" are the other groups of mine employes who are paid at daily or monthly rates. ' The year 1918 is used in order to make possible comparison with the figures given by the union for that year. 40 Thus, the group who worked more days than the mines loaded coal, and for whom the statistics of earnings have already been given, constituted 6.3 per cent of the miners, but nearly half of the company men. The largest group of miners worked 75 to 100 per cent of the days that the mines were open. A special inquiry would be necessary to analyze the causes of absenteeism. The Bituminous Coal Commission in its final re- port to the President pointed out a weakness in these figures of the operators, and made the following comment upon them : "The contention of the operators has been that the miners do not make full use of the opportunities for labor afforded them and that those of the miners who work at least three- fourths of the available time earn sufficient wages. In support of this contention the operators submitted figures collected from a representative number of mines showing the number of men working each specified number of days, with their daily and monthly wages. "We realize that a certain proportion of time is lost by the miners voluntarily. At the same time, we find that the figures submitted by the operators do not afford a measure of the amount of time so lost by the miners, for the reason that these figures make no allowance for the turnover. In these tabulations every man who worked at a mine at any time during the month is counted on the same basis as one who was on the roll every day the mine was in operation, regardless of the fact that many miners may have obtained employment on the last day of the month or been discharged at the end of the first day or moved to another mine in the middle of the month or died some time during the period. "A man who worked 13 days out of a possible 26 at one mine and 13 at another would be counted in these figures as two men with an aggregate voluntary absenteeism of 26 days or 50 per cent of the 52 working-days for the two mines. "^ The report then goes on to discuss the psychological causes of absenteeism : "But even after allowance has been made for all the factors ' United States Bituminous Coal Commission, Majority and Minority Re- ports to the President, 1920, p. 44. 41 entering into the problem a margin remains between the number of days that the miners actually work and the num- ber when they have an opportunity to work. A fair inter- pretation of this margin is that an irregular industry breeds irregular habits among the workers. When the men are not accustomed to going to work regularly every morning the incentive for regularity becomes less potent and a certain amount of absenteeism inevitably results. This is the psy- chological factor of irregularity, and it may be expected that it will disappear in large measure as the industry becomes more stable."^ These statements of the Commission can be supplemented by the results of a special investigation made in 1919 by the U. S. Bureau of Labor Statistics. Careful records were kept of the actual hours of labor of the men in the mines investigated. The proportions of full time worked by the mines and by the men are shown in Table 13 and pictured in Diagram 8. TABLE 13.— AVERAGE FULL-TIME HOURS, HOURS OF MINE OPERATION, AND HOURS WORKED BY MINERS IN SELECTED BITUMINOUS MINES, IN ONE HALF-MONTH PAY-ROLL PERIOD, IN 1919 a Average full-time hours Average hours of mine operation Average hours miners worked Hours lost by miners out of Occupation Full time Actual time mines operated Hand miners Machine miners Loaders 102.5 104.3 104.7 71.1 77.9 81.2 60.0 73.2 65.3 42.5 31.1 39.4 11.1 4.7 15.9 * Data from Wages and Hours of Labor in the Coal Mining Industry in 1'919, United states Bureau of Labor Statistics, Montlily Labor Review, December, 1919, p. 223. In making the inquiry the Bureau of Labor Statistics defined "full time" as "the number of hours which are regarded by employer and employe as constituting a day's work." This was multiplied by the number of days constituting the full half- ' United States Bituminous Coal Commission, Majority and Minority Re- ports to the President, 1920, p. 45. 42 month pay-roll period, and the result constituted "full-time hours" in the period considered.^ Per Cent of Full Time Miners Mines worked operated Full time 100 Hand miners Machine miners Loaders 100 100 Diagram 8. — Time worked by miners and time the mines operated com- pared with full time The significant facts of the table are summed up as follows in the report of the Bureau of Labor Statistics^: "From the figures given . . . the immediate re- sponsibility for idle time may be roughly apportioned be- tween the management and the employes. Thus, the aver- age full-time hours of all mines in which hand miners were found were 102.5 for the half month. Hand miners actually worked an average of 60 hours. The difference, 42.5 hours, was the amount of lost time on the part of the hand miners. But of these 42.5 idle hours there were on the average 31.4 hours during which the mines were not in operation. For that amount of idleness, therefore, the operators were im- mediately responsible.' The remaining 11.1 hours of idle- ness represent the time during which the mines were in operation and opportunity for work was given of which the employes failed to take advantage. For that much idleness, therefore, the miners were immediately responsible. * United States Bureau of Labor Statistics. Monthly Labor Review, December, 1919, p. 210. 2 Ibid., p. 224. ' Presumably this statement is a broad and general one, merely indicating that the individual miner could not be charged with voluntary idleness when the mine was shut down. Of course, there are reasons for the failure to operate a mine, — shortage of railroad transportation, or "no market," or physical con- ditions in the mine (fire or flood, for instance), or sometimes a strike, — for which it is not fair to hold the operator "immediately responsible." But in relation to the point at issue, namely, voluntary absenteeism of miners, the distinction is clear between operators ' responsibility and miners ' responsibility for time lost. 43 "For all machine miners combined the figures show average hours of idleness 31.1, of which the operators were responsible for 26.4 hours and the miners for 4.7 hours. The corresponding figures for loaders are 39.4, 23.5, and 15.9, respectively." Earnings in 1921 The award of the President's Bituminous Coal Commission resulted in increases of 27 per cent, on a general average, in ton- nage rates, and a dollar a day for day workers or so-called "com- pany men." In August, 1920, the operators granted an addi- tional $1.50 a day to company men, making the standard rate for them $7.50. These increases in rates would have increased the annual earnings of miners had employment continued to be no more irregular than in the past. No thoroughgoing inquiry into earnings in bituminous mines has been made since these increases took efTect,^ and we can estimate only very generally how the miner has fared. As has been shown in Diagram 4, the year 1920 was better than 1919, with 220 days of employment as compared with 195 in 1919. This greater regularity with higher rates of pay doubtless brought the miner a higher income in 1920 than in 1918 or 1919. The year 1921, however, was the worst in 30 years, with only 170 days of employment (if the preliminary estimate of the Geological Survey remains unchanged). Thus the average days of mine operation decreased about 23 per cent in 1921 as compared with 1920, and 32 per cent as compared with 1918 with its 249 days of operation, so that the earnings in 1921 could hardly have averaged as high as in 1918, even with the higher rates in 1921. Further light on irregular operation in 1921 and early in 1922 is given by an analysis of the working time in bituminous mines made by the United States Bureau of Labor Statistics from ' See footnote, p. 33, for reference to an investigation by the U. S. Bureau of Labor Statistics which is not yet published. In reply to our request for recent data the National Coal Association wrote that "the National Coal Association has not collected any wage stafistics of bituminous coal mine workers since the award of the Bitummous Coal Commission in 1919." In some states estimates have been made by officials of state bureaus but these are not satisfactory because they represent no analysis of pay-rolls. The Illinois Coal Operators' Association has recently begun the periodical collection of data on employment from its members and reference will be made to these in the text. We have been unable to discover any information concerning earnings in non-union districts. 44 data furnished by the Geological Survey for each week from October, 1921, to February, 1922.i In no week of that period did more than 10.7 per cent of the mines give employment for 48 hours or more. The number of mines reporting ranged from 2,086 to 2,584. In only two weeks in that period did more than 20 per cent of the mines work more than 40 hours a week and the maximum group working more than 40 hours in any week was only 25.1 per cent of the whole number. The Bureau says of these figures: "The number of mines reporting varied each week, and the figures are not given as being a complete representation of all mines, but are believed to fairly represent the conditions as to irregularity of work in the bituminous mines of the country." The Illinois Coal Operators' Association has been issuing statis- tical tables for bi-weekly periods since the autumn of 1921. Of those which its secretary furnished us, from October 16, 1921, through January 15, 1922 (with one missing for the two weeks ending November 30), none covered more than 29 per cent of the mines of Illinois. Full data for wages are not presented; all miners earning less than $50 in the two weeks' period are omitted from consideration and the tables give the average earnings only of those earning $50 or more in two weeks, together with the per- centage which they constitute of the whole force. The average earnings in two weeks of these employes are reported as $92.76 for the two weeks ending October 31, 1921; $86.85 for Novem- ber 15; $82.46 for December 15; $80.81 for December 31; and $79.36 for January 15, 1922. These appear to be gross earnings, from which must be deducted the amounts payable for powder, small tools, and other "occupational charges." These average charges are stated. This higher paid group is recorded as con- stituting a varying percentage of the total employes, from 91.3 per cent on October 31, 1921, to 59.5 per cent on December 15. The Association intends to publish fuller details, but in their pres- ent form the data do not include in the picture the group with lower earnings which in one of the two-week periods included 40 out of each 100 miners. TJieir earnings would depress the aver- age. Moreover, the data do not yet cover a period long enough to show the effects of irregular employment in a year. The Associa- tion in its publications is emphasizing " the excess number of men ' Data of U. S. Bureau of Labor Statistics to be published in the Monthly Labor Review for April, 1922. 45 detained in the industry," and the fact that this results in lower average earnings than if the number were less.^ The United Mine Workers have no comprehensive figures on earnings since 1918, but data have been given by W. Jett Lauck, from information supplied by the United Mine Workers for the men actually employed in a few districts. According to these figures, the average earnings during the year 1921 were only $763 in the Pittsburgh district; $550 in the Ohio district; $500 in West Virginia (New River) ; and $420 in Tennessee.^ The Miners ' Estimates of Cost of Living These facts about annual earnings are significant only if they are measured in terms of the cost of living. In the hearings be- fore the Bituminous Coal Commission the miners ' representatives gave two estimates of the cost of living, one for a so-called "mini- mum of subsistence, " and the other for a "minimum of comfort. " For the minimum of subsistence an annual income of $1,603 was estimated as necessary, in January, 1920. This was to cover barest living necessities for a family of five. The detailed items of this budget were not published, but the total estimate was based on a number of earlier investigations in industrial centers revised to cover subsequent changes in retail prices. The "minimum of comfort" budget, which was estimated with a view to the needs of families living in mining communities, called for an annual income of $2,244. This latter estimate was prepared by Professor W. F. Ogburn of Columbia University, at the request of the United Mine Workers. Table 14 shows the principal items of this budget. This budget is simply an estimate. Moreover, it was prepared at a time of higher prices than the present. The cost of living in mining communities is one of the many important subjects con- nected with human relations in this industry about which exact facts are not available. The estimate made by Professor Og- burn serves, however, to illuminate the effects of irregular opera- tion of the mines upon the lives of the miners. The miners might earn a reasonably comfortable living if they could work the 'See, for instance, the pamphlet, "Coal, a Few Things the Public Wants to Know," issued by the Illinois Coal Operators' Association. (Undated.) ^Signed article, by W. Jett Lauck, with head-line, "Says Miners Wish More Work, Not Less and Must Get It," in Baltimore Sun, March 23, 1922. 46 year round. The lack of opportunity to work so many days in a year reduces their income to what the miners contend is often not even a bare subsistence. TABLE 14.— COST OF A HEALTH AND COMFORT BUDGET FOR ONE YEAR FOR A FAMILY OF FIVE IN MINING COMMUNI- TIES AT PRICE LEVELS OF JANUARY, 1920" Food $801.38 Clothing Husband $146.81 Wife 130.92 Boy (11 yrs.) 77.40 Girl (S yrs.) 66.13 Boy (2 yrs.) 34.00 455.26 Housing, fuel, and light 286.00 Miscellaneous 576.30 Total $2,118.94 Average saving on garden and chiclcens 15.00 $2,103.94 Explosives, smithing, etc 140.00 Total $2,243.94 * Prepared by W. F. Ogburn and presented by the United Mine Workers of America in their report, The Case of the Bituminous Coal Mine Workers, to the Bituminous Coal Commis- sion in 1920. In brief, the alternative to raising rates of pay is to increase the regularity of the opportunity for work at the present rates. The miner might well ask for a guaranteed minimum of employment as more important than higher rates of pay. The necessity for regarding a minimum of employment as a fixed charge upon the industry would probably make operators more reluctant to open new mines or unduly to enlarge those already open. To make employment regular is important not only for the miner, but for the economical conduct of the industry. Capital, as well as men, is wastefully used when money and energy are invested on a scale which could produce much more coal than can be sold. Summary 1. The capacity of the bituminous mines to produce coal has been conservatively estimated as 700,000,000 or 800,000,000 tons a year compared with actual requirements of about 500,000,000 tons. 2. The bituminous coal mines have operated on an average of only 214 days a year in the 32 years from 1890 through 1921. If 47 we accept 304 days as a full working year, the lost days of employ- ment in bituminous mines have averaged 90 in a year. 3. Of these lost days 37 per cent, according to the estimates of the United States Geological Survey, have been due to the over- development of the industry. The short working year has con- tinued through times of prosperity. The excess of capacity over production in the bituminous coal mines makes employment intermittent for miners even when business in general is most prosperous. 4. The production of coal has increased from 120,600,000 tons per year in the five-year period from 1890 through 1894 to nearly 507,000,000 tons a year from 1915 through 1919. The number of employes has increased from an average of less than 200,000 in 1890 to about 600,000 in 1921. The days of employment in a year have shown no appreciable increase except temporarily dur- ing the period of the war. The increased demand for coal has resulted in opening new mines and employing more miners rather than in giving more regular employment in the mines already operating. 5. Seasonal variations, according to the United States Geolog- ical Survey, account for 47 per cent of the lost days in bituminous coal mining; In the period from 1913 through 1921 the excess of production of coal in the month of greatest output over that of the month of least output in each year varied usually from 11,000,000 to 16,000,000 tons or more and was never less than 6,900,000 tons. These seasonal variations result in keeping more men in the in- dustry than would be needed if work were more evenly distributed throughout the year. This excess in numbers of men employed in the industry tends in turn to make employment more irregular and uncertain, 6. With employment intermittent and uncertain, the bitumin- ous miners are forced to seek higher rates of wages to offset the periods of idleness and lack of earnings. The mine workers re- ported to the Bituminous Coal Commission that in 1918, which was a year of unusual regularity of employment owing to the war demands, the average annual earnings of their members in the central competitive field varied from $1,364 in Ohio to a maxi- mum of $1,583 in Western Pennsylvania. Data derived from the United States Census indicate that in 1919 the average annual earnings of the miners in the same area varied from $1,062 in 48 Indiana to a maximum of $1,318 ini Pennsylvania. Estimates of annual earnings derived from average daily earnings reported by the National Coal Association to the President's Bituminous Coal Commission indicate that the average annual earnings in the central competitive field for men working the full time of mine operation were about $1,277 for inside day labor, $1,492 for load- ers, $1,579 for hand miners and $1,760 for machine miners. The general average increase of 27 per cent granted by the Bituminous Coal Commission would have increased these earnings had em- ployment continued to be no more irregular than in the past. Even in the comparatively prosperous year of 1920, however, employment was 12 per cent less than in 1918, while in 1921 employment decreased 23 per cent as compared with 1920, and 32 per cent as compared with 1918. This shows that opportunity for employment as measured by the number of days the mines are operated is of primary importance to the miner, since irregular employment nullifies the advantage of increased rates of pay. 7. Estimates of the cost of living, prepared for the United Mine Workers, and presented by them to the Bituminous Coal Com- mission, showed that in January, 1920, $1,603 was required for a budget to provide a "minimum of subsistence" for a family of five. The cost of providing a "minimum of health and comfort" for families living in mining communities was estimated as re- quiring an annual income of $2,244. Even in the prosperous year of 1918 the miners' average annual earnings were not equal to the "minimum of subsistence," except for the annual income of a comparatively small group of machine miners employed "full opportunity," as estimated from the operators' figures, and their earnings were nearly $500 less in a year than the miners' "minimum of comfort" budget. An allowance for a decrease in the cost of living and an increase in the miners' rates of pay probably would not cover the difference between a reasonable budget and the annual income of the miner in his short working year. 8. Present conditions in the bituminous coal industry render precarious and difficult the lives of more than half a million miners and their wives and children. The adjustment of wage rates is sure to produce conflict and bitterness until the equally impor- tant questions of stability for the industry and security of employ- ment for the miner receive effective attention from operators and 49 public. Greater security in employment must be made the foun- dation of better human relations in this industry. Wasteful over-development is a problem of organization of the industry as a whole in which either the operators or the pub- lic must take the initiative. The cost of living of everybody is increased by disorganization in the basic industry of coal. The public, the operator and the investor, and the coal miner have a common interest in making bituminous mining efficient and economical. SO Cornell University Library HD 8039.M62U671 The coal miners' insecurity; facts about 3 1924 001 223 282 1 DATE DUE f , I ' 4^«fl f^DEC L6'el 1 ^ y^ ^ L_iik>- JAN 2 3 2003 GAYLORD ,^