[ VWzuay 4 f-tt-t 1 Cornell University Library HD4966.R12U67 Railroad wages and working rules ... Nat 3 1924 013 929 470 » Railroad Wages and Working Rules Research Report Number 46 February, 1922 National Industrial Conference Board THE CENTURY CO. NEW YORK PUBLISHERS Hntt GfoUeae of Agticultttre Sit (HorwcU ImuetaitB atJisita, N." B. lEibtarg RAILROAD WAGES AND WORKING RULES Research Report Number 46 February, 1922 National Industrial Conference Board THE CENTURY CO. NEW YORK PUBLISHERS Copyright, 1922 Foreword Recognition of the fact that the prosperity of American industry is intimately bound up with the efficiency and sound development of the railroad system of the country has led the National Industrial Conference Board to undertake a study of certain aspects of the railroad situation which are of special concern to American industrial life. The wages and working rules of railroad workers are the most important of these not only because of their vital relation to the railroad industry, but because of their present prominence in public attention. The results of this study are presented in this report. Many of the matters here dealt with have received extended discussion before governmental bodies, but the essen- tial features of the railroad problem, submerged as they have been by voluminous technical controversies, have not been clearly fixed in the public mind. The National Industrial Conference Board has therefore undertaken to bring together the essential facts regarding wages and working rules and to present them in a way which will set them clearly before those engaged in industry and before the public at large. Cornell University Library The original of tiiis book is in tine Cornell University Library. There are no known copyright restrictions in the United States on the use of the text. http://www.archive.org/details/cu31924013929470 CONTENTS PAGE Introduction 1 Chapter I. Summary and General Conclusions 4 II. Historical Introduction 11 Early Provisions for Settling Disputes 11 The Newlands Act 12 The Adamson Law 12 Federal Control 14 The National Agreements 16 The Transportation Act of 1920 17 The Railroad Labor Board 19 III. Working Rules 22 The National Agreements 22 Classifications 28 Hours of Service 32 Overtime and Calls 34 Seniority 40 Protection and Comfort 43 Discipline and Grievances 44 Piece Work 46 Apprentices 49 Female Employes 54 Objections of the Railroads toStandard Rules . . 55 IV. Wages 70 Introduction 70 Train Service Labor 74 Shop Labor 85 Clerical Employees 99 Telegraphers 103 Unskilled Labor 107 All Railroad Wage Earners Except Executives, Clerks, etc 112 Summary 118 V. The Economic Condition of the Railroads and Its Effect on Industry and Commerce 123 V LIST OF TABLES AND CHARTS TABLES PAGE Table 1: Number of Casualties, by Occupations, per 1,000,000 Man-Hours, in Various Classes of Railroad Service (facing) 76 Table 2: Total Accidents to Train Employes, 1889- 1920 78 Table 3: Employment, Wages, and Hours, Train Serv- ice, Class I Railroads 80 Table 4: Comparative Wages of Skilled and Un- skilled Train Service Labor, Class I Rail- roads (facing) 82 Table 5: Employment, Wages, and Hours, Skilled Shop Labor, Class I Railroads, and Skilled Male Labor, Foundries and Machine Shops 91 Table 6: Employment, Wages, and Hours, Machin- ists, Boilermakers, and Blacksmiths, Class I Railroads 93 Table 7: Employment, Wages, and Hours, Carmen, Class I Railroads 96 Table 8: Employment, Wages, and Hours, Clerks, Class I Railroads 102 Table 9. Employment, Wages, and Hours, Telegraph- ers and Telephoners Operating Blocks and Interlockers, Class I Railroads, and Com- mercial Morse Operators 105 Table 10: Employment, Wages, and Hours, All Un- skilled Labor, Class I Railroads, and All Unskilled Labor, Manufacturing 110 Table 11: Employment, Wages, and Hours of all Wage Earners (Except Executives, Clerks, Fore- men, etc.) Class I Railroads, and Compo- site Male Skilled and Unskilled Labor, Manufacturing Industries 116 Table 12: Class I Railroads, Operating Revenues, Oper- ating Expenses, Total Payroll, Total Man-Hours, Employment, Changes Rela- tive to July, 1914, as Base 100 124 Chart 1 : Chart 2: Chart 3: Chart 4: Chart 5: Chart 6: Chart 7: Chart 8: Chart 9: Chart 10: CHARTS PAGE "Money" Earnings and "Real' Earnings, Train Service Labor, Class I Railroads, Changes Relative to July, 1914, as Base 100 81 "Money" Earnings and "Real" Earnings, Road Passenger Service Firemen, Class I Railroads, Changes Relative to July 14, 1914, as Base 100 83 "Money" Earnings and "Real" Earnings, Road Passenger Service Engineers, Class I Railroads, Changes Relative to July, 1914, as Base 100 84 "Money" Earnings and "Real" Earnings, Road Passenger Service Brakemen, Class I Railroads, Changes Relative to July, 1914, as Base 100 86 "Money" Earnings and "Real" Earnings, Road Passenger Service Conductors, Class I Railroads, Changes Relative to July, 1914, as Base 100 87 "Money" Earnings and "Real" Earnings, Skilled Shop Labor, Class I Railroads, Changes Relative to July, 1914, as Base 100 92 "Money" Earnings and "Real" Earnings, Locomotive Crafts, Class I Railroads, Changes Relative to July, 1914, as Base 100 94 "Money" Earnings and "Real" Earnings, Carmen, Class I Railroads, Changes Rela- tive to July, 1914, as Base 100 95 Hourly Earnings, Skilled Shop Labor, Class I Railroads, Compared with Skilled Labor in Foundries and Machine Shops 97 "Money" Earnings and "Real" Earnings, Clerks, Class I Railroads, Changes Rela- tive to July, 1914, as Base 100 101 vii CUARTS— Continued PAGE Chart 11: Hourly Earnings, Telegraphers, Class I Rail- roads, Compared with Commercial Tele- graphers 106 Chart 12: "Money" Earnings and "Real" Earnings, Telegraphers and Telephoners Operating Blocks and Interlockers, Class I Railroads, Changes Relative to July, 1914, as Base 100 108 Chart 13: Hourly Earnings, Unskilled Labor, Class I Railroads, Compared with Unskilled Labor in 24 Manufacturing Industries HI Chart 14: "Money" Earnings and "Real" Earnings, Unskilled Labor, Class I Railroads, Changes Relative to July, 1914, as Base 100 113 Chart 15: "Money" Earnings and "Real" Earnings, All Labor, Class I Railroads, Changes Relative to July, 1914, as Base 100 115 Chart 16: Hourly Earnings, All Labor, Class I Rail- roads, Compared with Male Labor in 24 Manufacturing Industries 117 Chart 17: Hourly Earnings, Train Service Labor, Skilled Shop Labor, and Unskilled Labor, Class I Railroads 120 Chart 18: Hourly Earnings, Train Service Labor, Skilled Shop Labor, and Unskilled Labor, Class I Railroads, Changes Relative to July, 1914, as Base 100 121 Chart 19: Operating Revenues, Operating Expenses, Total Payroll, Total Man-Hours, Employ- ment, Class I Railroads, Changes Relative to July, 1914, as Base 100 126 Railroad Wages and Working Rules INTRODUCTION The purpose of this investigation was to present a survey of wages and working rules among the various classes of rail- road labor and to compare wages and conditions of employment of railroad employes with those of the employes of other indus- tries performing similar classes of service. The statistics of wages, hours of work, and employment contained in Research Report No. 45 of the National Industrial Conference Board, covering twenty-four manufacturing industries, have been used as a basis for a comparison with those of the railroads. As several classes of railroad labor have no counterparts in indus- try, comparisons have been made only between earnings of railroad shop employes and those of employes of the foundry and machine shop industry; of railroad telegraphers and com- mercial telegraphers; of unskilled railroad labor and male un- skilled labor in manufacturing industries; and between a com- posite of earnings of all railroad wage earners, with the excep- tion of clerks and supervisory forces, and earnings of all male wage earners in manufacturing industries generally. The data on wages contained in Research Report No. 45 extend from July, 1914, up to and including June, 1921, while the statistics of wages of railroad employes which have been taken from the reports of the Interstate Commerce Com- mission extend from July 1, 1914 up to and including October, 1921. Research Report No. 45 does not include detailed figures for the period between July, 1914 and June, 1920, and the tables and charts in the present report, showing the com- parisons between railroad wages and wages in other industries, can reflect only the trend of wages between these two dates in so far as the other industries are concerned. The figures for railroad wages during this period are the average earnings, either hourly or weekly, for the annual periods, but are based on three-month periods from January, 1920 up to July 1, 1921. From July 1 until the end of October, 1921, the figures for railroad wages are on a monthly basis. This difference in basis taken is explained by the fact that 1 the Interstate Commerce Commission's published reports give annual figures up to the end of 1919, and quarterly figures thereafter until July, 1921. Since then, these reports have been issued monthly instead of quarterly. In the main, the investigation has been confined to an analy- sis of conditions since July 1, 1921, and the earlier period back to 1914 has been presented only in so far as is necessary to provide the proper background. Following the general summary, the report has been divided into four parts, the first of which is an historical introduction, with a brief survey of the development of the situation as re- gards wages and working rules, and of the methods of settling disputes between the managements and the labor organiza- tions from July, 1914, until the establishment of the United States Railroad Labor Board in 1920. The third chapter is an analysis of the working rules of railroad employes as set forth in the National Agreements and the revised rules issued for the various classes of employes superseding the National Agreements, together with the ob- jections of the railroads to the rules. The fourth chapter is a survey of the earnings of railroad employes, with a comparison between their earnings and the earnings of employes in other industries engaged in similar occupations. The fifth chapter is a statement of the effect of adverse conditions in railroad service upon commerce and industry in general. The report deals first with money wages, which are to be distinguished from real wages, or the purchasing power of money wages. Where the term "earnings" is used it signifies the total wages derived by the laborer for his services during the period in question. Hourly earnings, as well as weekly earnings, are shown for each of the various classes. Hourly earnings are obtained by dividing the total payroll for each class by the total number of man-hours worked. A full state- ment of the manner in which weekly earnings are obtained is included in the introduction of Chapter IV. In the computation of real wages, the figures on the cost of living for the United States as a whole, compiled by the Na- tional Industrial Conference Board, have been used. In order to secure a basis of comparison with the railroad figures, and to show the trend of real wages as compared with money 2 wages, it has been assumed that the increases in the cost of living reported in the middle of each year were representative of the average for the year, through 1918. For 1919, the three increases shown on each of the three dates for which figures were collected have been averaged to secure the average for the year. For 1920 and the first half of 1921 the monthly figures ascertained by the National Industrial Conference Board have been averaged by quarters in order to permit proper comparison with the Interstate Commerce Com- mission figures, and from July, 1921 the monthly figures have been used. Until July 1, 1915 the Interstate Commerce Commission, in its published reports on compensation for railroad employes, classified all railroad labor into eighteen groups. On that date a new classification of sixty-eight groups was put into effect, and has been used as a basis for all subsequent reports until July 1, 1921. At this time a new classification contain- ing 148 groups was put into effect for the purpose of deter- mining the wages of each class. The Interstate Commerce Commission, in introducing the new classification, stated that it was not merely a subdivision of the old classification but that new groups had been found which demanded separate treatment. The figures of the old classification are, therefore, not strictly comparable with those of the new. It has been necessary carefully to scrutinize the new classification in order to make such groupings as may be fairly compared with the groupings of the old classification. CHAPTER I SUMMARY AND GENERAL CONCLUSIONS The importance of the railroads not only as regards the large number of workers directly employed by them, 'but from the point of view of their relations to commerce and industry in general, makes their economic condition of vital concern to the country at large. The extent to which the condition of the railroads has been affected by increases in wage rates, by increases in payroll due to the National Agreements covering working conditions, imposed upon them by the Federal Administration during the period of government control, and by the rules issued by the United States Railroad Labor Board in revising the National Agreements, is illustrated by Chart 19^ and Table 12^. These show the increases in operating expenses, total payroll, oper- ating revenues, and total man-hours since 1914. Up to the third quarter of 1920, operating revenues increased only 151% over 1914, while operating expenses increased 237% and the total payroll 271% in the same period. In this period, while employment increased 58%, total man-hours in- creased only 41%. By October, 1921, operating revenues showed a net increase of 124% over 1914, operating expenses 136%, total payroll 151%, while employment showed a net gain of only 26% and man-hours a net gain of only 10% over 1914. Although revenues increased year by year during 1914- 1920, the proportion paid out for wages showed a relative increase until 192 1 , when , on account of the wage cut of July 1 , the amount left for expenses, other than taxes and payment of fixed charges, increased considerably over the previous years. The gap between the curves representing man-hours and employment, on the one hand, and operating expenses, operating revenues, and total payroll, on the other, indicates the extent of the burden put upon the railroads; for wages had increased more largely than revenues, thereby bringing about J See p. 126. » See p. 124. 4 a serious decline in net operating income. These facts lead to the conclusion that the economic position of the railroads has been severely affected by a disproportionate increase of wage costs and by a decline in relative labor efficiency. The latter factor has been largely the result of the working rules imposed upon the railroads through the National Agree- ments. The facts set forth in this report reveal that efficient management of the railroads has been seriously interfered with by provisions of the contract entered into between the Director General of Railroads and various labor organizations, during the period of Federal control of the railroads, and that revision of those rules by the United States Railroad Labor Board, after the roads were turned back to their owners in March, 1920, gave the railroads only partial relief. Although many rules have been changed as to wording, and some of the more objectionable of them have been entirely eliminated, the rules which put the heaviest burden upon the railroads have been retained practically without change. An examination of the rules reveals that those of classifica- tion compel the railroads to pay for certain unskilled and semi-skilled labor at the same rates paid to the most highly skilled employes. While the railroads were under Federal control, minimum rates were established for all men classified as mechanics, as helpers, and as apprentices. The classifications, as indicated in the ruleS, have classed as mechanics all employes who are able to perform only one of the various operations expected of a fully trained journeyman mechanic. In other industries a mechanic's rate would be paid only to men able to perform all of the operations expected of a broadly trained mechanic, while men able to perform only one or two of these operations would be paid at a lower rate. Many of the operations require little or no training, but under the railroad classification a man who works on any one operation is classified as a mechanic and paid mechanic's rates, although he may be little better than a common laborer. The rules on hours of service limit the period of the working day, and through their application to the starting time of shifts compel the railroads to pay out large amounts for time in which no work is actually performed. The rules on overtime and on calls for return to work after, or in advance of, the regular working day, as they stood in the 5 National Agreements, involved excessive payments for over- time work on the part of the railroads. The most burdensome of these rules have recently been revised for all classes by the United States Labor Board. The rules on seniority may be considered to have benefited the employes because they have secured to those longest in service first choice of better positions and insured the older men the privilege of being retained for a longer period at a time of reduction in forces. Moreover, so far as the seniority rules protect employes against unscrupulous or inefficient su- pervisors and favoritism in promotion, they serve a useful purpose. In general, however, the seniority rules have been detri- mental to the efficient management of railroads because they have resulted in a limitation of labor supply and the destruction of efficiency and personal initiative by reason of the fact that they practically guarantee promotion to employes in the course of time, whether efficient or not. The rules on discipline and grievances are, in the main, just and reasonable so far as they make for the protection of employes where disputes with the management arise; but so far as they tend to lead to the representation of the employe by outsiders in hearings before his superior officers, they raise serious problems. The rules on protection and comfort of employes work out to the benefit of both management and workers in securing healthful and sanitary conditions in shops and offices. Pro- visions for safety appliances have however, to a large extent, already been made by state laws, and the railroads, of their own initiative, have been very active in waging safety cam- paigns in order to make less hazardous the conditions of work in and around the railroads and their shops. The rules on apprentices are disadvantageous to efficiency and economy, in that they provide for long periods of training for some classes of employes who could develop the skill neces- sary for the proper performance of their duties in a much shorter time and at much less cost to the roads. This would seem to be particularly applicable to carmen, who in the opinion of railroad managements, have no need of a four-year period of training to fit them for their work. The Railroad Labor Board, in revising the shop craft rules, has done nothing to eliminate this condition. With regard to the wage status of railroad labor, the report shows that for all railroad wage earners, as well as for those classes directly comparable with similar classes of labor in manufacturing industry, the present position of railroad labor, as measured by either hourly or weekly real earnings, is above that of wage earners in manufacturing industry generally. The report shows that the average hourly earnings of all railroad wage earners, except executives, clerks, and man- agerial assistants, were 25.4 cents in 1914 and rose to 70.2 cents in November, 1920, indicating a net gain of 176%. After the wage cut of July, 1921, average hourly earnings fell to 58.9 cents, leaving a net gain over 1914 of 132% in actual hourly earnings. By contrast, the average hourly earnings of male labor in manufacturing industry generally, as shown in the extensive wage study by the National Industrial Conference Board,* were approximately one cent above the railroad figures in 1914 and increased more rapidly than those of railroad employes up to the beginning of 1919. At the end of June, 1921, however, average hourly earnings in manufacturing industry stood at 55.4 cents as compared with 68.2 cents for railroad labor, leaving a net gain over 1914 for industrial workers generally of only 113% as compared with 169% for railroad labor. What is more significant, however, in any comparison of earnings of railroad labor with those of other industrial workers, is the relative change in weekly earnings. Manu- facturing industry during the past two years has been working quite generally on greatly reduced time, while railroad labor is almost always subject to a large amount of overtime work which serves greatly to increase weekly earnings. In measur- ing the relative economic status of railroad and other labor, this difference, as indicated in comparative weekly earnings, must always be taken into account. Average weekly earnings of all railroad labor were $15.17 in 1914, with an average weekly employment of 59.7 hours. Weekly earnings increased to $36.88 in the third quarter of 1920, an increase of 143% despite a decline in the number of hours of weekly employment to 53.6. After the wage reduc- tion of July, 1921, average weekly earnings stood at $29.58, leaving a net gain over 1914 of 95% in average weekly earnings, • "Wages and Hours in American Industry. July, 1914 — July, 1921.'' Research Report No. 45, New York, December, 1921. 7 despite a further reduction in weekly employment to 50.2 hours. In contrast with these changes, average weekly, earn- ings of workers in manufacturing industry generally were $13.32 in July, 1914, with an average weekly employment of 51.3 hours, and in the third quarter of 1920 rose to $31.99, an increase of 140%, with a weekly employment of 49.5 hours. By July. 1921, they had fallen to $24.35, with a weekly employment of 44 hours, leaving a net gain in average weekly earnings of 83% over 1914. Taking into account the changes in the cost of living during these periods, the investigation shows that by July, 1921, the real hourly earnings of all railroad wage earners had increased 42% over 1914, as contrasted with a net gain of 32% in real hourly earnings for wage earners in manufacturing industry. Real weekly earnings of all railroad labor during this period, showed a net gain of 20% over 1914, as compared with a net gain of 13% for workers in manufacturing industry generally. For every class of railroad labor, where it has been possible to make comparisons, the earnings of the railroad employe show a greater rise since 1914 than those of the worker perform- ing a similar class of service in privately controlled industries. This is seen particularly in the changes in wages among skilled shop labor on the railroads, as compared with changes in wages for similar labor in foundries and machine shops in manufacturing industries. The hourly earnings of skilled railroad shop labor were 29.8 cents in July, 1914 and 76.3 cents in July, 1921, showing a net gain of 156% over 1914, as compared with a rise from 30.3 cents to 62.4 cents, or 102% for skilled labor in foundries and machine shops of private industry in June. Weekly earnings of railroad shop labor rose from $16.88 in July, 1914, to $35.50 in July, 1921, or 110% as compared with a rise from $14.76 to $24.90, or 72% for foundry and machine shop labor in June, 1921. Real hourly earnings of railroad shop labor in July, 1921, stood at 57% above 1914, as compared with a gain of 25% for foundry and machine shop workers. Real weekly earnings of railroad shop labor had increased 29% in July, 1921, as compared with a gain of 6% for similar general industrial labor. Unskilled railroad labor in July, 1921 earned 38.6 cents per hour as against 16.1 cents in 1914, a net gain of 140%, whereas for unskilled labor in manufacturing industry generally, the 8 increase was from 20.6 cents in July, 1914 to 44.8 cents in June, 1921, or 117%. In July, 1921, weekly earnings for unskilled railroad labor were $19.71 as against $9.42 in July, 1914, or a gain of 109%, as compared with a rise from $10.88 to $20.13 in June, 1921, or 85% for industrial unskilled labor during the same period. Real hourly earnings of unskilled railroad labor by July, 1921, had increased 47% as compared with an increase of 34% for unskilled industrial labor gener- ally, and real weekly earnings of unskilled railroad labor in July, 1921, stood 28% over 1914, as compared with 14% for industrial unskilled labor. In July, 1921, the increase in hourly earnings over 1914, for railroad telegraphers, was from 27 cents to 61.9 cents, or 129%, as compared with an increase from 34 cents to 68.1 cents, or 100% for commercial telegraphers during this period, while real hourly earnings of railway telegraphers show a gain of 40% as compared with a gain of 23% for commercial teleg- raphers up to July, 1921, though actual hourly earnings of commercial telegraphers in July, 1921 were higher than those of railroad telegraphers. In this connection it should be noted that the daily work of railroad telegraphers is not so continu- ous as that of commercial telegraphers, but fluctuates with the traffic. The actual hourly earnings of railroad clerical labor in July, 1921, had risen from 29.3 cents to 62.7 cents, or 114%, and actual weekly earnings from $16.00 to $29.91, or 87%, above 1914. Clerical railroad labor showed a gain in real hourly earnings of 31% and in real weekly earnings of 15% during this period. The whole group of train service labor, i. e., engineers, fire- men, brakemen, conductors and trainmen, who are not readily comparable with any class of industrial workers, showed a rise from 37.4 cents to 76.0 cents, or 103% in actual hourly earnings and from $23.28 to $43.62, or 87% in actual weekly earnings from 1914 through July, 1921. Real hourly earnings of train service labor had increased 24% and real weekly earn- ings 15% during this period. A comparison of the average hourly earnings of the several classes of train service employes reveals that the wages of the less skilled employes have been increased more than those of the more highly skilled during and since the period of Federal control. The increases so granted have tended to wipe out 9 the differentials between the classes in the train service just as they have eliminated the differentials between the various classes of railroad labor themselves. In the road freight serv- ice, hourly earnings of firemen in 1914 were 63.8% of those of engineers, and this ratio rose to 75% in July, 1921. The ratio of hourly earnings of brakemen to conductors in the road freight service rose from 62.4% to 78.1%; of firemen to engi- neers in the road passenger service from 61.4% to 74%; of trainmen to conductors in the road passenger service, from 57% to 68.6%; of firemen to engineers in the yard service from 61.4% to 77.6% and of trainmen to conductors in the yard service from 90% to 91%. The investigation proves, in short, that while wage earn- ings of railroad employes generally advanced much more slowly than those of employes in manufacturing industries during the war period, the wages of the latter declined rapidly from the peak in the middle of 1920, whereas those paid in the railroad industry remained at the same high level as during the war, until the general reduction in July, 1921, ordered by the Railroad Labor Board. Even with this reduction of about 12^%, the position of railroad labor generally has remained much more favorable in actual and real hourly or weekly earn- ings than that of workers in manufacturing industry generally. The investigation also indicates that employment in railroad industry is much more regular than that in outside industry. Finally, it should be remembered that there has been no material change in railroad wage rates since July, 1921, and little change in hourly earnings, except as alterations in work- ing rules have indirectly affected them. Moreover, employ- ment has declined relatively little, and has in some instances even increased slightly, among railroad workers, while the cost of living has decreased steadily. In February, 1922, it was only 57.7% higher than in July, 1914, which then gave the dollar, expressed in purchasing power of cost of living, a value of about 63.4 cents as against 100 cents in 1914, The purchasing power of the earnings of the railroad worker and his economic status at the present time are, there- fore, at least no more unfavorable, and probably are more favorable, than is indicated in the figures given in this report. 10 CHAPTER II HISTORICAL INTRODUCTION The public necessity for uninterrupted operation of the railroads has been recognized in numerous Federal and state laws, but until the period of Federal control in 1918, the only method provided by law for the settlement of disputes be- tween interstate railroads and their employes was by media- tion and arbitration under the Erdman Act of June, 1898, amended and re-enacted July 13, 1913 as the Newlands Act. Early Provisions for Settling Disputes The Erdman Act provided that in case of disputes actually interrupting or seriously threatening to interrupt interstate traffic, either party to the controversy might appeal to the chairman of the Interstate Commerce Commission and the Commissioner of Labor, so that the latter might put themselves in communication with the other party and endeavor by mediation and conciliation to bring about an amicable ad- justment of the matters at issue. The mediators were without authority to intervene in any controversy upon their own initiative. If the efforts to secure an agreement through mediation proved unsuccessful, the law provided that the mediators should try to induce the parties to the controversy to submit their differences to arbitration. The arbitration board for this purpose, under the Erdman Act, consisted of one representative of the railroads, one representative of the employes, and one supposedly neutral arbitrator selected by the mediators chosen. The objection to the Erdman Act was that it practically placed the entire responsibility of final decision upon the third arbitrator, the other two members of the Board being inevitably representatives of their respective interests. In the case of the demands of the engineers in 1912, a board of seven members acted under a special agreement drawn up between the parties, and not under the Erdman Act. This 11 board consisted of one representative of each side, and five nonpartisan persons. The firemen of fifty-two eastern railroads demanded a wage increase in 1912. Both the railroads and the brotherhoods were willing to arbitrate, but the railroads objected to arbitra- tion under the Erdman Act, and the firemen refused to agree to the type of board used in the engineers' case because of dissatisfaction with the award and because of the unfamiliarity of the five nonpartisan members of the board with the technical matters under controversy. To avoid a strike, the railroads finally, under strong protest, accepted arbitration under the terms of the law. The Newlands Act The experience in these two cases led to the enactment of the Newlands law, drafted with the aid of the railroads and the brotherhoods. The law, in general, reenacted the provi- sions of the Erdman law relative to mediation. It provided for boards of arbitration consisting of three members, and for alternative boards, composed of two representatives from each side to a controversy, and two neutral members repre- senting the public. The Newlands Act also created the offices of Commissioner of Mediation and Conciliation, and Assistant Commissioner of Mediation and Conciliation, and further provided that the President should also designate not more than two other officials of the Government, appointed by and with the advice and consent of the Senate, who together with the Commissioner of Mediation and Conciliation, "shall constitute a board to be known as the United States Board of Mediation and Con- ciliation."! In August, 1916, the Board was increased to four members by the designation by the President of the Assistant Commissioner of Mediation and Conciliation as an additional member. The Adamson Law In 1916, for the first time in their history, the four train service brotherhoods united in presenting demands to the railroads for an eight-hour day and for time and one-half for overtime. The railroads were willing to arbitrate, but the brotherhoods refused to arbitrate the eight-hour day, and ' Report of the U. S. Board of Mediation and Conciliation, p. 11, 12 every plan of compromise, mediation, or arbitration failed. President Wilson, in personal conference, did not succeed in reaching any agreement, and a national strike was called for Labor Day, 1916. At the urgent recommendation of the President, Congress passed the Adamson bill establishing the eight-hour day for the train service. The railroads contested the constitutionality of the law and delayed putting its pro- visions into operation pending the court decision, and in March, 1917 the brotherhoods again threatened to strike unless the Adamson law was put into effect by the carriers. President Wilson appointed a committee of four from the Council of National Defense to settle the dispute, and through their efforts the strike was prevented and both sides accepted the committee's award on the day the Supreme Court handed down a decision sustaining the constitutionality of the law. The Adamson law established the "Eight-Hour Commis- sion" "to observe the operation and effects of the institution of the eight-hour standard work day." A "Commission of Eight" was established, with equal reprelfeentation of the rail- roads and the employes, to adjust any differences which might arise in the application of the law. This commission was the model for all of the wage boards appointed by the Railroad"^ Administration during the war. Previous to the Adamson law, a day's work consisted either of a 100-mile run or 10 hours' work, and overtime pro rata was paid for any additional distance run or hours worked. The new law did not limit the working day of the railroad employes in train service but provided that their wages should be based upon a day of eight hours with pro rata overtime pay for time worked in excess of eight hours. The Eight-Hour Commission created by the Adamson Act reported that the hours of actual service could not be substantially reduced as a result, but eight hours was accepted as the legal basis for a day's pay. This law affected only the train service employes, about 20% of the total number, and not the 80% of shop men, clerks, maintenance of way employes, etc., not so well organized as the brotherhoods, and not so well paid. The American Railway Association, representing the car- riers, on April 1, 1917, had formed a special "committee on national defense" with chief authority in an executive com- mittee known as the Railroad War Board, pledging themselves to "coordinate their operations in a continental railway 13 system merging during such period all other merely indivi- dual, or competitive activities, in an effort to produce a maximum of national transportation efficiency."* On December 5, 1917, the Interstate Commerce Commission sent a special report to Congress on the railroad situation, proposing alternative plans for the unification of the railroads for war purposes and their "operation as a unit by the President during the period of the v?ar as a war measure, under the war powers vested in him" by the Act approved August 29, 1916. Though wage increases had been made during 1915, 1916 and 1917, they were not relatively so large as increases to workers in other industries, and had not kept pace with the increased cost of living. For example, the railroad shop men were receiving 40% less than men in the same trade in the ship yards. Strike votes were being taken in the middle west in 1917 and plans made for a general strike. Federal Control Because of the financial, labor and operating conditions President Wilson issued a proclamation on December 26, 1917, placing all important railroads under federal control and appointing William G. McAdoo Director General of Railroads. One of the first General Orders (No. 5, January 18, 1918), created a Railroad Wage Commission charged "with the duty of making a general investigation of the com- pensation of persons in the railroad service; the relations of rail- road wages to wages in other industries." The members of this commission, known as the Lane Commission, were Chair- man, Franklin K. Lane, Secretary of the Interior; Charles C. McCord, member of the Interstate Commerce Commission; J. H. Covington, Chief Justice, District of Columbia Supreme Court; and William R. Wilcox, lawyer. The recommenda tions of this Commission were embodied in General Order No. 27, dated May 25, 1918, which awarded a sliding scale of percentages of increase based on wages in effect on December 15, retroactive to January 1, 1918. The advances were planned in accordance with the increased cost of living and were largest for those in the lowest grades of service, ranging from the maximum of 43% for workers receiving between 'Report of the Interstate Commerce Commission, 1917, p. 8. 14 $46.00 and $50.00 a month, to nothing for the salaried worker receiving $250.00 or more a month. The Director General established a minimum hourly rate of 55 cents for the shop trades, and the laborers were given a minimum of 2^ cents per hour more than the rates of Decem- ber 31, 1917, since the rates recommended by the Wage Com- mission were not adequate as compared with wages paid in other industries for these classes. Railroad employes were not satisfied with the award , because, as any advances which had been made by the railroads since December, 1915 were included, in many cases increases equal to or greater than the amounts had already been given, and many employes received little or no advance from the Order. Advances made to some classes of employes, notably the mechanical workers, were insufficient to hold an adequate number of them in the railroad service against the competition from other industries, in which a much larger advance to similar classes of workers had been made. Moreover, it was held that the standardization of wages gained since 1915 was lost through the award. The Director General made the principle of the eight-hour day, established by the Adamson Law for the train service, applicable to all employes. The result was an increase in the number of employes and an increase in the percentage which all upkeeping expenses bore to all transportation costs. A permanent board of wages and working conditions was created by the Order and it was recommended that this board should investigate inequalities as to wages. Supplements to Order No. 27, were issued during the sum- mer of 1918, "providing special awards for increases for indivi- dual classes of employes" and carrying on the standardization of wages. Supplement No. 4, dated July 25, 1918, put into effect the eight-hour day, with time and one-half for overtime and Sundays, for all the shop crafts, established a minimum standardized wage and provided detailed classification of work to be done. This advance in the wages of shop employes made their wages relatively much higher than those of almost all other classes.' In consequence, other classes of employes demanded further advances, which were granted by the Railroad Administration in Supplements Nos. 7 and 8, Septem- ber, 1918, providing for clerks, station workers, maintenance of way employes, common laborers, etc. Supplement No. 10, 15 November 16, 1918, standardized minimum wages, hours and rates of overtime for telegraphers, telephone operators (except switchboard operators), agent telegraphers, agent telephone operators, tower men and lever men, and a few days later Sup- plement No. 11 did the same for all station agents not perform- ing telegraphic service. Later Supplements Nos. 15 to 22 gave increases to the four classes of train service employes, making their wages 40% higher than they were before govern- ment control and established time and one-half for overtime in yard service. Time and one-half for overtime in slow freight service asked for by the brotherhoods in 1916 was conceded by the Railroad Administration to take effect as of December 1, 1919, in order to give additional compensation to this class of employes, who, in return, gave up all arbitraries and special allowances. Mr. Hines' statement was in part as follows: "The Railroad Administration, in discharging its responsibility to make readjustments necessary to avoid unjust inequalities in compensa- tion of different classes of railroad employes has proposed to the four brotherhoods representing the train and enginemen that, in order to give an additional measure of compensation to the train service employes in the slow freight service, time and one-half will be paid for time re- quired to make runs in excess of what would be required if an average speed of X2}4 miles per hour were maintained, provided, however, that all arbitraries and special allowances now paid in various forms of freight train service are entirely eliminated for the railroads, as a whole."i The National Agreements In 1919, a national agreement as to rates of wages and rules for working conditions covering seniority, classification, over- time, discipline and grievances, was entered into by the Director General of the Railroad Administration with the Railway Employes' Department of the American Federation of Labor and its affiliated organizations of the mechanical section, namely: The International Association of Machinists; The International Brotherhood of Boilermakers, Iron Ship- builders and Helpers of America; The International Brother- hood of Blacksmiths and Helpers; The Amalgamated Sheet Metal Workers' International Alliance; The International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers; and the Brotherhood of Railway Carmen of America.^ An agreement was made also 1 Railway Age, Oct. 10, 1919, p. 753. 2 The agreements with these organizations were dated Sept. 20, 1919; rates effective May 1, 1919; rules effective Oct. 20, 1919, and until Dec. 1, 1921. 16 with the Brotherhood of Maintenance of Way Employes and Railway Shop Laborers^ followed in 1920 by agreements with the Brotherhood of Railway and Steamship Clerks, Freight Handlers, Express and Station Employes^, with the International Brotherhood of Firemen and Oilers^, and the Brotherhood of Railroad Signalmen of America^. For the settlement of disputes arising under the agreements between the railroad officials and the organizations of railroad employes, railway boards of adjustment Nos. 1, 2, and 3, composed of equal representatives of management and men were created. The first, superseding the Commission of Eight, had jurisdiction over men in the train service; the second, jurisdiction over the shop men; and the third, juris- diction over switchmen, telegraphers, and clerks. Contro- versies affecting unorganized employes who were not working under agreements with their representative railroads were under supervision of a labor director, W. S. Carter, President of the Brotherhood of Firemen and Enginemen, appointed February 9, 1918, by Circular No. 1, creating the Division of Labor of the Railroad Administration. The Transportation Act of 1920 President Wilson issued a proclamation December 24, 1919, returning the roads to private control on March 1, 1920, and the Transportation Act became a law February 28, 1920, terminating Federal control as of March 1, 1920. For the adjustment of industrial relations, three methods were pro- vided by the Transportation Act. Section 301 recommends conference between representatives of the carriers concerned and representatives of its employes. Section 302 provides that "railroad boards of labor adjustment may be established by agreement between any carrier, groups of carriers, or the carriers as a whole, and any employes or subordinate officials of carriers, or organization or group of organizations thereof," for the settlement of disputes involving grievances, rules of employment and working conditions, which have not been settled in conference between the carrier and its employes, upon application of the chief representative of any carrier, 1 Dated Nov. 22, 1919; efiFective Dec. 16, 1919. 2 Dated Jan. 13, 1920; effective Jan. 1, 1920. 3 Effective Jan. 16, 1920. 4 Dated Jan. 22, 1920; effective Feb. 1, 1920. 17 or organization of employes, or upon the written petition of not less than 100 unorganized employes, or upon motion of the adjustment board itself, or upon the request of the Labor Board. The Railroad Labor Board created by Section 304 is the chief and final authority to hear and decide disputes as to wages and salaries, as these are not within the jurisdiction of the adjustment boards, and such disputes as are not settled by conference between carriers and their employes. The Labor Board consists of nine members, three repre- sentatives of the employes, three representatives of the management, and three representatives of the public, with salaries of $10,000 each, appointed for terms of five years by the President, with the advice and consent of the Senate. The decisions of this Board are to be made public, but under the terms of the act, are not enforcible by the courts. The public members of the Board are R. M. Barton, Chairman, for a number of years a member of the Tennessee Court of Appeals; Ben. W. Hooper, Vice-Chairman, formerly Governor of Tennessee; and G. W. W. Hanger, formerly Chief Clerk of what is now the Bureau of Labor Statistics, and since 1913 Assistant Commissioner of the Board of Mediation and Con- ciliation. The railroad management members are J. H. Elliott, formerly General Manager of the Texas and Pacific Railway Company; Horace Baker, formerly General Manager of the Texas and Pacific Railway Company; and Samuel Higgins, formerly General Manager of the New York, New Haven & Hartford Railroad. The labor members are A. O. Wharton, formerly President of the Railway Employes' Department of the American Federation of Labor; Albert T. Phillips, formerly Vice-President of the Brotherhood of Loco- motive Firemen and Enginemen; and Walter L. McMenimen, formerly legislative representative for the Brotherhood of Railroad Trainmen of Massachusetts for five or six years, and national representative of this organization during the war. In addition to the Railroad Labor Board for the final adjustment of disputes between the railroads and their employes, the Transportation Act provided for railroad boards of labor adjustment "to take jurisdiction of any dispute upon application of the chief executive of any carrier or organiza- tion of employes, or upon the written petition of not less than 100 unorganized employes, or upon motion of the adjustment 18 board itself, or upon request of the Labor Board." No rules are laid down defining the precise composition of these adjust- ment boards and their methods of procedure. These matters are left to the decision of the carriers and their employes. The labor adjustment boards receive for hearing and decision disputes involving only grievances, rules of employment, and working conditions which have not been settled in conference between the carrier and its employes. The Railroad Labor Board General Order No. 27 issued May 25, 1918, gave an increase in wages based on the cost of living at the time. The cost of living continued to rise during 1918 and 1919, and in January, 1919, the shop crafts and later other railroad employes asked for further wage increases. On August 25, 1919, in view of threatened strikes, the President announced that there would be no further wage increases for the present, pending proposed action to lower living costs. By 1920, dissatisfaction with delay in making wage awards resulted in a number of so-called "outlaw strikes" unauthorized by the leaders of the labor organizations. As no agreement was reached by conferences between the representatives of the carriers and organized labor which extended from March 10 to April 1, 1920, the controversy was referred to the Labor Board and hearings were begun immediately. On July 1, 1920, the Board, by decision No. 2, to be effective as of May 1, 1920, increased the wages of approximately two million men about 21%, adding about $600,000,000 per year to the payroll. The clerks received an increase of approximately 25%; maintenance of way employes, 25%; mechanics and shop men, 19 ^%; and enginemen and trainmen each 23%. To meet the new budget, the Interstate Commerce Commission granted railroads affected by Decision No. 2, an increase in freight and passenger rates which was calculated to be sufficient to cover the in- creased expenditure in wages. The statement was made^ that the Board in making the award had taken into consideration the seven points pre- scribed by the Transportation Act, namely: 1. The scale of wages paid for similar kinds of work in other industries; 2. The relation between wages and the cost of living; 3. The hazards of the employment; 4. The training and skill required; ' Decision No. 2, p. 7. 19 5. The degree of responsibility; 6. The character and regularity of the employment, and 7. Inequalities of increase in wages or of treatment, the result of previou"! wage orders or adjustments. and had "endeavored to fix such wages as would provide a decent Hving and secure for the children of the wage-earners opportunity for education, and yet to remember that no class of Americans should receive preferred treatment and that the great mass of the people must ultimately pay a great part of the increase of the cost of operation entailed by the increase in wages determined herein"; also that the Board had found "that the scale of wages paid railroad employes is substantially below that paid for similar work in outside industry; that the increase in living cost since the effective date of General Order No. 27 and its supplements has thrown wages below the pre-war standard of living." The Transportation Act had implied that when the rail- roads were returned to private ownership, the National Agree- ments as to rules and working conditions made by the Railroad Administration with the representatives of labor unions should be abrogated, and the railroads managed as individual units. The Railroad Labor Board ordered the agreements continued until it could hold hearings on the matter. The decision abrogating the agreements was not given until April, 1921.1 The award remanded the negotiation of new rules and working conditions to the individual carriers and their own employes and outlined sixteen prin- ciples, including the eight-hour day, with which the new agreements should be consistent, thus recognizing that rules and working conditions should be made by the railroads with their own employes in order that they might vary from road to road and thereby be adapted to local conditions. The National Agreements remained in effect, however, because the employes, in conferences with the railroads, demanded con- tinuance of practically every rule in the agreement and the entire subject of rules and working conditions had to be re- ferred back to the Railroad Labor Board, in the absence of any adjustment boards. The Labor Board then took up each of the National Agreements and issued sets of revised rules for each of the classes of employes with whom the agreements had been entered into at various dates between October 16, 1921, when the shop-craft rules were issued, and February 26, 1922, ' Decision 119. 20 when the whole subject was concluded by the issuance of the rules for stationary firemen and oilers. Hearings before the Railroad Labor Board on the requests of the carriers for wage reductions were begun on April 18, 1921, to "determine what constitutes a just and reasonable wage under present conditions." The carriers' arguments were based on reductions in wages in other industries and the decrease in the cost of living since the wage award of July, 1920. The railroad employes' defense of the rates established in July, 1920, was based on (1) the fact that there had been no decrease in the wages of the workers in the coal and steel industries, (2) inefficient and inadequate management of the railroads and (3) denial that the cost of living justified any reduction of wages. ^ The result of the hearings was a decision by the Railroad Labor Board, reducing the wages of all classes of railroad employes by approximately 10^%. Hearings on demands by the railroads for further decreases for all classes of em- ployes except the train service, were begun in Chicago, March 6, 1922. 'Proceedings of U. S. Railroad Labor Board, June, 1921. 21 CHAPTER III WORKING RULES The National Agreements The so-called "National Agreements" were sets of rules defining the working conditions of railroad employes, with occasional provisions as to rates of pay, which were entered into by the Director General of Railroads on behalf of all the railroads of the United States with the representatives of the labor organizations of each railroad service except the train service. The agreements were with the five following organizations: 1 — ^The Federated Shop Crafts, which includes the International Association of Machinists International Brotherhood of Boiler Makers and Helpers International Brotherhood of Blacksmiths and Helpers Amalgamated Sheet Metal Workers' International Alliance International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers Brotherhood of Railway Carmen of America. 2 — Brotherhood of Railway Clerks 3 — Brotherhood of Railway Signalmen 4 — International Brotherhood of Firemen and Oilers 5 — United Brotherhood of Maintenance of Way Employes and Railway Shop Laborers. All these unions form a part of the Railway Employes' Department of the American Federation of Labor. No agreements, national in scope, exist between the employes of the train service and the railroads. The Brother- hood of Firemen and Locomotive Engineers, the Order of Railway Conductors, the Brotherhood of Railroad Trainmen and the Brotherhood of Locomotive Engineers and Firemen, have never affiliated with the American Federation of Labor, and during the period of Federal control of the railroads, did not attempt to enter into national agreements with the Direc- tor General of Railroads in order to standardize their working conditions. Nevertheless, with respect to certain general principles, the working rules for the train service are standard- ized throughout almost the entire country, and wage rates, which will be taken up in detail elsewhere in this report, are 22 standardized for the four brotherhoods as well as for other classes of employes. Such standardization of working condi- tions in the train service has been brought about by means of territorial adjustments applied through local agreements negotiated with the individual railroads, except for a few rules which were standardized by Supplements Nos. 15 and 16 of General Order 27 of the Director General of Railroads during the period of federal control. The National Agreements were not a sudden development, except in their application on a national scale. For many years prior to the signing of the National Agreements, local agreements had been made by the various unions with the individual railroads, particularly in the shop crafts and among the clerical forces. Several hundred railroads had agree- ments with the employes of their mechanical departments, some of which reached back as far as 1903. Prior to Federal control there were 19 railroads which had local agreements with their clerical forces, 13 of which were signed during the period of the war, but prior to the taking over of the railroads by the Government. Among the train service employes, the first agreements go back as much as forty years before Federal control, there having been several in effect at the time of the railroad strike in 1877. The agreements negotiated locally between the individual railroads and the unions frequently contain many of the pro- visions that are found in the National Agreements in existence at the present time, but certain of the provisions of the Na- tional Agreements are entirely new, such as some of the pro- visions for punitive overtime, and in the main, the restrictions on employment of labor, which have been found so irksome by the railroads. The supplements of General Order 27 of the Director General of Railroads form the basis of the National Agree- ments, these supplements defining in a general way the classifi- cations of occupations and the working rules for each of the railroad services. The National Agreements, using these existing agreements as a basis, added many restrictive pro- visions, but in general used the rules embodied in the supple- ments to General Order 27. In the opening statement in reply to the representation of the Conference Committee of Managers with reference to the request of the Federated Shop Crafts for continuation of the 23 National Agreement, the representatives of the shop crafts made the following statements: "In our negotiations with railroad management prior to government control we were repeatedly advised when presenting proposed amend- ments to the then existing agreements or presenting new agreements to individual railroads, that one of the reasons why we should not have the rule or rules which we requested was that the rule or rules were not in effect on other roads and, therefore, the railroad with whom we were in conference should not be expected to 'Blaze the Trail' or 'Carry the Ban- ner' and thus incur the criticism and ill-will of managements of other railroads. "It was often suggested that we should secure similar agreement to the one in effect on the railroad with whom we were in conference, from other railroads in the immediate territory or in the country as a whole, upon which we did not have what management of the particular railroad considered as good an agreement as the one which we were attempting to improve. "The Federated Shop Crafts have, during the last thirty years, nego- tiated and signed agreements with practically every carrier, party to the present hearings before this Board, the possible exception being the Pennsylvania Railroad Company. "Railroad management, as represented by the Conference Committee of Managers of the Association of Railway Executives, is represented to be unalterably opposed to an agreement, the rules of which apply alike to all railroads. In other words^ they are represented as being opposed to uniform rules governing workmg conditions. "As representing the Federated Shop Crafts Employes, we hold that an agreement applying alike to all railroads will be a great, if not the greatest factor in assisting to establish efficient and economical railroad operation. It will remove the costly 'labor-turnover' which has always existed to a greater or lesser extent and is due mostly to the fact that wages or condi- tions of employment on one railroad were more favorable than upon another railroad. "During our many years of experience, railroad management has repeatedly voiced its objections to what was commonly called the 'Boomer,' an employe who traveled from railroad to railroad and from shop to shop, seeking the most favorable conditions of employment and being lured from one shop or railroad to another because of advice from some fellow worker that the working conditions were better on some other railroad, or further along the line. "It is impossible within the limit of time available to us to produce figures dealing with the labor turnover and inability of roads to secure competent labor due in part, at least, to the general migrating of railroad labor, particularly competent railroad employes who continually seek the most favorable conditions of employment. "Management, during the fall of 1917, recognized this condition as a very important factor in computing increased expenses in the operation of railroads and based their claims for increases in transportation rates to the Interstate Commerce Commission partly upon 'labor turnover.' "In their presentation to the Interstate Commerce Commission (in) the latter part of 1917, they summed up the conditions on which their claim for mcreases in rates were based, and cited the following items in the order they herewith appear: (Item 1) Refers to the 'continuous increases in the cost of labor.' (Item 2) |Inability to secure and retain efficient labor.' (Item 3) 'Curtailment of maintenance expenses . . . due in . .part to inability to secure necessary labor.' "From this it will be noted that the railroad management itself has admitted that efficierit and economical operation of railroads has suflFered because of the_ inability to secure sufficient competent labor, and in settmg up their claims to the Interstate Commerce Commission for 24 increases in transportation rates, they have dealt with labor and its effect upon rnanagement and cost of operation, in what we understand to be a recognitiori of the fact that labor is the most important factor in the operation of railroads; at least in their claims to the Commission they deal with labor in the first three items when they sum up their claims. "In conferences with railroad management in the past, the employes' representatives have often been severely criticized by managenient for what was charged (to be) discrimination against certain railroads in favor of others. "The impression we always received from management was that they were agreeable to, and would welcome uniform conditions of emploj'- ment, one agreement for the federated shop crafts applying alike to all railroads, and thus remove this alleged discrimination and create a fair basis for real competition between railroads. "As a further evidence of the position of management and the natural trend of affairs, we desire to call attention to the different arbitration conferences between the transportation organizations and the railroads of the country. We do not understand that railroad management seriously opposed entering into regional or territorial conferences with the transportation organizations, the purpose of which obviously was to estab- lish uniformity of the rules governing working conditions and rates of pay ; neither have the railroads opposed the shop crafts' negotiations seeking to standardize wages and working conditions in a given territory. As evidence of this, we refer to conferences which took place in Chicago, 111., during February, 1910, in which conferences seventeen of the principal railroads of the southwest territory participated, andfive others, not direct participants in the negotiations, agreed to abide by the result of the conference. At this conference the managements would not pro- ceed without the presence of international union officers and as a result of this desire on the part of the railroads, Mr. James O'Connell, then president of the International Association of Machinists, was invited to participate and acted as chairman for the employes. Mr. A. W. Sullivan, general manager of the Missouri Pacific was chairman for the management. We call attention to the reverse position taken now by managements, wherein they desire to deal with employes only. "This was the beginning of the modern method of disposing of indus- trial affairs on railroads. The next important conference, which was made more significant by the inclusion of several more trades, took place in Washington, D. C, during 1914 to 1916-1917, and which resulted in what is known as the southeastern agreement. Twelve railroads, employ- ing approximately 39,000 workers, participated in these negotiations. This clearly indicates that we have been encouraged and that the natural trend has been toward systematic standardization of wages and working conditions on railroads by conference." In spite of the objections of the railroads, the National Agreements were signed by the Director General of Railroads, representing the railroads, the agreement with the Federated Shop Crafts being signed September 20, 1919, and the other agreements following within the next six months. The rail- roads objected to the National Agreements on several grounds, both general and specific, the chief of their reasons being that the National Agreements would force the railroads to grant such wage rates and working conditions that railroad labor would be paid much higher for the services performed than similar classes of labor in other industries. In a letter of W. E. Morse, F. F. Gaines and C. E. Lindsay, to the Director 25 General, dated July 11, 1919, this has been forcefully brought out: "In our opinion the true method of benefiting the workmen and other classes can be found only in increasing the purchasing power of the dollar, and that the problem can never be solved, or the general economic condition stabilized, by any action that further reduces money value, whether produced by increased wage rates or any other form of taxation. It must be conceded in reason that any general increase in wages to one class of railroad employes will be followed by demands from all other classes for similar allowances, and doubtless by employes generally out- side of railroad service. The employer engaged in private industry, particularly those producing and marketing luxuries and semi-luxuries, whose charges and selling costs are uncontrolled, will undoubtedly here- after, as heretofore, pay whatever wage rate that is essential to secure the desired quantity and quality of labor and service. We cannot conceive how it is either possible or practical to standardize wage rates as between the employer whose income or charges are partially or wholly fixed and controlled and the employer who is not so governed and as a matter of fact cannot be subjected to such regulation. "We cannot agree that railroad and other rail transportation wage rates should necessarily in equity equal those generally paid by outside industry, because it is thought that the latter employment is not as regular and continuous, and that many of these private industries, such as building trades, etc., where the highest wage rates prevail, are seasonal and periodical in character, where the fluctuation in work is excessive as concerns the working days provided per annum and between years. In addition, there are other benefits in advantages that accrue to the rail- road service not enjoyed in outside industry and which benefits are gener- ally recognized if not conceded." The railroads also objected seriously to entering into con- tracts with the unions, in the making of which they had no voice, as the agreements were signed by the Director General in the face of the protests of the railroad managements. Another objection to the National Agreements made by the railroads was that they did not take into consideration any local conditions, which the standard rules were not designed to fit, and that they constituted a limitation of labor supply through their rules of seniority as applied to the reduction and restoration of forces and to promotion in the various services. They also contended that the National Agreements reduced efficiency in operation by the ehmination of personal initiative and that the agreements were, in reality, methods of raising wages and not methods of getting better working conditions as claimed by the labor unions. The railroads claimed that the wording of the rules was not clear and that the word-construction was such as to admit of several interpretations which were, in effect, new rules, and that other rules were impracticable of application without mcurring excessive penalties. Notwithstanding that the parties who prepared the rules may have considered them 26 clear, as written, experience in trying to work under them has demonstrated that they have resulted in raising numerous questions both from the employes and the management. This in itself has made the rules particularly objectionable to the railroads. Section 301 of the Transportation Act reads: "It shall be the duty of all carriers and their officers, employes and agents to exert every reasonable effort and adopt every available means to avoid any interruption of the operation of any carrier growing out of any dispute between the carrier and the employes or subordinate officials thereon. All such disputes shall be considered and, if possible, decided in conference between the representatives designated and authorized so to confer by the carriers, or the employes or subordinate officials thereof, directly interested in the dispute. If any dispute is not decided in such conference, it shall be referred by the parties thereto to the board which under the provisions of this title is authorized to hear and decide such dispute." The railroads take the position that, in making this provision, the law clearly recognizes the right of the railroads to deal locally with their employes. However, the labor organiza- tions have found it easy to thwart these provisions of the law and by a refusal to agree in any negotiations with any indivi- dual railroad, have forced the cases to be taken up to the Labor Board and settled on a national basis. The railroad managements also contended that the agreements had fre- quently been made with organizations which represented only a small part of the employes of certain railroads who were forced to accept their provisions, though these were frequently distasteful to them. In the decision of the Labor Board handed down April 18, 1921, the Board stated that the National Agreements would be continued in effect until July 1, 1921, or until such time as the Board should be able to promulgate new rules in their place. Hearings on the rules of the National Agreements were held in Chicago, beginning June 6, 1921, > at which time the railroads presented their objections to the then existing rules, which were defended by the labor organizations. On October 16 the Labor Board issued a new set of rules in place of the National Agreements with the Federated Shop Crafts', which was followed December 12 by Decision 501 comprising new rules for the maintenance of way employes. On January 23, 1922, the clerks' agreement was revised,^ and on February 16 a new set of rules for signalmen' was issued by the Board. ■ Addendum 6, Decision 201. » Decision 630, Docket 475. » Decision 707, Docket 475. 27 This chapter analyzes the provisions of the National Agree- ments and compares them with the revised rules issued by the Labor Board. All five of the National Agreements include rules on classification, hours of service, overtime, seniority, discipline, grievances and protection of employes and as the rules on each of these subjects are practically identical, it will not be necessary to take up the agreements one by one. The special rules for particular crafts, such as rules on apprenticeship and piecework, must be discussed sepa- rately. The objections of the railroads to the rules will be presented in detail in the last section of the chapter. Classifications Each of the National Agreements gives a definition of the class of work to be performed by each class of employes. These definitions are very general in most of the services, but in the agreement of the shop crafts, classifications go into considerable detail. The reason for this is obvious, as it is very much more difiicult and less necessary to give a concrete picture of the work performed by any particular class of clerical employes than to describe in detail the various opera- tions performed by such mechanics as machinists, boiler- makers, sheet-metal workers, etc. Along with, or included in the rules on classification, are rules describing in a general way the qualifications in each class, and in some cases outlining the amount of experience that is necessary before a man may be classed in any particular group. In most cases, rules governing classification and qualification are inextricably bound together with those governing seni- ority, as promotions are in general based on seniority and promotions, in their turn, change the classification. Clerks are generally classified as supervisory clerks, chief clerks, confidential and personal clerks, and all other clerks. The group of all other clerks is further divided into junior and senior clerks, the division being made on the basis of expe- rience — the junior clerks being generally regarded as those who have had less than one year's experience, and the senior clerks including all who have had more than one year's experience. In Mr. Whiter'si testimony before the United States Rail- 'Assistant to Vice-President, Pennsylvania Railroad, and Chairman of the Conference Committee of Managers. 28 road Labor Board in 1921, he stated that, owing to the many and varied conditions surrounding the clerical situation, any uniform classification as between individuals, positions, or by railroads, would be contrary to a practice of years' standing. Clerical forces, unlike those of any other class of railroad employes, have been treated upon individual merit and ability, the character of the position, and other important factors. Conditions of employment dilFer by departments, by location, and by railroads. In the general offices a large percentage of the clerical employes consist of young and inexperienced boys and girls. As these clerks develop in training and experience, they are advanced to more important positions, carrying higher salaries. Any attempt to deal with this phase of the clerical situation as a class must result in a loss of efficiency. The character of work, or the position, may differ widely in scope and responsibility from one department to another, or as between railroads in the same community. An intimate knowledge of each situation would appear necessary before accepting any general statement that the methods used in the treatment of clerks result in unjustifiable inequalities. It is nearly impossible to cover in any one definition the variety of duties which may be expected of employes classed as clerks. The National Agreement defines clerks as em- ployes who regularly devote not less than four hours per day to the writing and calculating incident to keeping records and accounts, writing and transcribing letters, bills, reports, statements and similar work, and to the operation of office mechanical equipment and devices in connection with such duties and work. The above defini- tion shall not be construed to apply to: 1. Employes engaged in assorting tickets, waybills, etc., nor to employes operating appliances or machines for perfora- ting and addressing envelopes, numbering claims or other papers, adjusting dictaphone cylinders and work of a like nature; nor to employes gathering or delivering mail or other similar work not requiring clerical ability. 2. Office boys, messengers, and chore boys; or to other employes doing similar work. 3. Employes performing manual work not requiring clerical ability. It will readily be seen, however, from other provisions of the National Agreement, that this definition is incomplete, as 29 it does not coincide with Section B of Article I, which includes a large number of supervisory workers. The employes of the mechanical department are much more easily classified, owing to the nature of their duties. In general, the mechanical employes are classified as helper and regular and special apprentices, helpers, and mechanics, or journeymen mechanics. In each of the six crafts coming within the scope of the Federated Shop Craft Agreement, the apprentices are men who are serving a course of training to become journeymen mechanics. The rules provide that regular and helper apprentices shall be between the ages of 16 and 21 at the time of beginning their apprenticeship, and shall serve a period of four years of 290 days each in learning the work of the craft which they have chosen. Special apprentices are men who have had technical college training, and their term of service is limited to three years. They are not confined to working in any one craft, but get their training in all branches of the service, and are moved about from point to point at the discretion of the railroad management. The shop craft rules provide that a man must either have served an apprenticeship or have had four years of practical experience in his craft before he becomes a mechanic. The same general provisions that apply to the classifications and qualifications of shop craft employes apply also to signal- men. The signalmen are classified as helpers, assistant signal maintainers, signalmen, or signal maintainers, and leading maintainers. Men are started in, when they first come into the service, as helpers and are promoted, after a time, which is more or less indefinite, to the position of assistant signal maintainer. They remain assistant signal maintainers during a period of four years, after which they are promoted to signal- men, or signal maintainers. However, if after three months a man who has been promoted to assistant signal maintainer shall show no aptitude for the work, he may be returned to the ^ position of a helper and retain the seniority rights in that class. The leading maintainer is defined by the National Agree- ments as one who is in charge of a section or plant, and assisted by one or more signal maintainers. The maintainer in his 30 turn is defined as a man who is qualified and assigned to per- form work generally recognized as signal work. In the hearings before the Railroad Labor Board in 1920, Mr. Helt, in speaking for the Brotherhood of Railroad Signal- men and explaining how men for signal work were formerly secured, stated: "It has developed through investigation that 70 percent of the signal mechanics today were skilled craftsmen prior to their taking positions in the signal department. They are required to have a working knowl- edge of machinist, blacksmith, sheet metal work, electrical work and carpentry."! and in explaining the maintenance organization — "All of the most responsible positions in this, as in other railroad work, are filled by promotion from lower grades. In recruiting the signal maintenance force, the first position to be considered is that of lampmen on sections of road where oil lamps are used to light the signals at night. The candidate is selected and examined not alone with reference to his ability to carry an oil can or to trim wicks so that they will surely burn without failure during the 144 hours a lamp is expected to burn, but also with particular regard to health, strength, moral character, education and ambition, that he will constitute good material for promotion to assistant maintainer and consequently to maintainer, foreman and in- spector. Young men who have been brought up in the villages or on the farms adjacent to the road are, unquestionably, the most satisfactory material. As a matter of fact, a considerable percentage of the men now in the service of the signal department are sons of older employees of the road, such as locomotive runners, conductors, agents and shop foremen." It is difficult to reconcile these two statements, but it is true that a large majority of signalmen and signal maintainers entered the service of a railroad as unskilled employes and have secured their training and experience while in the employ of a railroad, and have not been recruited from the crafts. They are distinctly "signalmen" and the work in the signal department does not require that an apprenticeship should have been served in any one of the basic trades, although a comparatively small number are qualified as blacksmiths, carpenters or electricians. In the agreements of the firemen and oilers, and the main- tenance of way employes, the employes were classified according to their services, but no detailed classification, such as was made in the case of the mechanical department and signal department employes, was attempted. In their revisions of the National Agreements, the Labor Board has retained the classification rules, and the rules on the qualification of employes. The new rules for shop employes 1 p. 1139 of Proceedings. 31 also add a new classification cif "special" apprentices discussed below.' Hours or Service Under the National Agreements, eight hours was made the basic day for all classes of employes in all the railroad services. As in the case of the other provisions of the Agreements, the eight-hour basic day was not anew development, as it had been established by law for the employes of the train service under the Adamson Act in September, 1916, and had been estab- lished for the other services almost without exception by supplements of General Order 27 of the Director General of Railroads.^ In the formation of the National Agreements this provision was retained and in many cases its application made much stricter than it had been under the supplements of General Order 27. Even before the passage of the Adamson Act, Congress had taken a hand in the regulation of hours of service of railroad employes, and in 1907 a law had been passed limiting the hours of employes of the train service, as well as those of dispatchers, telegraphers and telephone operators, to not more than 16 hours in one 24-hour period, in the case of train employes and 13 hours in any 24-hour period for dispatch- ers, towermen and telegraphers, where only one shift was employed, and not more than nine hours where two or more shifts were employed. All five of the National Agreements contain provisions as to the beginning and end of the working day, some of which are very restrictive in form. They prescribe that the working day shall begin and end at designated points, except that in the train service the crew may be relieved either when the engine is placed upon a specified track or the crew is relieved at a terminal. Maintenance of way employes' time begins and ends at the point where the men receive and deposit their tools, and the same is true of shop employes. Under the National Agreements the maintenance of way employes had to begin work between the hours of 6 a. m. and 8 a.m., except in emergency when they might be called at any time. The Shop Crafts Agreement stipulated that the work- "Ing day begin between 7 a. m. and 8 a. m. where only one shift was employed. The time of the second shift was to 1 See p. 51. 2 Supplements 4r-22, General Order 27, 1918. 32 begin immediately after the end of the time of the first shift, and where three shifts were working, the agreement provided that each should consist of eight consecutive hours, the first shift beginning between 7 and 8 a. m. Under these rules it was apparent that no overlapping of shifts could be allowed, a provision which has worked great hardship to the railroads. It should be noted that these rules, although they state what the starting and ending time of the service shall be, do not mention overlapping shifts, thus bearing out the contention of the railroads that the rules are not worded so as to show their real intent. Several cases in illustration of the hardship worked upon the railroads by this rule were brought out in the hearings on the National Agreements before the Labor Board of January, 1921. The New York, Chicago and St. Louis Railroad cited a case in point. They stated that at an interchange point where practically all their business occurred between 2 p. m. and 10 p. m., this rule required the inspector to start between 7 a. m. and 8 a. m. and to be paid for about five hours before his real work commenced, and that nearly all of his actual services were paid for at overtime rates, unless a second man were employed. In this case, the rule, as it read, made it im- possible to cover night work after 11 p. m., except by either employing a first and second shift in addition to the first shifts, or else by paying exorbitant overtime to one or both of the other shifts. The Agreements specified in great detail the hours which were allowed for meals, the generally accepted rule under all agreements being that employes working the single shift should be allowed one hour, without pay, for meals, but that eight consecutive hours might be assigned by the railroad as theworking period, in which twenty minutes with pay should be allowed for lunch. This twenty minutes was generally speci- fied as coming between the end of the fourth and the beginning of the seventh hour of the work period. All Agreements had rules to the eflFect that the men were not to be laid off temporarily to avoid reduction in forces. In the new rules promulgated by the Labor Board for governing the working conditions of the maintenance of way employes, effective December 16, 1921, this rule was changed so that it would not prevent men in the same gang from dividing the work among themselves. 33 The Agreements provided that, in an emergency, employes taken away from their regular assignments for temporary work, must be furnished by the railroads with meals and lodging or paid their actual expenses while away. The same provision is made for employes while attending court as witnesses for the railroad, the rules specifying that they shall receive not less than their minimum rate of pay for eight hours' work for each day absent from their regular work, that they shall receive free transportation to and from the point where the courts are held and that they shall be furnished with meals and lodging or be paid the amount of their actual expenses in addition to their regular pay. Overtime and Calls All of the National Agreements, as well as the standard rules applying to the train service, provide for rates of pay in excess of the regular hourly rate for employes working after or in advance of the regular eight-hour assignment and for special work, such as Sunday and holiday work and work which is performed in emergency or away from the regular station. In general it can be stated that employes are paid on the basis of time and one-half for working prior to or in excess of the regular eight-hour assignment. In the new rules issued by the Labor Board for maintenance of way employes i and signalmen, an exception to this rule has been made and the ninth and tenth Irours of continuous work are paid for on the same basis per hour as the first eight hours, but time after the tenth hour is paid for at time and one- half. In the revision of the clerks' rules, however, the Labor Board has decided that punitive overtime shall be paid after the expiration of the ninth hour. For all five of the services, exclusive of the train service, overtime is computed on the actual minute basis with a mini- mum of one hour for forty minutes' work or less, which in actual practice means that an employe working two minutes or ten minutes beyond the period of his regular assignment, will be paid for forty minutes' work at time and one-half or one hour's pay on the basis of the regular assignment. For work performed on Sundays, on New Year's Day, Washington's ' Decision 501. 34 Birthday, Decoration Day, 4th of July, Labor Day, Thanks- giving, and Christmas, the rules provide that when the regular assignment is worked, the time shall be paid for pro rata with the usual time and one-half for overtime. The shop crafts agreement provided that all time worked on Sundays and holidays should be paid for at the punitive rate of time and one-half. The shop agreement also stated that time and one-half should be paid up to the sixteenth hour in any 24-hour period, after which double time should be paid. When less than the regular assignment is worked on Sun- days or holidays, the Agreements provide that a minimum of from three hours to five hours shall be paid for an hour and forty minutes, to three hours and twenty minutes work. The five-hour provision is that in the shop crafts agreement, the other agreements having the three-hour minimum. The clerks' agreement provides that, for the first two hours of Sunday or holiday work, time and one-half shall be paid, but for each hour after the second hour of work the employe shall be compensated on the pro rata basis of his regular week day assignment. In the event that employes are called outside of their regular assignment to perform special or emergency work, the rules provide that not less than three hours shall be paid for two hours' work, and that after the second hour, employes shall be paid on the minute basis for time worked or held for duty, at the rate of time and one-half. Employes who are regularly assigned to work on Sundays and holidays or those called to take the place of such em- ployes, were allowed to complete the balance of the day unless released at their own request. This rule has proved very objectionable to the railroads, as an employe called to perform work which would not necessitate his presence more than a minimum period guaranteed in such cases, would be allowed to remain at his work the rest of the day and to receive com- pensation at the rate of time and one-half for the whole day, even though the actual work performed did not consume more than two hours. The railroads also objected to the rule on the ground that rules of this nature should be directed toward reducing the time held, rather than encouraging employes' being held beyond the requirements of the work, which should be arranged for locally and to fit the conditions existing. 35 The Agreements also stipulated that employes should not be allowed to work on anything but the work for which they were called. As an illustration of the effect of this provision on the railroads, the Florida East Coast Railroad cited a case before the Railroad Board in which an employe was notified that he would be required to work overtime to finish up work which had already been commenced on an engine undergoing repairs. He was allowed to go to his meal at the proper time and, upon return, found that other mechanics were working on the engine. Owing to the nature of his part of the work, he could not begin until the other men were through, and while waiting he was ordered to inspect another engine and make out a report. When this was finished he was allowed to return to the job for which he was held and to complete it. He was then ordered by the foreman to complete the shift. The committee representing the employes claimed that this man was entitled to 6}4 hours' pay (1^^ hours for the first hour and 5 hours for returning for the job for which he was held over) and an additional 5 hours for the inspection job , as it constituted a new assignment, and still further, 3 to 5 hours' pay for completing the shift, which they interpreted to be a third call in the same night. The railroad took the position that he was entitled to five hours for the inspection of the engine at the differential rate of time and one-half up to the end of the finishing time of the second shift, but the decision allowed the employe 16>^ hours for the time worked, of which five hours were paid at a differential rate higher than the ordinary machinist rate, on account of the fact that it involved the inspection of an engine. For work in advance of or continuous with the regular assign- ment, the agreements of the clerks, signalmen, firemen and oilers, and maintenance of way employes, provided that the time in advance should be paid for at the rate of time and one- half on the actual minute basis, with a minimum of one hour's , pay. The shop craft rules under the National Agreements provided that for work in advance of and continuous with the regular assignment, employes should be paid at the rate of five hours for three hours and twenty minutes work or less, so that if a man were called to start work ten minutes before his regular assignment he would receive five hours' pay for ten minutes work. Some great hardships to the railroad have resulted from this provision, because it is frequently necessary on many 36" railroads to have such men as fire blowers report slightly in advance of the rest of the working forces in order to prepare fires in engines or shops, so that the work of the regular forces may be started immediately upon their arrival. In each of these cases, however, it has been necessary, under the Na- tional Agreements, for the railroads to pay for a few minutes work at the rate of five hours regular time. The new rules issued by the Labor Board for all classes of employes have changed this provision to agree with the pro- visions of the other agreements that the time in advance of and continuous with the regular assignment shall be paid shop employes on the actual minute basis, with a minimum of one hour at the rate of time and one-half. When, on account of the nature of the work, it is necessary to work through the meal period, all agreements except the shop agreement and the maintenance of way agreement, provide that the regular rate per hour shall be paid for work performed during the meal period and that twenty minutes with pay shall be allowed for lunch as soon as the nature of the work will permit. The new rules issued by the Labor Board for the shop employes and maintenance of way employes pro- vide that the meal period, when worked, shall be paid for at straight time, and thirty minutes allowed for lunch as soon after the regular period as possible. Employes attending court, either at their home station or at any other point, are paid time and one-half for any time spent on railroad work in excess of eight hours, or for any time outside of the regular working assignment. This provision applied both to Sundays and holidays as well as to overtime work on regular working days. Where employes are temporarily or permanently assigned to duties requiring variable hours, working or traveling over an assigned territory and away from their regular boarding or lodging places, the National Agreements provide that they shall be paid at overtime rates, and under the maintenance of way agreement were allowed time at the rate of ten hours per day at pro rata rates, and in addition paid for actual time worked in excess of eight hours at time and one-half, out of which they were obliged to provide board and lodging at their own ex- pense. In the case of employes regularly assigned to do road work, the provisions of the National Agreement stipulate that they shall be paid on a monthly rate but that work on 37 Sundays and holidays shall be paid for at an overtime rate of time and one-half. Employes traveling on special assignments receive straight time for traveling during regular working hours and half time for all traveling between 10 p. m. and 6 a. m. In addition to this general provision, the shop crafts agreement provided that 'overtime rates would be paid to shop employes for all over- time hours and straight time for straight time hours at any station, whether working, waiting or traveling, except that after the first twenty-four hours, if relieved from duty and per- mitted to go to bed for five or more hours, they would not be allowed time for such hours, provided that in no case should an employe be paid for less than eight hours on week days and eight hours at time and one-half on Sundays and recognized holidays. Under the shop agreements, "recognized" holidays are not only the so-called national holidays provided for in the other agreement, but also include any "generally recognized state holidays." The rules regarding payment for traveling have been modified in the maintenance of way and shop rules issued by the Labor Board, so that men called for emergency road work shall be paid from the time ordered to leave the home station until their return, for all the time worked in accordance with the practice at home station and at straight time rate for all time waiting or traveling. In changing shifts, the National Agreements generally pro- vided that the first shift of the new assignment should be paid for at overtime rates. This was also applicable to yard employes in the train service. The Agreements provide rules making it necessary for each employe to get authority from his immediate superior for any overtime work, except in case of emergency. In such cases the employe is obliged to make written application for payment for overtime, which will either be allowed or disallowed by his superior. In case of disallowance, the employe must be notified by his superior in writing and the notification must contain the reasons for the disallowance. Rules forbidding the management to stop work during regular assignment for the absorption of overtime are con- tained in all the agreements. Thus a day force, obliged to work two hours overtime one day may not be laid off three hours during the next day in order to compensate the company 38 for the extra wages paid for the overtime work at time and one-half. The hours of service and overtime rules of train service employes were established not by any National Agreement but by Supplements 15 and 16 to General Order 27, which were issued on April 10, 1919. In the passenger service for engineers and firemen and helpers, 100 miles or less, or five hours or less, constitute a day's work and miles in excess of 100 are paid for at the mileage rate provided, according to the class of engine. It should be noted that the term "helper", used in this connection, signifies a man who is assistant to the engineer in the operation of an electrical locomotive, and is not the second fireman on a heavy steam locomotive. Overtime for engineers, firemen and helpers in the pas- senger service who have short turn-around passenger runs, no single trip of which exceeds 80 miles, including suburban and branch line service, is paid for all time actually on duty or held for duty in excess of eight hours, computed on each run, from the time required to report for duty to the end of that run, within ten consecutive hours, and also overtime in excess of ten consecutive hours computed continuously from the time he is required to report, to the final release at the end of the last run. Time is counted as continuous service in all cases where the interval of release from duty at any point does not exceed one hour. This rule applies regardless of the mileage made. The management is allowed to designate the initial trip for calculating overtime under this rule. Engineers, firemen and helpers on other passenger runs shall be paid over- time on a speed basis of 20 miles per hour, computed con- tinuously from the time required to report for duty until released at the end of the last run. In this case overtime is computed on the basis of actual overtime worked or held for duty, except that when the minimum day is paid for the serv- ice performed, overtime does not begin until the expiration of five hours from the time of first reporting for duty. Thus the engineman and fireman of a suburban train on a run into a city arid back might be held forty-five minutes before leaving again for their original terminal. If the run consumed eight hours, they would be paid at the regular rate for eight hours plus forty-five minutes overtime for the time between arrival at the city terminal and the leaving time. The rule is made 39 for the purpose of allowing the railroad management to make the day's work a turn-around run in spite of some lay-over at a terminal, and so that the trip in and the trip out will not be paid for as two separate runs. In all passenger service, overtime is paid on the minute basis at the rate of one-eighth of the daily rate provided, according to the class of engine. For conductors and trainmen in the passenger service, 150 miles or less straight-away or turn-around, constitutes a day's work, and miles in excess of 150 are paid for at mileage rates. The day begins at the time of reporting for duty for the initial trip and daily rates obtain until the miles made at the mileage rates exceed the daily minimum. The same rule applies for conductors and train- men, as for engineers, firemen and helpers for short turn- around passenger runs; on straightaway runs conductors and trainmen are paid overtime on a speed basis of 20 miles per hour, but when the minimum day is paid them for service per- formed, overtime does not begin until the expiration of 7 hours and 30 minutes, instead of 5 hours, as in the case of firemen and engineers. In the freight service, for firemen, engineers, conductors, and trainmen, 100 miles or less or eight hours or less, which- ever is more favorable to the employe, constitutes a day's work, and where no existing agreement on the question of overtime is more favorable to the employes on runs of 100 miles or less, overtime will begin at the expiration of eight hours, and on runs of over 100 miles, overtime will begin when the time on duty exceeds the miles run divided by 12^. In the freight service, overtime is paid for at time and one- half for miles or hours on the actual minute basis. In the yard service, train crews are paid on the basis of an eight-hour day and all time worked in excess of eight hours is paid as over- time on the minute basis at one and one-half times the hourly rate and, in the case of engineers and firemen, according to the class of engine. Seniority All of the National Agreements, except that of the firemen and oilers, provided for seniority rights for employes. Senior- ity rights are rights which entitle employes to consideration for positions in accordance with the relative length of service. Seniority begins at the time a man enters the railroad service, 40 except in the case of laborers of section gangs, whose seniority begins only after six months continuous service with the rail- road. This provision is inserted in the maintenance of way rules on account of the fact that the employment is largely seasonal and that many of the section laborers are floaters and remain in the service only from a few days to a few months at a time. As a general rule, seniority rights of employes are confined to the department, or sub-department, in which they work. The rights of section laborers, for exam- ple, are confined to rights within the gang in which they work. In the case of clerks they are confined to the particular station, or office, such as a freight station, or the warehouse, or yard, connected with the particular station where the work is performed. In the shops the men's rights are confined to the shop and within the shop to the department and the craft. But in the maintenance of way service, where work stretches over a large territory, the rights of employes, other than laborers, are confined to the territory under the supervision of a division engineer or a road master. All of the Agreements in which seniority is taken up pro- vide for rosters or lists of the men, with the date of their enter- ing into service, which shall be kept separately by the seniority districts, and shall be open to inspection of interested employes. The lists are kept by the foreman or supervisory officer in charge and may be consulted at any time by the employes themselves or by the committees of the organization represent- ing them. Upon request, the foreman, or other officer, keep- ing the lists, shall have copies made and furnished to the employes' committees as provided in the rules. Regular times are designated for the revision of seniority rosters, the period generally being once in twelve months. The most important application of seniority rights is to promotions within the department or sub-department con- stituting the seniority district. The agreements provide that promotions shall be based on abihty, merit, and seniority, and that, other considerations being equal, seniority shall govern. In some of the shop craft rules no mention was made of merit or ability, the only basis for promotion being seniority, or length of service. The usual procedure, when a new position is made, or when an old position becomes vacant, is that notice of the vacancy or new position is posted on the bulletin board at the headquarters of the department, or sub-department, in 41 which the vacancy exists. In the shops, these bulletins are required to be posted within five days after the position be- comes open. The employes then put in written bids to the oiBcer whose name appears on the bulletin, and the position is filled on the basis outlined above, the primary consideration always being seniority, as it is a very difiicult matter to say in advance whether or not a man will have sufficient merit and ability. An employe who accepts promotion but fails to qualify on the new position is put back in his old position after a trial period of thirty days. In the case of men returned to their old positions in this way they do not lose their seniority rights except as regards the man who qualifies on the new position. Likewise, an employe failing to accept promotion does not lose his seniority rights except with respect to the man accept- ing the promotion. In general, senior men may displace junior men by exercising their seniority rights, if for any reason the position held by the junior man seems to be more desirable than the one held by the senior. In the clerks' agreement, it is provided that senior men may displace junior men, but only if the requisite fitness can be demonstrated. In the shop agreement the rules provide that senior men may displace junior men when the hours of the regular assignment of the senior men are changed. The new clerks' rules as issued by the Labor Board omit all mention of seniority, but call attention to Principle 11, Exhibit B of Decision 119, which states that "The principle of seniority long applied to railroad service is sound and should be adhered to. It should be so applied as not to cause undue impairment of the service." The new rules for signalmen also leave out the rules on seniority, but make the same observation as to its continued application. In reduction of forces for the purpose of cutting down expenses, or for other reasons, the Agreements provide that the junior men must be the first to be laid off; that in the restoration of forces the oldest man in point of service must be brought back first; and that all former employes must first be given the opportunity of returning before new men are brought in. When employes are granted leave of absence or are laid off through no fault of their own, they may retain their seniority rights by making application in writing to their 42 immediate superior. It is also necessary for them to file with the oflBicer in charge of the seniority roster, their address in writing every sixty days, and upon notification from the rail- road management to return to work they must report within seven days in order to keep their rights. In the case of an employe who leaves the service of the railroad of his own accord, and later returns, the rules provide that he shall be treated as a new employe, and that his seniority shall start from the time of his last entry into the service. Certain classes of work also have preference over other classes. For instance, men on night work have preference in the consideration for filling vacancies occurring in day work in the same department. The shop rules also provide that men who have been a long time in service and who have per- formed their work faithfully and well, and who are no longer able to do the heaviest work, shall be given preference and assigned to such light work in their respective crafts as they may be able to perform. Similar provisions are made in the rules of the National Agreement for maintenance of way employes, and another provision of this agreement states that such positions as gate- men, watchmen, and crossing tenders shall not be filled on the basis of seniority, but shall be filled by men of any branch of the service who have been incapacitated either by age, by sickness, or by accident. Although the Railroad Labor Board, in issuing new rules foK the shops crafts, eflPective October 16, 1921, retained the main provisions in regard to seniority which were embodied in the National Agreements, in the maintenance of way rules super- seding the National Agreements, issued on December 16, 1921, no mention of seniority was made, it apparently being the intention of the Board to leave the question of seniority to her arranged locally between the individual railroads and their employes. Protection and Comfort All five of the National Agreements have provisions for the protection and comfort of employes. These provisions can be divided into two classes — those providing for protective devices in hazardous work, and the general provisions for sanitation and comfort in the normal occupation. Under the 43 first class we find provisions to the eiFect that signalmen working with acids must be given rubber boots and gloves; and in the shop craft rules it is stipulated that men engaged in certain processes such as electric and other welding must be equipped with masks, goggles, and screens. The shop craft rules also provide that employes shall not be taken from hot work and assigned to dead work without sufficient oppor- tunity to cool off. Under the second group the Agreements contain rules stipulating that the railroad must keep office buildings, camp cars, dining cars, boarding cars, and camps in clean and sanitary condition, and that an adequate supply of water shall be kept in all buildings, offices, cars, and camps where employes work or live. The rules also provide that suitable working conditions shall be provided for women employes. Most of the safety work, however, is done by the railroads either in accordance with the state laws governing safety devices and protection for employes, or is done on the ini- tiative of the individual railroad; and on the larger railroads of the country large sums have been spent in the past ten years in campaigns for the instruction of employes in safety methods. Discipline and Grievances In their rules on discipline and grievances, the five Na- tional Agreements are more nearly alike than on any other points. All the Agreements, as well as the new rules issued by the Railroad Labor Board for the maintenance of way and shop employes, provide that in the event that an employe is dismissed, he shall be notified in writing as to the cause for such action . Four of the National Agreements contain a rule to the effect that an employe in service over sixty days shall not be /lismissed without an investigation, the only exception being the rule in the National Agreement with the shop crafts, which provides that no employe who had been in service thirty days or over should be dismissed for incompetency. When the Labor Board revised the shop craft rules in October, 1921, this was changed to read the same as the milder rules contained in the other four Agreements. All Agreements specify that an employe has the right to a fair and impartial hearing before his superior officers in a case involving disciplinary action or dismissal, but allow him to be suspended from duty pending 44 the investigation, which shall be held not less than seven days from the time of the beginning of the period of suspension. Transcripts of the testimony at such a hearing must be furnished to the employe upon his request, provided that the same are verified and signed by him. At any hearing before his immediate superior the employe has the right to bring in not to exceed three other employes as witnesses unless more are provided for by mutual agreement. Officers must allow any employe who feels himself unjustly or unfairly treated, a fair and impartial hearing and the decision on the case, whether brought by the employe or by the management, must be given within ten days after the hearing. If the employe is dis- satisfied with the decision, he has the right to appeal to the officer next above his immediate superior and from him to the highest official designated by the railroad to take charge of such cases. The notice that an appeal is to be made must be filed by the employe or his duly accredited representative within ten days of the time of the handing down of the pre- vious decision and copies of the testimony and the decision must be furnished by the management to such members of the committee or such other employes as the employe may designate as his duly accredited representatives. A rule in the National Agreements with the shop crafts, providing that all conferences shall be held during working hours without loss of time to the members of the committgg,^ was eliminated in the new rules issued by the Labor Board ./The rules provide that free transportation shall be given to men serving on committees representing employes and that they shall have leave of absence at any time for serving on com- mittees or representing employes at hearings, etc. In case it is found that an employe has been dismissed or disciplined for an action of which he was not guilty, he must be reinstated without loss of his seniority rights and shall be paid for all time lost on account of suspension or dismissal. No discrimination is permitted to be made by the railroads against any employe on account of membership in any particular union or unions. The rules also provide that, pending a decision on any case, there will be no shut down by the employer nor a suspension of work by the employes. The time limits for the handing down of decisions or the time in which appeals shall be made can be extended either for the employes or management by mutual agreement. 45 Piece Work Rule 1 of the National Agreement with the Federated Shop Crafts established an hourly basis of pay for all shop employes except those who performed intermittent service and those who received a monthly salary. This was interpreted to mean a continuation of the policy inaugurated by the Director General of Railroads, of putting all men on an hourly rate instead of on piece-work basis. In General Order 27, the United States Railroad Administra- tion had increased the wages of the piece workers and day workers in the same proportion, but when Supplement 4 was issued, guaranteeing a minimum wage of 5 8 cents and 68 cents per hour to car and locomotive workers respectively, day wages were increased without any corresponding increases in piece work, which made the difference between what the men could earn on a piece-work basis and what they were guaranteed on a daily basis, too small to pay for the extra effort.^ The piece workers protested and conferences were arranged to discuss the matter. On December 31, 1918, the Director General McAdoo issued instructions to the effect that the question of whether or not the piece-work system should be abolished entirely, be put to a vote of the employes themselves. As only a few exceptionally diligent and skilled men were able to earn more than the regular wage, organized labor believed that elimination of piece work would be to its interest. Among the objections that were raised to piece work by the organizations, was the statement that the employer cuts piece-work rates when labor is plentiful. The answer of the railroads was that, as the rates were controlled by the Labor Board, the employes need have no apprehension on that score. The organizations also maintained that the piece-work system tends to make dishonest employes; that it overworks men; and that it results in poor quality of output as well as reduces the power of labor organizations to bargain collectively. The railroads argued that any tendency, toward dishonesty could be corrected by inspection on the part of the supervisory forces, whose duty it was to see that the worker performed his work in a proper mechanical manner and that exactly the same inspection was made of the work of the time worker as of the ' Railway Age, August 30, 1918. 46 piece worker to see that his output was of sufficient quantity and quality to justify the wages paid him. As for overwork, the railroads stated that if the system of piece work were prop- erly adjusted, no man who was willing to do a fair day's work would receive less under the piece work system than he would receive if paid a minimum daily rate, and that employes who worked beyond the average amount did so of their own voli- tion. As to the poorer quality of output, the railroads held that this was a matter of supervision and that it was always necessary for the employer to protect himself in this respect, whether the work was done on the day basis or piece-work basis. The point raised by the unions that the piece-work system reduced their power to bargain collectively was an- swered by the railroads with the statement that employes or labor organizations who desire to bargain collectively "should bargain on subjects relative to the operation of piece-work and not condemn the system in its entirety, since the piece-rate system, properly operated, is based on fairness and justice." The railroads also stated that it was necessary to have an efficient method of demanding a fair output for the rate and of encouraging additional output by suitable compensation and that piece work was a desirable system by which to accomplish this result. The labor organizations took but little heed of the protests of the railroads, and after the decision was made by the Director General to test the matter out by a vote of the employes themselves, Mr. B. M. Jewell, Acting President of the Railroad Employes' Department of the American Federa- tion of Labor, directed a letter to the chairmen of the crafts throughout the country, urging that the system be condemned in its entirety. One paragraph of this letter is noteworthy as showing the attitude of the union officials on the subject: "In conclusion, we believe it will not be amiss to remind the officers and members that your prompt and decisive action on this question is of vital concern to the future of your organization. We have waited many years for this opportunity. Let us not be found wanting. Do not be content with a majority vote. See that it is UNANIMOUS, and that nothing is left undone on your part to make it so. This matter is now in your hands to be disposed of. Therefore it behooves every man to be up and doing if we would successfully cope with the situation and effectively eradicate the last vestige of the accursed piece work practice from every railroad in the country." The result of the vote taken by the employes was a sweep- ing condemnation of the piece-work system, which was abolished 47 by the Director General by executive order on December 31, 1918. Rule 1 therefore simply continued the policy against piece work which had been inaugurated by the Director General himself. The prohibition of piece work is said to have entailed heavy losses to the railroads, and it has been stated that the output of the railroad shops was decreased from 20% to 25% by putting wages on the hourly basis. This meant that for the same output more men were required and that additional machines were necessary to accommodate the additional employes, which entailed further cost both in wages and in the purchase of equipment.' The question was brought up again in the hearings before the Labor Board on the continuation of the National Agree- ments in June, 1921. Mr. John G. Walber,^ in opening the case for the railroads, said in part: "The continuation of national agreements by Addendum No. 2 to Decision No. 119 carries with it the obligation to pay only on the hourly basis. This circumscribes the initiative of managements and dis- courages and impedes progress. The railroads believe that this restric- tion upon their methods of obtaining results is unwarranted and that, as shown by record of the correspondence of the Railroad Administration filed in the hearings on the national agreements, there is every justifica- tion for the belief that if it had not been for the discrimination against piece workers in the wage orders, the opposition to working piece work could not have been solidified even during federal control. "The managements alone are charged with the economical and efficient operation of the railroads. Therefore they must select methods for the performance of the work which will yield the best results from the standpoint of economy and proper performance. Should the final decision of the Board result in preventing the railroads from doing the work in any case in their own shops or repair points on account of the cost of such work being excessive as compared with the cost of getting the same work done outside, there will be no alternative for the manage- ments except to arrange for the work to be done outside. The manage- ments would regret such action as deeply as would anyone else, but it simply would be forced upon them. The managements could have no justification whatever for continuing or adopting methods of performance of work which result in excessive costs. No good interest of the employes can be furthered by insistence upon methods which on account of exces- sive costs would leave but one way open for the management to pursue. "Of all the charges of abuses and improper conditions under the piece-work system of pay there is none which cannot be corrected, if justified. The frequent charge that it is possible for employes to do in- ferior work and even fail to do work cannot properly be considered an argument against the system, as such a charge cannot be confined to piece work, and is equally possible under any other system of pay. If employes will neglect their work when paid on the piece-work basis, they will do the same on the hourly system, as the controlling element is the character of the individual. "Whether or not the piece-work system of pay yields proper com- ' Railway Age, August 30, 1918. 2 Executive Secretary of the Bureau of Information for Eastern Railways. 48 pensation for the work performed depends primarily upon the prices set for the jobs. With the prices properly set, we are unable to see what sound objections can be made to the system, if employes are willing to render adequate and proper services . The hourly system of pay allows no consideration for the industrious employe. All are on a common basis. It is the ambition of most energetic men to profit by. their work; many have the ambition to engage in business for themselves. The piece- work system gives the employes this advantage and the ambitious, energetic employe receives compensation in proportion to his contribu- tion to the output." After urging the re-establishment of piece work and the revision of piece-work rates to conform with changed condi- tions, Mr. Walber said: "In such revisions, prices should be fixed which shall not impose excessive application of the employes in order to perform the jobs within the time used in fixing the unit prices, but if controversies arise as to the result of the unit prices and it is not possible to amicably adjust them between the managements and the representatives of the employes, they can be referred to the Labor Board in accordance with the provisions of the Transportation Act. That Act has come into existence since the piece-work system of pay was discontinued, so that today the employes have a Board to which they can appeal in the event of any complaints against improper results which cannot be adjusted on the home roads. "' The Labor Board, after listening to the arguments of the management and the replies by the employes, who submitted a large volume of testimony in rebuttal to the railroads' argu- ments, allowed the railroads to re-establish the piece-work system in their revised rules issued for the shop crafts on October 16, 1921. The decision made no comment on the re- establishment of the system and gives no reasons, and it must therefore be assumed that the arguments of the railroads were sufficient to convince them of the justice of a fair, regulated piece-work system, both to the railroads themselves and to the employes. Apprentices Next in importance to piece work in the rules pecuHar to the shop crafts, come Rules 40, 41 and 42 with reference to apprentices. The rules, as they appear in the National Agreement on shop crafts, are as follows: Rule No. 40 All apprentices must be able to speak, read and write the Eng- lish language and understand at least the first four rules of arith- mctic. Applicants for regular apprenticeship shall be between 16 and 21 years of age, and, if accepted, shall serve four years of 290 days ' Railway Age, August, 1921, p. 351 . 49 each calendar year. If retained in the service at the expiration of their apprenticeship they shall be paid not less than the mini- mum rate established for journeymen mechanics of their respect- ive crafts. ..... J II In selecting helper apprentices seniority will govern and all selections will be made in conjunction with the respective craft shop committees.' Rule No. 4i All apprentices must be indentured and shall be furnished with a duplicate indenture by the Company, who will also furnish every opportunity possible for the apprentice to secure a complete knowledge of the trade. No apprentice will be started at points where there are not adequate facilities for learning the trade. Rule 40 shall govern in the employment of apprenticeship. Form of Indenture This will certify that was em- ployed as a apprentice by the railroad, at on 19 , to serve four years, a minimum of 290 days each. (Title of Officer in Charge) Service performed during apprenticeship. This will certify that on 19 , completed the course of apprenticeship specified above and is entitled, if em- ployed by the Railroad, to the rates of pay and conditions of service of (Title of officer in charge) Note: The above form is to be used both for regular and helper apprentices. (Helper apprentices to serve three years). Rule No. Ji2 The ratio of apprentices in their respective crafts shall not be more than one to every five mechanics. _ Two apprentices will not be worked together as partners. The distribution of apprentices among shops where general repairs are made on the division shall be as nearly as possible in proportion to the mechanics in the respective trades employed therein. In computing the number of apprentices that may be employed in a trade on a division the total number of mechanics of that trade emplo)^ed on the division will be considered. If within six months an apprentice shows no aptitude to learn the trade he will not be retained as an apprentice. An apprentice shall not be dismissed or leave the service of his 1 See special rules of each craft for additional apprentice rules. SO own accord, except for just and sufficient cause, before completing his apprenticeship. Apprentices shall not be assigned to work on night shifts. An ^ apprentice shall not be allowed to work overtime during the first ^ three years of his apprenticeship. If any apprentice is retained in the service upon completing the apprenticeship, his seniority rights as a mechanic will date from the time of completion of apprenticeship. Preference will be given to sons of employes in the selection of apprentices to the extent of at least 80 per cent, of the number employed. Under Rule 40 only regular and helper apprentices were allowed to be employed by railroads, and no special apprentices who were graduates of technical schools 'were permitted. Prior to the period of federal control, the railroads had em- ployed a great number of these so-called special apprentices who were young men with college training in engineering and other technical schools and who were sent into the shops and given a course of instruction in all parts of the service in order to be able to familiarize themselves with all the processes of maintenance and construction of equipment. Many roads regarded these men as among the most important of their employes, as they brought with them not only good general knowledge of mechanics, but from the nature of their training they were able to keep abreast of all the new developments in the scientific world pertaining to their particular branch, and the economies in operation to which these new developments might lead were therefore more valuable to the railroad than the work of regular apprentices whose knowledge, even after a thorough training, was limited, perforce, to a knowledge of the methods which had been in practice for years. Regular and helper apprentices were limited to one craft, and rules for their training and compensation were included in the special rules governing the respective crafts. In asking for a modification of Rule 40, allowing them to employ special apprentices who had technical school training, Mr. Whiter, speaking for the railroad executives before the Labor Board, stated:* "One of the principal objections to this rule is that it makes it impossible for the railroads to have special apprentices. It is absolutely necessary that a reasonable number of technically trained men should be employed ^^„- by the railroads today in their mechanical department and such men are just as much entitled to an opportunity to obtain practical experience as are regular apprentices and helper apprentices. In view of the fact that they will average four years older than regular apprentices and aln^ost : Railroad Wage Hearings, 1920. SI always live away from home, and must, therefore, be self-supportmg, they are entitled to higher rates of compensation than regular appren- tices. In view of their other experience and training it is reasonable that their apprentice course should be shorter than that of a regujar apprentice. "In view of their service to the railroads being diversified, it is not reasonable that their work should be limited to any one craft, nor is it reasonable that they should be barred from doing any of the work assigned to the craft, because, if carried to extremes, this would mean that there would be no work for them on a railroad. "It should be borne in mind that these special apprentices are not placed in the shops to become mechanics of any craft, but because of the long years that they devote to their technical education, it is felt that the prohibition against the railroads obtaining their services in the shops is unfair and unprogressive. It is a well established fact that the sons of the employes of the railroad at this time are taking advantage of the oppor- tunities for advanced education, and such prohibition operates against them as well as others. These men with higher technical training are essential to well-operated railroads and they are entitled to an oppor- tunity to obtain practical experience and to demonstrate what ability they may possess. A well balanced railroad mechanical organization cannot afford to be without some men at least who have had technical and practical training. "The age limit under the apprentice rule is from 16 to 21 years. As these young men have to spend many years in the educational institu- tions, many of them will be older than 21 years when they graduate. It was the practice on many railroads to endeavor to make it attractive for these technically educated men to come into their service. Even on railroads which had schedules with the crafts' organizations, these special apprentices were utilized. Generally the number of such special appren- tices did not affect the ratio of apprentices to mechanics, as they were considered outside of the rules of the schedule. "Also it has heretofore been quite a common practice for young men who were attending technical institutions, equipping themselves to be mechanical or electrical engineers, to spend their vacations in railroad shops and after graduation to acquire a practical knowledge of the various departments of the shops which would better equip them along the lines of their profession . "If efficient operation is to result, it is our judgment that the right should be restored to the management to continue the use of these special apprentices, which right was taken away from them by the Railroad Administration and the National Agreements." The prohibition of the employment of special apprentices was not strongly defended by the representatives of the shop crafts, who confined themselves to saying that in their opinion it was not absolutely necessary that any number of technical men should be employed by the railroads in their mechanical departments, as the apprentice was placed in the shop for the purpose of becoming efficient, and if given the proper experience would become more efficient than the special apprentices. They claimed that the practice of the railroads of hiring special apprentices had been abused in the past and that in several instances, in place of employing regular apprentices, they employed what they called special appren- tices and instructed them only in one branch of the trade, thereby impairing the efficiency of their services. 52 The result of the two arguments was that in their revision of the shop craft rules, the Labor Board upheld the con- tention of the railroads and inserted Rule 40^, which made the following provisions for the employment of special appren- tices: Rule No. W}4 Special apprentices shall be selected from young men between the ages of 18 and 26 years who have had a technical school educa- tion, and shall serve three years of 290 days each calendar year. Special apprentices shall receive training in the various depart- ments in the different classes of work of the different crafts in the maintenance of equipment departments and may be moved from place to place or on any class of work at the discretion of the man- agement. In computing the ratio of apprentices to mechanics, special apprentices will be included, the number of same not to exceed 5 per cent of the total. If retained in the service at the completion of the three year course, the apprentice may choose the craft he desires employment in and shall receive a special rate for the period of one year, at the expiration of which time he shall be classified and receive the minimum rate of the craft employed in . The rate of pay for special apprentices for the first three years shall be not less than that of helper apprentices. The second and third paragraphs of Rule 40 of the National Agreements providing for regular and helper apprentices were objected to by the railroads because the latter did not believe that helpers should be obliged to serve an apprenticeship before being used on mechanical work. They claimed that helpers in the performance of the irregular duties in helping mechanics, would do more or less work of the kind which would eventually fit them to be mechanics and should be pro- moted without respect to seniority as soon as they show suffi- cient ability to warrant putting them on lower grades of mechanic's work. After they have had some experience at this work they could be further promoted. The railroads objected to restricting their labor supply by the requirement that a man whom they employed must have had four years' experience, because a large portion of the maintenance work done on railroads, which is now classi- fied as mechanic's work, does not require that much skill. It is well known that railroads for years have taught practically inexperienced men to do the work necessary on freight cars, in roundhouses and in many other places, in anywhere from six months to three years. Industries develop their employes S3 in the same manner and the railroads saw no reason why they should follow a different procedure. These provisions were defended by the representatives of the shop crafts on the ground that they gave those who had passed the age of the regular apprentice and those of superior intelli- gence, the privilege of learning all branches of the trade of their craft and also provided that their previous ability would be recognized by requiring them to serve only three years as an apprentice. Most railroads have adopted the apprentice school system, whereby a record of each apprentice is kept, and in most instances it is compulsory for the apprentice to attend school hours at the expense of the railroad company. This, the representatives of the shop crafts claimed, was an additional assurance to the railroad companies of competent mechanics. They also claimed that, under this rule, helpers were used to greater advantage both for themselves and the company, as they were selected in conjunction with the shop committee. This was done to prevent some officials from being partial to some of the helpers who had been in the service a short time, and gave the helpers who were entitled to it by their senior rights and qualifications, encouragement and opportunity to become mechanics. In no case, the labor organizations said, did the employes insist on or recommend a helper for promo- tion if he did not meet the requirements of this rule. The rules as they were finally issued by the Labor Board retained, practically intact, the provisions to which the rail- roads had objected and the only changes made were in the recognition of the rights of the railroad to employ special apprentices and the insertion in Rule 40 of a provision recogniz- ing ability as well as seniority in the selection of helper apprentices. Female Employes In the maintenance of way and clerks' agreements, pro- visions are inserted providing for female employes and speci- fying that they shall be paid at the same rate as is paid to male employes for the performance of the same class of work. The rule, however, says that working conditions must be healthful and suited to their needs and that the laws made by the states governing their working conditions shall be observed. 54 Objections of the Railroads to Standard Rules In their presentation before the Labor Board of their ob- jections to a continuation of the National Agreements, in June, 1921, the Association of Railway Executives presented a mass of evidence showing the evil effects of standard working rules, and of the National Agreements in particular, upon the rail- roads of the country. These objections have been outlined very briefly in the statement in the first section of this chapter. The first objection made by the railroads was that it was unfair to force the various railroads to enter into agree- ments, in the making of which they had no voice. This ob- jection was based on the fact that the National Agreements with the labor unions had been entered into on behalf of the railroads, by the Director General of Railroads during the period of Federal control and the railroads themselves, although obliged to enforce the rules laid down in the Agreements, have not had an opportunity to be heard when the various rules were formulated. Protests were entered by the managements of almost all the railroads affected, but they had been given scant consideration by the Railroad Administration. As a matter of fact, the railroads were in no position to object. The management representatives and the labor representatives of the Director General were unable to agree and twice sepa- rated. Finally the matter was settled by a special board from which the management representatives had been removed and which was composed entirely of labor representatives. ^ In this connection it is interesting to note that the Assistant Director General of Railroads was Mr. F. W. McManamy, who had formerly been the Chairman of the Federated Shop Crafts on the Pere Marquette Railroad. Correspondence be- tween the officers of the Federated Shop Crafts and the Director General of Railroads^, in answer to the objections of the railroads to the continuation of the National Agree- ments, seems to bear out the railroads' contention in this regard. These letters to and from the Director General of Railroads are particularly noteworthy on account of the fact that in none of them is there a concrete statement on the part of the organization leaders as to why it was desired to stan- 1 Testimony of Mr. Whiter before Senate Committee on Interstate Com- merce, July, 1921. 2 Given in full in Volume 1 of the Presentation of the Railway Employes' Department of the American Federation of Labor. ss dardize the working rules throughout the country, and the attitude as indicated by the letters seems to have been that the principle of standardization of working rules for all shop craft employes was a generally accepted principle among the unions, so completely so in fact, that it was unnecessary for the railroad labor organizations to present their reasons either in detail or at all. There also seems to have been no disposi- tion on the part of the Director General or his assistants to question the advisability of the adoption of standard working rules, and if the correspondence is a true picture of the situation it was not necessary for the unions to make any very deter- mined effort in order to have their principles adopted by the Director General. The second objection of the railroads to the National Agree- ments was that the Agreements constituted a limitation of their labor supply. In this respect they particularly objected to the rules of classification and quaHfication of employes. The railroads contended that rules, such as the shop craft rules, classifying men by crafts and by grades within the crafts, imposed upon them unreasonable restrictions. They also objected to the provision which stipulated that all employes in the shop crafts should pass through a period of apprentice- ship before becoming mechanics, as many. of the occupations in the shops do not require any such training as would have to be given during a four years' apprenticeship course. This applied particularly to the carmen and to the limitation im- posed by the interpretations of the National Agreements on the subject of special apprentices which is taken up in detail in a previous section of this chapter. The Agreements, it was said, also worked to restrict the labor employed by the railroads through the rules on seniority. The seniority rules provided that new positions or positions which become open through the illness or absence of another eniploye should be filled on the basis of seniority, merit, and ability. Some of the shop craft rules did not even mention merit or ability and provided that seniority alone should govern any promotions. This operated to keep the railroads from taking any new men or younger men who might be better suited for the position than the men who were oldest in point of view of length of service. The National Agreements stipu- lated that when forces were reduced the youngest men should 56 be laid off first, and in the restoration of forces the men should be taken back on the railroad payroll according to their rela- tive length of service. Rule 32 of the shop craft rules provided that none but mechanics or apprentices regularly employed as such, or fore- men at points where no mechanics were employed, should do mechanic's work, according to the special rules of each craft. At many outlying points work must regularly be done which, prior to federal control, was always satisfactorily and eco- nomically done by employes generally known as "handy men," where conditions did not justify the employment or retaining of full-fledged mechanics or apprentices. The employment of handy men was prohibited, according to the interpretation placed upon Rule 32 by the Railroad Administration, and resulted in very severe penalties to the railroads. The El Paso and Southwestern Railroad cited an example of the penalties imposed by this rule in the case of an engine which was set up at Douglas, Arizona. About the time it was ready to go, it developed that a window pane was broken in the cab. As there were indications of a severe storm, thei engineer insisted that repairs be made immediately. There] was no engine carpenter on duty at that time, and it was necessary for the foreman to call one to do the work though he could have performed it himself in a few minutes. The result was that the train was delayed an hour and thirty minutes and the employe called to do the work was paid for five hours for work requiring about thirty minutes. Another illustration of this rule was furnished by the Chicago, Burlington and Quincy Railroad. At the shop at McCook, Nebraska, a request was made for a tender and truck repairer in the third shift. A check was made of the work done at the point for ten nights and it was found that the only work available for such a man was the tightening of foot strap bolts on the tank truck, fitting a knuckle in the pilot coupler, tightening the jaw bolts on two tank trucks, , putting the cotter key in the bottom brake rod, putting on one ' brake shoe and putting a hinge on a cab door, the total being ' about three hours' work, which, however, was spread over a period often nights. The work should have been handled by the machinist on the job so as not to delay the engine, but the crafts insisted that either a man be employed on the shift or called for the work. 57 When the shop craft rules were revised by the Labor Board, this rule was amended so that mechanics at outlying points were permitted to do the work of any craft and the railroads were not forced to hire extra men for work which came out- side the classification of work to be done by any particular craft. Nevertheless the old rules continue in force at all of the larger points and handy men are not permitted to be em- ployed. The new rule, as it is interpreted, means that at the larger shops where men of all the crafts are regularly on duty, the work shall be split up just as it was under the provisions of the National Agreements, except that for light repairs involv- ing but little work, machinists and blacksmiths are allowed to handle wires on small jobs, without the aid of a qualified electrical worker. Under the revisions of the five National Agreements which have been issued by the Railroad Labor Board, some of the more unreasonable rules have been eliminated, particularly those rules which burden the railroads with excessive penalties for overtime, such as the rules for time in advance of the regular assignment, calls outside the regular period of work, traveling assignments, etc. The rules to which the railroads objected, dealing with classifications, apprentices, etc., the Board has not seen fit to revise. There is no doubt that the railroad employes' earnings have been diminished to a considerable degree by the elimi- nation of these rules, but any figures as to the saving to the railroads accomplished by the revised rules can be only conjecture. In so far as the shop crafts are concerned, the classification rules are unquestionably the ones which involve the greatest burden to the railroads, but it is also true that the application of the strict seniority rules as applied to the reduction and restoration of forces has efi^ected considerable economy for the railroads, as the provisions which stipulated that the youngest men should be the first to be laid off in reduction of forces have resulted in the elimination of a great number of men who were taken into the employ of the railroads during the war and classified as mechanics, though not efficiently functioning as such. Railroads, as Mr. Whiter said in his testimony before the Labor Board, do not object to proper classifications of work, 58 provided they are refined so as to take account of the various grades of work within the classification and of varying expe- rience and skill of employes. The railroads claim that the National Agreements also operate to curtail production. This, they assert, is brought about in two ways: first, through the detailed classification of occupations in the various crafts and, second, through the pro- hibition of piece-work. Under the first head an example is given by the Delaware, Lackawanna and Western Railroad in its machine shops in Scranton, Pennsylvania. At this point, an employe had for several years operated a power-driven hacksaw and had, until shortly before the case was brought up, operated a circular saw in the boiler shop when occasion demanded. His work consisted of cutting off round and flat bar stock, old piston rods and steel tubing of one-eighth to one-fourth inch longer than required lengths, the parts cut off being machined by mechanics. He was also required to cut off angle and channel irons on this saw. At various times he was assigned to cut off channels on the circular saw and the time consumed on this machine would average about six hours per month, but the use of the circular saw had been discon- tinued for some time and the machine had been removed from service. The representatives of the shop crafts at this point took the position that inasmuch as the work to be performed was intimately connected with machinists' work, under the classification, and as they did not find that the operation of a power driven hacksaw or circular saw was anything other than machinist's work, the employe in question should be classified and paid as a machinist. The railroad claimed that the employe in question was classified as a machinist's helper and should be paid at that rate. The decision of the Director General stated that operating metal cutting cold saws or friction saws was performing work classified under the orders as that of machinists and that accordingly this employe should be paid the machinist's rate. Under the rules of the National Agreements, when running repairs were to be made to the front end of a locomotive, it was necessary to call in an electrical worker to disconnect the wiring and a machinist to make the repairs on the door, although it would have been easy for the machinist to discon- nect the wires himself, as it involved only two or three min- utes' work. 59 \ Under the majcfiinist classification (Rule 62), when a ma- chinist and a h^per are engaged on rod work, the helper is not permitted to unscrew the nuts of the rod bolts, nor is he per- mitted^o-^inscrew the nuts from the piston rod packing gland on one side of"-air"engine while the machinist with whom he is working is engaged in making repairs on the other side. Thus the helper, who is a capable man, is forced to stand idly by and watch someone else work, with a corresponding curtailment in production. The prohibition of piece work was perhaps the most serious blow which was given to the railroads by the Shop Crafts National Agreement. Rule 1 of this Agreement provided that all shop employes should be paid on the basis of an hourly rate, and this was interpreted to mean that piece work was prohibited in railroad shops. The Association of Railway Executives, in presenting their case before the Labor Board, stated that the effect of this rule was to curtail production from one-third to one-half in many railroad shops. Mr. Whiter, testifying for the Association of Railway Executives, stated that, prior to federal control of the railroads, the piece- work system of pay was in effect on many railroads, and that the report of the Lane Commission made provisions for con- tinuing that basis of pay. General Order 27 of the Di- rector General of Railroads adopted the report of the Lane Commission and gave to the employes subject to the piece- work system of pay increases per hour which raised their earnings to the same level as those of employes paid on the hourly basis. Supplement Number 4 to General Order 27, while granting additional increases in the hourly rates, provided that "em- ployes on the piece-work basis shall receive not less than the minimum rate per hour awarded to the hourly workers, etc.," thereby making no increases in the piece-work scales of prices, but guaranteeing the employes the hourly rates produced by the supplement. interpretation Number 3 to General Order 27 and Supple- ment Number 4 also provided "where piece-work rates or piece workers receive no increase between January 1, 1916 and December 31, 1917, it is evident that the average earnings rate was sufficiently in excess of the hourly rate to cover any increases that may have been granted hourly workers. In determining the increase to such piece workers, they shall 60 receive the same increase per hour as accrues to the hourly worker under General Order 27." This failure to permit in- creases in the piece-work scales corresponding to the increases in the hourly rates could have no other eflFect than to make the employes dissatisfied with the piece-work scales. The result of the arguments of the railroads was that the Labor Board, in revising Rule 1 of the shop crafts agreement, inserted a provision to the effect that, except as otherwise provided, employes should be paid on the hourly basis, and inserted another paragraph saying that this rule "is intended to remove the prohibition against piece work contained in Rule No. 1 of the shop crafts National Agreement and to permit the question to be taken up for negotiation on any individual railroad in the manner prescribed by the Transportation Act." A further objection to the National Agreements is made by the railroads on the ground that under the rules of the Agree- ments they incur excessive penalties in payment of overtime. As brought out in the section of this report on hours of service, the National Agreements established eight hours as the basic day. In general, overtime may be said to be paid on the basis of time and one-half for all time worked in excess of eight hours, although this has been modified in the case of several classes of employes, 1 who under the new rules, are paid pro rata for work performed in the ninth and tenth hours of continuous service. It must be admitted that the Labor Board, in revising the National Agreements, have eliminated many of the objectionable features of the overtime rules. It is not so much that continuous service is paid for at a punitive rate as that special provisions made for emergency work and other work for which employes are called outside their regular assignments involve severe penalties to the railroads. One example of the excessive penalties involved for work outside the regular assignment is furnished by the rule of the Shop Crafts National Agreement which im)vides that a mini- mum of five hours should be paid for three^jpurs and twenty minutes' work or less when the employe is called to perform work outside the regular assignment. A case on the Chicago, St. Paul, Minneapolis and Omaha Railroad, where six men composing a gang completed repairs on an engine in the shop and were paid five hours' wages for one-half hour's work, is a » See pp. 34, 35. 61 good example of the working of this rule. At the close of the regular working day, the testing of the engine on which the six men were working had not been completed . A leak developed which made it necessary for the gang testing the engine to work thirty minutes past the ninth hour of their employment, and claim was made for five hours' pay on the basis that this con- stituted a call outside the regular assignment. The claim of the employes was upheld and they received five hours' pay for thirty minutes' work. The Norfolk and Western Railroad cites another case where a machinist whose regular reporting time was 7 A. M., was at the shop fifteen minutes before his regular starting time. An engine, for which the crew had reported and which was ready to leave the terminal, had a broken water glass. The machinist in question was called to put in a new glass, as there was no other machinist available. For this fifteen minutes' service in advance of his regular working period, the company was required to pay three hours and twenty minutes at time and one-half, or five hours' straight time pay. The Atchison, Topeka and Sante Fe Railroad cited an ex- ample of a case at Strong City, where a train was regularly scheduled to leave at an hour that necessitated a carman's going to work at 6:45 A. M., or fifteen minutes in advance of the time for the rest of the carmen to go to work. Under Rule 7 of the shop crafts National Agreement, the com- pany was obliged to pay five hours' pay per day for this fifteen minutes' service, or $90.50 a month for a total of seven and one- half hours' work. No other arrangement could be put into effect by the mechanical department without operating the night force and paying out a greater amount, thereby opening the carrier to criticism for creating what would have been termed a "pension" job. The only alternative was to change the departing time of this train fifteen minutes, which was done. In the other Agreements it is specified that time worked in advance of and continuous with the regular assignment shall be paid for on the actual basis of time worked, at the rate of time and one-half, and in the revision of the shop craft rules, the Labor Board changed this rule to conform to those of the other agreements. One of the most serious arguments against standard working rules which has been put forth by the railroad managements 62 is the charge that the National Agreements and the revised rules issued by the Labor Board have operated to reduce efficiency and to destroy morale of railroad employes. In this connection the emphasis is chiefly on the seniority rules of the various agreements. They charge that the seniority rules work for the elimination of personal initiative, because employes feel that the only thing necessary to secure pro- motion is to do sufficient work to keep them from being discharged, knowing that after they have completed a certain number of years of service, promotion will come more or less without regard to merit or ability. This tends to create among employes, particularly in the clerical forces, a situation very similar to that which is found in government bureaus, where employes simply "hang on," doing a minimum amount of work, secure in the knowledge that eventually promotion will come, if only they have the patience to wait. Another baneful influence of the seniority system is that it tends to keep out of the service the young and ambitious men of good education who would normally be attracted to the railroad field. Thousands of cases are cited where men have entered the railroad service, only to withdraw after a few months in the lower grades of service because they see that there is no hope of promotion based purely on ability, and that even if ability does enter in, the years of service must also have been completed. This excludes from the railroads a very valuable class of employes and greatly reduces the stand- ard of those kept in service. Under the present rules it is very difficult to dismiss an ' employe for incompetency. The rule in the Shop Crafts National Agreement which provides that no employe should be dismissed for incompetency after he had been in the service thirty days, has been eliminated, but as long as the seniority system, with its iron clad rules, prevails, it is certain that the railroads will be obliged to shoulder the burden of retaining a great number of practically useless employes. An excel- lent illustration of this point is a case which was cited before the Labor Board by the Virginian Railway. A man was employed as a laborer in the car department, at Princeton, April 1, 1918, and was promoted to the position of car repairer July 2 of the same year. He worked con- tinuously as a car repairer, until laid off in a reduction of forces in February, 1919. During his employment, the com- 63 mittee was never advised or informed by the supervisory forces over him that his services were unsatisfactory. In the restoration of forces in the car department, the company refused to re-employ this man, as it was claimed that on account of certain physical defects he was not able to perform the duties required of a car repairer. The employes' organization took the position that the fact that the man was employed and retained on the job as a car repairer for several months, without any criticism as to the quality and quantity of the work turned out by him or any other objections, was con- clusive evidence that the supervisory forces over him enter- tained no prejudice against his services; that therefore the man was clearly entitled to re-employment under the rule of the National Agreement which provided that, in restoration of forces, the senior laid-ofF men would be given preference of re-employment within a reasonable time; and that he was entitled to pay for time lost since his turn came to go back to work in the order of his seniority, because he had been avail- able and ready to report for duty when called. The railroad's position was that the employe in question was afflicted with very poor eyesight and that when the freight car forces were increased, the general car department at Princeton, observing this defect, declined to reinstate him in line of his seniority, as his presence in the vicinity of moving cars was a constant source of danger to himself and possibly to his fellow employes as well. The superintendent of motive power knew from personal observation that this man's vision was very defective. The company was in need of car repair- ers at Princeton and was willing to reinstate him if he was able to pass a satisfactory examination by the company's ocuUst or any other competent oculist not located in Princeton, but felt that they could not consistently reinstate him without competent assurance that he was a safe man. The decision in this case was that, having been laid off in a reduction of the forces and not having been advised at that time that the company would not re-employ him owing to his alleged defect of eyesight, the employe in question should have been returned to the service according to his seniority rights in the restoration of forces, as provided in the National Agreements. It was ordered that he be reinstated and paid for time lost from the date on which his seniority would have entitled him to be returned to service. 64 The seniority system, it is said, also works for disorganiza- tion through the rules prescribed for the bidding in of new positions and for the exercise of seniority rights by older employes. Under the rules, as seen in our discussion on seniority, an older employe might at any time exercise his seniority rights to displace junior men. The Chicago, Burlington and Quincy Railroad cited one case^ at Havelock, Nebraska, where a man working in the boiler shop changed his job five times in three weeks, simply because he outranked the other employes and was going from job to job to see which would involve the least amount of work. A condition of this kind is certain to disorganize work throughout the entire shop or office. It means that when the oldest employe bids in on a vacancy or a new position, the creation of the one vacancy will disrupt the work of the entire force. As long as the rest of the force care to bid in on the jobs made vacant by their immediate superiors, in a period of business activity and high wages in outside industries, vacancies may become frequent enough to have all of the employes of a freight office, for instance, working on jobs with which they are unfamiliar, and changing their positions with great frequency. Railroads are not adverse to the seniority system in so far as it protects the rights of older employes and insures men who have given long and faithful service the right to lighter work and easier and better working conditions. They do object, however, when the system keeps out of their employ the more intelligent of the rising generation and forces these, for their own protection, to seek employment in other indus- tries. Another effect of detailed working rules is said to be that the respect of the employes for their superiors is notably dimin- ished. A man belonging to a strongly organized craft who knows that he has an alert committee behind him, eager to take advantage of technicalities and rules of doubtful interpreta- tion, will not hesitate to adopt an attitude of disrespect toward his superior, and while it is admitted that the individualism of the American worker has been one of the largest factors in the successful industrial development of the country, the railroads say that it is not inconsistent that proper discipline be mingled with such individualism and that, in fact, it is absolutely necessary for the proper conduct of business. I Presentation of Association of Railway Executives in Objection to the National Agreements, Vol. II. 65 The manner in which the rules originally provided for the employes in one department are applied to the employes of another department, also tends, it is said, to disorganize the forces. This is deemed particularly true of rules, originally designed for the employes of shops, which are applied in prac- tice to the employes of the maintenance of way and signal departments. The National Agreements covering the shop crafts provide that the rules contained therein shall apply to all employes of any particular craft, regardless of the depart- ment in which employed. For instance, steamfitters, plumb- ers, water-service repair men and other pipefitters, tinsmiths, electricians, metal bridgemen, blacksmiths, machinists, cab- inet makers, bench carpenters, etc., employed in the main- tenance of way department and having no interest in or connection with the maintenance of equipment department, are, nevertheless, subject to the rules of the maintenance of equipment department and are represented by the committee of that department. The same applies to electrical workers and linemen of the signal department, who come under the rules for the employes having the same qualifications pro- vided for in the Shop Crafts Agreement. Seniority rules for certain mechanical crafts limit them to the place where employed, while the rules of the maintenance of way department, where these employes are engaged, usually provide territorial seniority, thus producing an undesirable situation. The railroads claim that the employes of each department should be separate and distinct from the employes of any other department and should be governed entirely by the rules or schedule of the department in which they are em- ployed. Rules governing maintenance of way and structures should be especially prepared for that department. There should be no division of jurisdiction. It is true that certain mechanical work is required in the maintenance of way department, but nearly all of it is road work performed under conditions entirely different from those which prevail in shops and to which shop rules are not applicable. Employes who perform this work must be trained, supervised and pro- moted by the officials of the department in which they are employed in order to secure that efficiency, economy and dis- patch which are essential to good management and a proper discharge by the railroads of their duties as common carriers. 66 Another claim made by the railroads in their objections to the National Agreements was that in many cases the Agree- ments did not represent the opinion of large groups of railroad employes. Mr. Whiter, testifying before the Railroad Labor Board on behalf of the Association of Railway Executives, made the following statements as to the extent to which organ- izations, parties to the National Agreements, represented railroad employes: "Prior to federal control, on certain railroads, the organizations, parties to the so-called 'National Agreements,' did not represent the em- ployes; in fact, on some of such roads no organization represented them; on others no schedules were in eflFect, and the employes were members of other organizations. Notwithstanding (that) the employes do not desire the organizations listed to represent them because the organiza- tions of which they are members had no schedule, the organizations listed claim the contract applies on such properties. When the rail- roads were unified under federal control, the principle that the majority should govern may have justified the claim to a certain extent, but as each railroad is now a unit, the situation on each railroad should govern. "The fact that 100% of the employes on one railroad may be members of the designated organizations, can have no effect whatever on another railroad, where less than 50% of the employes are members. The management of each railroad has to meet the conditions thereon, and the situation on another property can be of no advantage or detriment to it. "On at least one railroad, the majority of one craft at each location are members of another organization; at their principal shop, for the other crafts, the situation is mixed — the majority of certain crafts are members of the organizations listed, while the majority of other crafts are members of a rival organization. The majority of all the employes a t this shop are members of the rival organization . To decide by crafts for the system who shall represent the employes, would make the majority at certain locations subject to the will of the minority, to which they are strongly protesting; in fact there are cases where the employes positively refuse to be subject to the provisions of the so-called 'National Agree- ment.' "We do not believe that the Board should approach this subject from the angle of a schedule with any organization; or that the Board can properly say what organizations shall or shall not represent the em- ployes. The subject should be dealt with from the standpoint of what are proper regulations for the character of service under consideration, and that the question of whether they shall be applied on the individual properties in the form of a schedule with certain organizations, depends upon the policy of the individual property and the desire of the majority of the respective classes of employes on that property. "In line with the preceding paragraph, I desire to call the attention of the Board to the so-called 'National Agreement' of the Stationary Fire- men and Oilers, which was executed January 16, 1920, only one month and a half before the return of the roads to private control. So far as we have been able to learn, this organization had no contract on a single road prior to the so-called 'National Agreement,' and has, so far as we can learn, only a very limited membership on but very few of the roads repre- sented by this Committee. It would be manifestly unfair not only to the management but to the employes on roads where this organization is not represented, or where their membership is in the minority, to place them under the rules and control of that organization." The railroads further claimed that the construction of the rules as written in the National Agreements was not clear and they were so worded as to permit of several interpretations. Mr. Whiter stated that, notwithstanding the fact that the parties who prepared the rules may have considered them clear as written, experience in trying to work under them had demonstrated that they had resulted in extraordinarily num- erous questions from both employes and management. A typical instance of this objection is brought out in Rule 1 of the Shop Crafts Agreement which reads: "Eight hours shall constitute a day's work. AH employes coming under the provision of this schedule, except as provided for in rule 15 (employes paid on a monthly basis) shall be paid on an hourly basis." As brought out elsewhere in this report, this rule was inter- preted to mean that the piece-work system should be abolished in railroad shops. Many other instances of a like nature could be cited. Finally the railroads claim that the working rules as em- bodied in the National Agreements were in reality methods of raising wages rather than of getting better working conditions for the employes. This general objection refers chiefly to the rules of qualification and classification which have obliged the railroads to pay men performing work requiring only the knowledge of the operation of one machine, at the same rate as is paid men familiar with the operations of all classes of machinery or tools used in the work of any particular craft. For instance. Rule 62 of the shop crafts agreement gives a detailed list of the occupations constituting machinists' work, mentioning, among other things, shaping, boring, slotting and milling, although machinists in outside shops would be expected to have a knowledge of all these operations to be paid at the full machinist rate. In the railroad shops a man performing any one of these operations and quite unfamiliar with any of the others must be paid at the same rate as a man skilled in all of them. The same argument can be applied to all other crafts. The testimony of the Association of Railway Executives brought out the fact that the railroads did not object to many of the rules as such and that even in the case of the classification rules, they favored them strongly, except in so far as they did not provide for gradations of skill among employes in any craft. Many other rules, such as rules for protection of employes, 68 and rules governing their work, had been established by tradition or by actual agreements between the railroads and their employes for long periods of years prior to federal con- trol. This was particularly true of the shop crafts and the train service organizations. Some of these organizations had had agreements with the managers as far back as the railroad strike of 1877, and agreements with the train service brother- hoods existed on almost every railroad in the western or southeastern districts for years prior to federal control. In the mechanical departments, various crafts had nego- tiated several hundred agreements with individual railroads, and no one was more anxious than the railroads themselves to see that the rules embodied in these agreements were lived up to strictly, both by the employes and the railroad supervising forces. Railroad records disclose numerous instances in which subordinate officers were disciplined for not enforcing the rules in favor of the employes. It was only where rules were so standardized as not to take into account local conditions that objections arose. It is noteworthy that the United States Railroad Labor Board, in Decision 119, stated that the National Agreements would be abrogated as of July 1, 1921, or as soon thereafter as it was possible to promulgate new rules governing working conditions. Although the establishment of new rules has been completed in the case of the shop craft employes, main- tenance of way employes, signalmen and clerks, the new rules can hardly be called an abrogation of the National Agree- ments, but rather constitute a revision which simply ehmin- ates some of the more unreasonable provisions. Although Section 301 of the Transportation Act of 1920 provides that the railroads shall deal directly with their employes on individual roads in so far as possible, it seems to be true that the organizations can easily block or evade this provision by refusal to agree with the individual roads, thus forcing the Labor Board to take cognizance of the disputes and to continue to use rules which will be standard throughout the country. It is probable that standard rules applying to work of the same character throughout the country have great advantages to the employes and also to the railroads if they are sufficiently elastic to permit of modifications to provide for special local conditions. 69 CHAPTER IV WAGES Introduction The wages of railroad employes prior to 1917 involved a system of differentials between classes of employes and between different sections of the country. On the railroads of the western section, that is, west of the Mississippi River, the employes were paid at a higher rate than those of the eastern and southern districts, the eastern being the lowest and the southern occupying middle ground. The differentials between classes of employes were based upon the skill and training necessary for the performance of the duties of each class and upon the degree of responsibility devolving upon each class, and took into consideration the regularity and various other conditions of employment surrounding the work of the various classes. Some of the differentials which existed were unjust to the employes concerned, but the majority were based on conditions of long standing and in accordance with working rules which were generally accepted among the respective classes of employes, either on account of agreements which had been negotiated between the employes and the carriers or because of tradition and customs established through long years of development. The wages of employes who were strongly organized were uniformly higher than those of the unorganized classes. The four train service brotherhoods and the Switchmen's Union of America had been successful in negotiating relatively high wage scales for the employes represented by them; and in the shop crafts the same situa- tion existed. In the west and^outh the shop employes were well organized and practically all of the railroad shops in those districts were operated as open shops under union agree- ments, while the shops in the eastern districts were, in the main, open shops and their employes paid the rates prevailing in machine shops of privately controlled firms in the same region. This undoubtedly was partly the cause for the higher 70 wages which existed in western and southern territories as contrasted with the lower rates paid for the same classes of labor in the eastern region. Another reason for the payment of higher rates in the west and south was the belief, not always founded on fact, that the cost of living in these territories was higher than in the east. Standardization of wages had been brought about in some branches of railroad service through concerted eflForts of the more highly organized groups. In 1912, engineers of the western region handed in demands for a standard increase throughout the western territory, and in 1913 the firemen in the eastern region were successful in getting a standard increase on all railroads north of the Ohio and east of the Mississippi. In the union shops of the western and southeastern regions, wages were more or less standardized for organized employes. The unorganized employes were not so fortunate and wages varied widely from point to point and from road to road for the same occupation. It was not until the spring of 1916 that the four train service brotherhoods pooled their efforts in an attempt to secure uniform increases for all branches of the train servicfe throughout the entire country, and succeeded in this effort through the passage of the Adamson law in September, 1916. The real basis of standard wages was not laid, however, until after the taking over of the railroads by the Government in 1918, when General Order 27 of the Director General of Railroads awarded railroad employes earning less than $250 per month, a general increase. ^ After the issue of Supplements 4 to 25 of General Order 27, wages on all railroads became the same for similar occupations throughout the entire country. High minimum rates were established for each class, with certain differentials for special services. Train service employes who had already attained a considerable degree of standardization were included with the employes of other services, and fixed rates for each class of train service employes were established, those of the conductors and trainmen being on a minimum daily and mileage basis with differentials for local freight service, and those of engineers, firemen and helpers being on a mileage and daily basis graded as to the class of engine on which they worked, those driving the heavier classes of engines receiving higher rates accord- 1 See Chapter II, p. 19. 71 ing to the weight put on the driver. Eleven classes of engines were established, all those of less than 80,000 pounds on the drivers and ranging up to 350,000 pounds or over were included in one class, with special rates for Mallet engines, which were in turn divided into two classes, those of less than 275,000 pounds and those of greater weight. The rates were also divided as between coal and oil burners and differentials established for local freight way service, as in the case of conductors and trainmen. In the following pages the wages of various classes of rail- road labor are taken up one by one and, where comparisons are possible, their wages are compared with the wages of employes in other industries performing, in the main, the same general class of service. The statistics on wages of railroad employes have been taken from the published figures of the Interstate Commerce Commission. The wages of employes in outside industries have been taken from Research Report No. 45, of the National Industrial Conference Board, "Wages and Hours in American Industry, July, 1914— July, 1921." The statistics on wages in Report No. 45 have been compiled for 26 industries covering approximately 1,200,000 wage earners and make possible a direct comparison between railroad wages and wages paid in other industries, up to July 1, 1921. Comparisons include both hourly and weekly wages, the hours of employment and the numbers employed. Comparisons have been made between skilled railroad shop labor and skilled labor of the foundry and machine shop industry; between unskilled railroad labor and unskilled labor in other industries; between railroad telegraphers and com- mercial telegraphers; and between all railroad wage earners, skilled and unskilled, and all wage earners in the 26 industries covered by the Conference Board's previous report. No information is available for comparison between the wages of railroad clerical employes and those in other indus- tries, and the employes of the train service, being peculiar to the railroad industry, have no counterpart elsewhere and it is impossible to consider their wages in comparison with those in any other group except within the railroad service itself. Each class of railroad employe has been taken up separately and grouped, in so far as possible, according to the grouping by classes made under the discussion of working rules. How- 72 ever, as the signalmen are not classified separately in the reports of the Interstate Commerce Commission, a separate section has not been devoted to the discussion of their wages, but they are included under electrical workers, whose wages have been dealt with under the shop employes. Unskilled labor has been substituted as a class in place of maintenance of way employes, as the bulk of the employes in the maintenance of way service consists of unskilled men, and the mechanics employed in this department are paid at the rates laid down for men similarly classified in the shop crafts. The figures shown in the tables for each class in discussing money earn- ings, are the average hourly earnings of each class for the period shown, and must not be confused with the hourly rates. In computing the average weekly earnings, or average hours per week, the average number of workers employed in each period is multiplied by 52, 13 or 4j^, for yearly, quarterly or monthly figures respectively. The corresponding payroll or total hours worked is then divided by this figure, giving the average weekly earnings or average hours per employe per week, as the case may be. This method may be objected to on the ground that, while the payroll was a cumulative total, the number employed is the average of a count at specific periods, which raises the point that while a man may have con- tributed to the total hours and payroll figures in a given period, he may not have been working the day of the count and consequently may not figure in the average. If this is so, the average weekly earnings and the average hours are too high. However, it is possible to make a test of the count by multi- plying the average hourly earnings within any period by the average hours worked. The average hourly earnings are figured by methods which cannot be questioned. This still leaves the possibility of the average hours being too high. It is believed, however, that the following tests will indicate that the margin of error in this method is small enough to be negligible. The following figures are taken from skilled shop labor in the fiscal year 1915: Earnings Number Average Average Average Employed Hourly Weekly Hours 169,252 29.8 cents $16.88 56.6 73 Multiplying the average hourly earnings, 29.8 cents, by the average number of hours worked, 56.6, the result is $16,867, as the average weekly wage, which coincides very closely with the figure determined by the other method. Assuming that the hours as determined are correct and the average hourly earnings are correct, the problem is what number of employes working steadily these hours and at the average rate will produce the total annual payroll as shown by the Interstate Commerce Commission figures? This payroll is $148,526,273. $148,526,273 = 169,341 (1) $16,867 X 52 Assuming $16.88 is the correct figure for weekly and 29.8 cents the correct figure for hourly earnings, the problem is to $16.88 find the number of employes working at hours per $.298 week required to work the total actual hours as shown by the Interstate Commerce figures. Actual hours as shown are 498,359,024. 498,359,024 16.88 X 52 169,193 (2) .298 Comparing equation (1) with the average shown by the Interstate Commerce Commission, we find that equation (l) is 91 men higher or .054% above the average. Similarly equation (2) is 59 men lower than the average, or a difference of .035%. The conclusion to be drawn from this is that while there may be an error, the error is so small as to be practically negligible. Train Service Labor Prior to the taking over of the railroads by the United States Railroad Administration, the wages of train service labor in- volved a system of differentials between classes of employes within the group, between classes of service performed, and between territorial groups. Differentials between classes of employes were based upon the relative training and skill required for the proper performance of the duties of each class. Up to 1900 the highly skilled classes, engineers and conductors, received approximately twice as much as the relatively un- skilled classes, firemen and trainmen, but from that time on 74 until 1912 the differentials gradually closed up, after which they remained fixed until the taking over of the railroads by the Government. At the beginning of Federal control, firemen in the road service were receiving about 65% of the wages paid engineers, and trainmen were receiving about 60% of the wages of conductors. Differentials also existed between the pay of train employes engaged in main line service and those engaged in branch line and yard service, the main line service being uniformly higher than branch line and yard services. The differentials as between territories were approximately the same in the train service as existed for all other branches of railroad service, which have been discussed in the intro- duction, i The computation of wages of train employes differs from that of any other class in that they are based on a rate per mile run and a rate per hour worked, for all employes in the road service, but on an hourly rate only, for men engaged in yard service. In the freight service, employes are paid on the basis of 100 miles or less, or eight hours or less, either on a straight- away or turn-around trip with time and one-half for overtime or excess mileage; in the passenger service, engineers and firemen are paid on the basis of 100 miles or less, or eight hours or less, and the conductors and trainmen on the basis of 150 miles or less, or eight hours or less, with overtime at pro rata rates for excess time or mileage. Thus, a train crew in the freight service running 100 miles in an even eight hours is paid at the minimum daily rate, while if more than 100 miles is run in eight hours, they are paid on the mileage basis at the rate of 1/100 of the minimum daily rate per mile; or if a run of 100 miles consumes more than eight hours, they are paid on the basis of hours, with one hour's work computed at the rate of >^ of the minimum daily rate; and in case that the 100 miles is exceeded and the eight hour period is also exceeded, they are paid either on the basis of miles or hours, depending on which is the more advantageous to them. Training The training of engineers and conductors consists of a period of apprenticeship as firemen and brakemen. Few men J See p. 70. 75 are taken into train service as student brakemen or into the engine service as student firemen without having worked around a yard or an engine-house in some capacity, long enough to get a general idea of what train or engine service really is. After the student period, the young fireman or brakeman is put on the so-called "extra board," which means that he is given a run only when the requirements of the serv- ice demand an extra train. The runs assigned are usually of long duration and the working periods are interspersed with long intervals of enforced idleness while cut off the board on account of reduced traffic. After some time, generally about a year or more, the new men are given a regular run, which they hold for a period of several years before promotion to conductor or engineman. The length of service as a brakeman or fireman is generally from three to seven years. The practice varies from road to road, but it may safely be said that in no case is a fireman allowed to take his examinations for promotion to engineer without a minimum of three years' service. Even after he has become an engineer or conductor, the training period is not entirely over. It is necessary for the new engineer or con- ductor to be put on the extra board again and to put in another year of intermittent service before he is finally given a regular assignment. In this way, it is frequently from three to six years before a man starting in the train service can hold a regular run as engineer or conductor. It is probable that there are few classes of workers in industry generally who must serve such an extensive and lengthy apprenticeship as the conductors and engineers on American railroads. Responsibility The degree of responsibility of the work of a conductor or engineer is also very high. The demands of the public for increasingly fast train service and the increasing density of traffic put a very heavy responsibility upon train service employes. This is not so much the case on double-track or four-track railroads, where everything possible is done to assure the safety of train operation, but is particularly true of service on branch lines, where few or no signals are installed and where the line consists generally of only one track. It must be remembered that the great majority, about 85%, of American railroads come in this second group. Train and 76 TABLE i: NUMBER OF CASUALTIES, BY OCCUPATIONS, PER 1,000,000 MAN-HOURS, IN VARIOUS CLASSES OF RAILROAD SE OCCUPATION 1917 Number of Casualties Number of Casualties per 1,000,000 Man-liours Killed Injured YardlEngineeis and Motonnen Road FiSght Engineers and Motonnen. . . Road Passenger Engineers and Motonnen Yaid Firemen and Helpers Road Freight Fiiemen and Helpers Road Passenger Firemen and Helpers. . . . Yard Conductors or Foremen Road Freiglit Conductors Road Passenger Conductors Yard Brakemen, Switchmen or Helpers. . . Road Freight Braltemen or Flagmen Road Passenger Brakemen or Flagmen. . . Yard Switch Tenders Other Yard Employes Hostlers Road Passenger Baggagemen Other Road Train Employes Total Shopmen Statiomnen Trackmen Bridge and Building Men Other Employes All Other Industrial Employes Total Grand Total 16 74 57 23 124 52 78 89 6 409 493 18 16 15 12 1,496 431 S3 727 117 153 84 1,041 2,618 755 1,916 6,307 1,471 1,833 3,163 334 12,111 13,370 714 193 77 215 372 167 46,657 69,257 15,966 23,070 5,489 8,013 752 Killed ' Injured .3 .7 1.8 .4 1.2 1.7 1.4 .9 .4 2.3 .9 8.3 .3 1,565 3,061 122,547 169,204 16.4 25.1 23.3 30.7 60.1 47.1 29 35 11 65 62 18 10 5.1 6.6 23.6 17.4 39.8 160.3 98.2 71.8 43.1 463.0 2.3 1918 Number of Casualties KUled Injured 12 85 62 28 135 51 74 108 12 399 543 25 17 6 20 6 5 1.1 88.6 531 59 705 125 166 99 1,685 3,273 913 2,577 793 1,715 5,762 1,274 1,449 2,880 308 10,529 12,168 688 180 52 223 292 157 41,960 65,704 12,466 19,339 4,539 6,990 628 109,646 Number of Casualties per 1,000,000 Man-hours Killed Injured 151,606 .2 .8 1.9 .4 1.3 .7 .2 .2 .4 2.6 2.5 .7 .9 .4 .6 .4 .5 1.5 .9 .4 2.2 .9 7.5 .3 1.1 14,0 24.0 24.4 27.7 53.3 41.7 22,9 31.8 11.0 64.9 56.7 17.8 9.9 3,5 6,4 18,9 16,5 38.5 122.7 85.3 60.3 33.8 314.1 1.3 72.9 1919 Number of Casualties Killed 15 66 50 14 70 51 50 63 6 235 310 17 14 6 9 4 5 121 18 78 55 87 95 454 1,439 Injured 680 1,882 660 1,171 3,945 1,176 1,249 2,253 263 8,296 8,829 579 133 53 174 292 204 31,839 52,389 11,217 17,394 3,801 6,041 1,395 92,737 124,576 Number of Casualties per 1,000,000 Man-hours Killed Injured .3 .7 1.7 .3 .8 1.7 .9 1.2 12.2 21.1 20.6 21.2 44,1 38, 23, 29, 9, 63, 48, 14, 7,6 3,9 5,4 19,2 21,6 33,4 *35,92 *18,06 *19,42 *23.23 *14.83 1920 Number of Casualties Killed 9 63 69 18 84 52 67 62 6 363 396 16 14 15 14 1,258 133 20 110 40 58 78 1,697 Injured 1,023 2,130 804 1,691 5,085 1,535 1,607 2,693 274 11,666 11,439 688 187 56 217 244 173 41,512 57,465 11,670 19,145 4,153 5,855 2,226 100,519 142,031 Number of Casualties per 1,000,000 Man-hours Killed .1 .6 2,1 1,6 1,0 .7 .2 2.3 1.1 Injured 15,0 20,7 24,0 25,0 49,1 48,3 24.7 30.5 9.1 75.3 S3. 9 16.2 10.3 4.0 6.0 15,2 16,8 37,9 *36,22 *18,11 *20,00 *24,72 *13,76 ' Total casualties; separaU fagures not available in I. (J. U. reports tor these years. Kil enginemen work practically without supervision, and efficient operation of the railroads is absolutely impossible of attain- ment without their support. It is impossible for an officer to follow closely the actions of train and enginemen and they are in a position to waste much time without detection; but it must not be forgotten that on account of this very lack of supervision they assume a heavy responsibility which must be reflected in their pay. Hazards The hazards of employment in train and engine service have been very great in the past, and the accompanying table shows that in 1920, which is the last year for which figures are available, there were 39.1 accidents in the train service per million man-hours worked, or 37.9 injured, and 1.2 killed per million man-hours worked. Table 1 compares the accidents of trainmen with those of other classes of railroad employes. While the figures extend only over a period of four years, it is apparent that the train service is a much more hazardous occupation, particularly from the standpoint of the death risk, than the other services. The injuries in the other services per 1,000,000 man-hours worked were greater in 1917 and 1918 than in the train service, which probably can be attributed to the pressure of war times, as the rate has since dropped. In Table 2 are shown the number of train service employes killed in each year since 1889 and the total number of employes in the train service for each employe killed. It can be seen that there is a marked trend towards fewer accidents, for xlthough the actual number of fatal accidents has not de- ceased in the thirty years, the ratio of the number of acci- lents to the number employed has decreased, so that only one m three hundred was killed in 1919 compared to one in about one hundred in 1889. The installation of such devices as the automatic coupler, air-brake, etc., and the extensive safety campaigns which are continually being carried on by the railroads, are in a large measure responsible for this record. Employment Aside from the periods during which engine and train service employes are on the extra board and have not been assigned 77 TABLE 2: TOTAL ACCIDENTS TO TRAIN EMPLOYES, 1889 1920 Trainmen No. Trainmen for YEAR KiUed one killed 1889 1,179 117 1890 1,459 105 1891 1,533 104 1892 1,503 113 1893 1,567 115 1894. 1,029 156 1895 1,017 155 1896 1,073 152 1897 976 165 1898 1,141 150 1899 1,155 155 1900 1,396 137 1901 1,537 1,507 136 1902 135 1903 2,021 123 1904 2,156 120 1905 2,034 133 1906 2,335 124 1907 2,596 125 1908 1,955 150 1909 1,372 205 1910 1,855 172 1911 1,708 182 1912 1,663 191 1913 1,700 198 1914 1,477 211 1915 884 285 1916 (fiscal) 1,093 274 1916 (calendar) 1,244 265 1917 1,492 235 1918 1,506 223 1919 985 333 1920 1,265 296 Data from Railway Statistics of Bureau of Railway Economics, 1920. to regular runs, their employment is of a very regular charac- ter. However, the train service employe is obliged to spend a great deal of his time away from home. In Europe, terminals are placed so close together that it is always possible, except in case of accident, for trainmen to return to the home terminal on the same day they leave it, but in the United States the terminals are placed so far apart that it is usual for train service employes to go out from the home terminal on one day, spend the night away from home, and return on the following day. In addition to this, the men in road freight service, when they start from the home terminal, are never able to tell in advance what their hours of liberty will be, as these are de- pendent upon traffic conditions, weather conditions and other 78 factors which make the operation of freight trains on definite schedules practically impossible. Employment in the train service fluctuates as business is good or bad and the volume of traffic handled is high or low, but conductors and trainmen in the passenger service are guaranteed a minimum monthly wage consisting of thirty days' pay at the minimum rate. This applies to all regularly assigned men who are ready for service during the entire month and do not lay off of their own accord. Supplements IS and 16 to General Order 27 of the Director General of Rail- roads in providing guarantees, state: "Extra service may be required sufficient to make up these guar- antees and may be made on lay-off days or may be made before or after the completion of a trip. If extra service is made between trips, which go to make up a day's assignment, such service will be paid for on the basis of miles or hours, whichever is the greater, with the minimum of one hour. Extra service before or after the completion of a day's work will be paid for at not less than the minimum day. The bases of pay for extra service apply only in the making up of the guarantees. After guarantees are absorbed, schedule provisions for extra service apply." It is also true that the training which men have received in the train service is of little direct value to them in any other industry. If they decide to leave the train service they must begin at the bottom in whatever new occupation they take up. They are distinctly at a disadvantage in this respect as com- pared to men in most of the other branches of railroad service. In the past, it has been the custom of most raijroads to select their assistant trainmasters from the ranks of the train service employes, but during the last few years the brotherhoods com- plain that there has been a noticeable tendency for these minor officials to be selected from the dispatchers, and it is safe to say that the chances for promotion of an engineer or a conductor have been materially lessened. The work performed by employes of the train service is peculiar to the railroad industry and there is no work with which it may be compared in any other field. It has therefore been impossible to secure data on wages of employes perform- ing a similar class of service in other industries. Earnings The average hourly earnings of the train service employes in 1914 were 37.4 cents, which by the fourth quarter of 1920 has risen to 84.6 cents or an increase of 126%; after the 79 wage reductions in July, 1921 they decreased to 76 cents or 103% higher than in July, 1914. See Table 3. TABLE 3: EMPLOYMENT, WAGES, AND HOURS, TRAIN SERVICE, CLASS I RAILROADS AVERAGE HOURLY AVERAGE WEEKLY EARNINGS EARNINGS Average Average number number hours PERIOD employed Actual Actual per cents Index Index dollars Index Index week per actual "real" per actual "real" per hour week employe uly, 1914 283,961 37.4 100 100 $23.28 100 100 62.2 uly, 1915 337,377 38.1 102 llOl 24.42 105 104 64.0 uly, 1916 369,030 38.1 102 94 23.73 102 94 62.2 uly, 1917 404,587 43.4 116 88 26.47 114 87 61.0 ■ une, 1918 407,566 56.2 150 99 35.40 152 100 63.0 , uly, 1919 390,940 65.0 174 101 37.29 160 93 57.4 Feb., 1920 453,991 68.8 184 95 39.07 168 87 56.8 May, 1920 422,646 79.1 211 105 43.88 189 94 55.5 Aug., 1920 458,079 83.8 224 111 48.41 208 103 ■ 57.8 Nov., 1920 463,927 84.6 226 117 47.06 202 104 55.7 Feb., 1921 398,220 82.9 221 126 41.51 178 101 50.1 May, 1921 359,705 83.3 222 134 41.24 177 107 49.5 July, 1921 295,254 76.0 203 124 43.62 187 115 57.4 Aug., 1921 294,059 75.8 202 125 45.83 197 122 60.4 Sept., 1921 303,428 76.0 203 123 44.15 190 115 58.1 Oct., 1921 318,439 76.2 204 125 46.28 199 122 60.7 Chart 1 shows the relation between the actual hourly earnings of these employes and the changes in the cost of living since 1914, for the United States as a whole. Although there was a considerable rise in their money wages from 1916 to 1919, the rise in the cost of living was more rapid than the rise in earnings, and except for a brief period in the first half of 1919, the purchasing power of their earnings, until May, 1920, was actually below that of 1914. From this time on, the real wages show a steady increase until June, 1921, when they showed an increase of 34% above 1914, which dropped off after the wage reduction of July 1, so that in October, 1921, real wages stood at 25% above the July, 1914 figure. The average weekly earnings for this class of employes in July, 1914 was $23.28, based on a week of 62.2 hours. In the fourth quarter of 1920 they had risen to $47 .06, with an average week of 55.7 hours, or 102% increase. In July, 1921 the aver- age weekly earnings were $43.62, or 87% higher than in July, 1914. 80 CHART 1: "money" EARNINGS AND "rEAL" EARNINGS, TRAIN SERVICE LABOR, CLASS I RAILROADS Changes Relative to July, 1914, as Base 100. (National Industrial Conference Board) 1914 igis I9IB 1917 laiB ISIS isso 1921 mss Sources: Interstate Commerce Commission; National Industrial Conference Board. 81 The real earnings based on the average weekly earnings for this period showed a gain of 4% in the fourth quarter of 1920, which rose to 15% in July, 1921, after the wage decreases, with an average week of 57.4 hours as compared with 62.2 hours in 1914. This was caused by the fact that the cost of living dropped more rapidly than wages. A comparison of the average hourly earnings of the several classes of employes of the train service shows that the wages of the less skilled employes were increased more than those of the more highly skilled during the period of Federal control, and that the increases so granted tended to wipe out the diflFeren- tials between the classes in the train service in much the same manner as the differentials between the various services themselves were eHminated. Hourly earnings constitute the basis of cost to the railroads, but in the determination of the relative welfare of the worker in any given time, it is necessary to consider his average weekly earnings, which determine his standard of living. In the road passenger service, as shown in Table 4, the average hourly earnings of firemen were 50.6 cents in 1914 and those of engineers 82.4 cents, the firemen's earnings repre- senting 61.4% of the engineers in the same service. By the first quarter of 1921, the firemen's earnings had increased to 105.3 cents per hour and those of the engineers to 136.9 cents per hour, which brought the proportion of the firemen's earn- ings to 76.9% of the earnings of the engineers. The earnings dropped off after the wage cut of July, 1921 until in September the firemen's earnings were 81.5 cents per hour and engineers' 107.6 cents per hour, but the firemen still retained their narrower differential, their earnings representing 75.8% of the engineers' earnings. See Charts 2 and 3. During the same period the differentials between the earn- ings of conductors and trainmen in the road passenger service, which were even greater than between engineers and firemen, were cut down to about the same extent. In 1914 the average hourly earnings of trainmen were 38.1 cents per hour, or 57% of the average hourly earnings (66.9 cents) of the conductors. In the first quarter of 1921 the average hourly earnings of trainmen were 84.7 cents as compared with 114.8 cents per hour for conductors, the trainmen's earnings being 73.7% of the conductors' earnings. After the wage cut, the train- men's percentage was decreased slightly to 69.1% of the con- 82 TABLE 4: Period Average Hourly Earnings, RoadPreight Service Average Hourly Earnings, Road Passenger Service Average Hourly Earnings, Yard Service Engineers cents per hour Firemen cents per hour Per cent firemen to engineers Conductors cents per hour Brakemen cents per hour Per cent brakemento conductors Engineers cents per hour Firemen cents per hour Per cent firemen to engineers Conductors cents per hour Trainmen cents per hour Per cent trainmen to conductors Engineers cents per hour Firemen cents per hour Per cent firemen to engineers Conductors cents per hour Trainmen cents per hour Per cent trainmen to conductors Fiscal year 1915... « « 1916... Calendar" 1916... 1917... 1918... , 1919... 1st Quarter 1920. .. 2nd « 1920... 3rd •' 1920... 4th « 1920... 1st « 1921 . . . 2nd « 1921 . . . July 1921 .. . August 1921 .. . September 1921 .. . October 1921... 59.8 60.8 61.0 69.1 81.2 92.2 102.9 112.8 117.3 118.1 115.4 115.8 103.6 104.4 102.2 38.2 39.0 39.1 44.7 59.5 67.7 75.2 84.9 89.5 90.6 87.5 88.0 77.7 77.4 77.6 63.8 64.2 64.1 64.7 73.2 73.4 73.1 75.3 76.2 76.6 75.8 76.0 75.0 74.1 75.9 49.8 50.2 50.0 56.4 69.4 76.3 84.4 93.5 96.8 98.9 97.7 97.3 88.3 88.0 87.9 33.6 33.7 33.5 38.1 53.0 58.4 64.9 74.3 78.0 79.6 77.6 78.1 69.0 69.0 69.0 62.4 67.2 67.0 67.6 76.4 76.5 76.9 79.6 80.6 80.4 79.4 80.2 78.1 78.4 78.4 82.4 90.4 89.9 91.4 99.2 116.4 118.4 130.2 133.0 134.9 136.9 136.2 108.9 108.8 107.6 50.6 56.1 56.0 56.9 70.6 85.5 87.8 98.5 104.6 104.7 105.3 105.1 80.6 82.4 81.5 61.4 62.1 62.3 62.3 71.1 74.2 74.2 75.6 78.6 77.6 76.9 77.1 74.0 75.6 75.8 66.9 71.5 71.0 73.7 84.8 96.6 97.5 108.1 112.2 113.2 114.8 114.3 85.3 85.1 85.4 38.1 40.4 40.1 42.1 56.4 67.1 67.5 77.8 82.9 83.6 84.7 83.9 58.6 58.8 58.9 57.0 56.5 56.5 57.1 66.5 69.4 69.2 72.0 73.9 73.8 73.7 73.4 68.6 69.2 69.1 42.5 43.1 43.4 53.5 67.0 74.4 77.5 88.5 93.9 94.8 93.3 92.5 83.8 84.0 84.4 26.1 27.0 27.2 33.8 46.2 54.7 57.0 67.8 73.4 74.3 73.3 72.8 65.1 64.7 64.9 61.4 62.6 62.6 63.2 68.9 73.5 73.5 76.6 78.1 78.4 78.6 78.8 77.6 77.0 76.9 38.6 38.8 38.5 47.4 62.8 68.1 69.0 83.6 90.1 90.3 88.8 88.4 81.3 80.1 80.4 34.9 35.2 35.3 43.3 58.4 ■63.7 65.1 78.9 84.5 83.8 82.9 82.2 74.0 73.6 75.4 90.0 90.8 91.6 91.5 92.9 93.5 94.2 94.3 93.8 92.7 93.3 93.0 91.0 91.8 93.4 CHART 2 "money" EARNINGS AND "rEAl" EARNINGS, ROAD PASSENGER SERVICE, FIREMEN, CLASS I RAILROADS Changes Relative to'July, 1914, as Base 100. (National Industrial Conference Board) 1 — 1 1 1 1 ■ 1 Trends shown by years from 191' to 1919; by quarters from 1920 t June, 1921; by months after June 107.1 t f ■•••• f\. ' If * 1' * 1 / f 1 I 1 i / \ IbS ■MDh EY"EARNIt IGS J^0 / CDSTDF \ f/ ^ IB 1.7 «/> '» •/ /; Ahi 13! V i 'I J /■ r IS **^ \zy "REAL EARNINGS J V' ^0' ^ •*.,^ ^ J'' ,.^^WEI KUY / ""■>■>. -^y □ IT. ini^ ISIS I3IB 1317 ISIB 1919 1920 1931 I9Z2 Sources: Interstate Commerce Commission; National Industrial Conference Board. 83 CHART 3: "money" earnings and "real" earnings, road PASSENGER SERVICE, ENGINEERS, CLASS I RAILROADS Changes Relative to July, 1914, as Base 100. (National Industrial Conference Board) 4BI4 IBIS IBIB 1917 IBIS IBIS ISSD ISSI 1332 Sources: Interstate Commerce Commission; National Industrial Coherence Board. 84 ductors' earnings, the average hourly earnings being 58.9 cents for trainmen and 85.4 cents for conductors in September. See Charts 4 and 5. In the road freight service the differentials were also ma- terially lessened. The firemen's earnings in 1914 were 63.8% of the engineers' earnings, but rose in the fourth quarter of 1921 to 76.6%. After the wage reduction of July, 1921, the differential changed slightly, the firemen's earnings averaging 75.9% of the earnings of the engineers in September. A smaller differential existed between the earnings of con- ductors and trainmen in the road freight service in 1914 than was the case in the road passenger service, the average earnings of brakemen being 62.4% of the average hourly earnings of conductors in the same service. This percentage rose to 80.6 in the third quarter of 1921, dropping off to 78.4% in September, 1921. In the yard service the average hourly earnings of firemen, 26.1 cents, were 61.4% of the average hourly earnings of engineers, 42.5 cents, in 1914. In the fourth quarter 1920 this rose to 78.4%, when the average hourly earnings for firemen and engineers were 74.3 cents and 94.8 cents respectively. Even after the wage cut, the new differential was maintained with but a slight drop, the firemen's earnings standing at 76.9% of the earnings of the engineers. Between conductors and brakemen of the yard service a somewhat different situation existed, as the average hourly earnings of trainmen, which in 1914 were 90% of the average hourly earnings of conductors, had risen to 93.4% by October, 1921. Shop Labor The wages of shop labor before the period of Federal control were approximately the same as the wages of employes in shops of private industries in the districts in which the shops were situated. In the western and southeastern regions, the railroad shops were generally open shops working under union agreements, while in the case of the shops in the eastern district, practically no agreements existed and the wages varied according to the locality in which the shop was situated and the supply of and demand for labor in that locality. Wages in the western and southeastern districts reflected the influence of the high degrees of organization prevalent there and were con- 85 CHART 4: "money" earnings and "real" earnings, road PASSENGER SERVICE, BRAKEMEN, CLASS I RAILROADS Changes Relative to July, 1914, as Base 100. (National Industrial Conference Board) INDEX NUMBEBS 3ED 3aD Trends shown by years from 1914 l| , to 1919; by quarters from 1920 to June, 1921; by months after June, 1921. 2QD EEO 540 asD saa ISO 160 I4D ISO ion BDl£ IBI4 1915 1916 1917 ISia 1919 ISEO I9SI \aZZ Sources: Interstate Commerce Commission; National Industrial Conference Board. 86 CHART 5: "money" earnings and "real" earnings, road PASSENGER SERVICE, CONDUCTORS, CLASS I RAILROADS Changes Relative to July, 1914, as Base 100. (National Industrial Conference Board) rtlDEX NUMBEU acu _ ^ 1 1 1 i 3DD Trends shown by years from 191' — to 1919; by quarters from 1920 tc June, 1921; by months after June — 1921. t ZBO aeo 640 520 500 , ^'*^> ISO t / / ^ T\ / / ' ^V •a IBO COST OF LIVING / f / \\ 183.7 / ■<^J f %N liB 140 / ^ / ^ "'' ISO / ^ r y A ^ ^ ^ 'X 100 -^^ "RE/ kL"EAnNIN / 25 / vA !■ / iti.~~.. y T BO SET ■-•^^>a Sources: Interstate Commerce Commission; National Industrial Conference Board. 87 siderably higher than in the eastern district, where the employes were largely unorganized. Shop employes are generally considered under two classi- fications — those engaged in the repair of locomotives and those engaged in the repairing of cars . The locomotive crafts include machinists, blacksmiths, boilermakers, electrical workers and sheet metal workers. The car repairers include carmen who are subdivided into passenger and freight car repairers. The passenger car repairmen include carpenters, cabinet-makers, upholsterers, pattern-makers, and glaziers. Freight car re- pairmen include those engaged in simple carpenter's work on car bodies, and the unskilled work necessary in repairing trucks. Training Before the period of Federal control, many railroads did not maintain a system of apprenticeship for any of the crafts, and such as were maintained were for the employes of the more important of the locomotive crafts, namely machinists, black- smiths, boilermakers. In some cases electrical workers and sheet metal workers also served a period of apprenticeship before becoming regular mechanics. In the car department apprenticeships were practically unknown until the period of federal control, when apprenticeships were established nor only for the carpenters and the more skilled classes of cat repairers but also for the freight car repairmen. Under the old system, it was usual to employ men who had no special knowl- edge (or who were, in any event, not more skilled than so-called "saw and hatchet" carpenters) and to train them for a period varying from three weeks to six months, after which time they were considered thoroughly competent to perform the work of making repairs to freight cars. Beginners worked at repairs on freight cars, and their wages were advanced as they became more experienced. As soon as they demonstrated the necessary ability they were pro- moted to car builders, and especially skilled men were trans- ferred to the coach department. No apprenticeships were maintained in this branch prior to federal control, for it was recognized that car repairing was not a distinct trade. The locomotive crafts in which apprenticeships were main- tained, usually compelled the apprentices to serve a term of from three to four years, after which the apprentice became a 88 journeyman-mechanic. It is necessary for an employe to spend a number of years in familiarizing himself with the various operations which are expected of a fully trained mechanic such as a machinist, although a man can easily learn any one of the individual operations of a craft without such a long term of special training. The responsibility of shop employes consists in carrying out the orders of their foremen and performing work assigned in a proper mechanical manner.* However, the responsibility carried by these men does not approach the responsibility of the men in the train service, such as enginemen or conductors and dispatchers, and usually the materials turned out by shop men are subject to severe tests before being put into service. Hazards The hazards to which shop employes are subjected exist because of the fact that they are compelled to work with or near power machinery, and a comparison of the accidents per thousand men employed in the shops of the railroads with men employed in shops in outside industries reveals that these men have about the same degree of risk. Statistics of accidents divided as between train service employes and shop employes are available only for four years as shown in Table 1, and it is difficult to state exactly the ratio between them. In 1917, per million man-hours worked, there were 1.4 killed and 39.8 injured in the train service and 0.9 killed and 160.3 injured in the shops; but in 1920 the figures show that fewer shopmen than trainmen were killed and injured per million man-hours worked. Statistics cover- ing so short a period of years are not thoroughly compar- able, but it is probable that the number of casualties in the train service more than doubles the number in the shops for the same number of employes. Regulations for the safety of employes are generally laid down by the laws of the various states and the railroads themselves for many years have carriad on intensive campaigns to increase the safety of the men employed in their shops. Employment Employment in railroad shops reflects general business con- ditions. There is some fluctuation as conditions are good or > Railway Wage Hearings, 1920, page 201. 89 bad, as shown by the traffic handled. However, Table 5 shows that the average hours worked per employe per week is maintained at a high level, and in general it can be said that shop employes, like other railroad employes, are employed at full time if employed at all. Table 5 shows the decline in employment since the peak reached in July, 1920. The number of skilled employes had increased from 169,252 in 1914 to 303,491 in August, 1920, an increase of 79%. In July, 1921, this number had decreased to 214,904, which represented an increase of 27% over the number employed in July, 1914. Shopmen are employed at fixed points, generally within con- venient reach of their homes, and are not obliged to spend long periods away from home, except in cases of emergency, such as times when accidents occur, etc., and their employment appears to be fairly constant throughout the year. Earnings The average hourly earnings of the skilled classes of shop- men were 29.8 cents in 1914 and rose to 86.4 cents in the fourth quarter of 1920. Their real earnings increased in the same period 50%. In the second quarter of 1921, although the average hourly earnings had decreased to 85.1 cents, the real wages at the end of the period showed an increase of 73% over 1914, which dropped oiF to 57% on the basis of average hourly earnings of 76.3 cents, after the wage cut in July, 1921. See Chart 6 and Table 5. The average weekly earnings in 1914 were $16.88 and the average number of hours worked per week 56.6. Despite a drop in the number of hours of work per week to 49.3 in the fourth quarter of 1920, the average weekly earnings rose to $42.60, representing an increase of 30% in real earnings. On the basis of average weekly earnings and due to the fall in the cost of living, the real earnings had increased 44% in May, 1921, dropping ofF to a net increase of 29% in July and 33% in October, 1921. Prior to federal control, the wages of the locomotive crafts and those of the carmen showed a considerable differential, which was based in large part on the skill and training required for the two kinds of work. The average hourly wages of the locomotive crafts in 1914, were 38.5 cents contrasted with the average hourly wages of the carmen of 25.6 cents, piece-work rates prevailing in the majority of the shops . General Order 27 90 to < O Hi < to < o to A. o s ^ to o iz; <: m ■J o CL, o K Q to g Q < H to >-) te) 1^ Pi tJ Ui w ^ Q ^ iz; o < I-) Oi s u "> H I-) n < '1 o 2 Oi'O 111 "« B § •32 .9s ■9,^ ■3a art CO w S3 3a Pi p^ « 00 C^ O. t*> O ">* es . .tt . .f*3 csesNeMesesMesi- 00>OtOOMOl>>OC lO00Ovt^C4'*<»f0Ov«O\«C^rtlO- OOOesOrO«or- OOlOOO^C^O^t- f-H -es wi Tfr S Xh S ;-H S S M M M M 1 SBO r *! / 1 2B0 /. \ 'MONEY' E ARNINBS \t\ v.. !3 Z4D \/ ' ' \ I ' / *! 8S0 / \ •'/ L#' k !• SQO 1/ If •'^ •1 ff ;/ /\ IBD u U cc ST QF / 1 .y V ISO i' ■ f A^' i.7 / ,/ J ' \]. I4D / ■''a; JEAL" EAR 'jiNBa/' /, / /j>. rS f yy= t ISO ^ y \ / \WEEI ../ *v J ^ 1 f ^^ V 1 QQ itfiB^ a^ J -:y flO / ;t 1814 IBIS ISIB 1917 IBIB 1319 1920 1921 IBZE Sources: Interstate Conunerce Commission; National Industrial Conference Board. 92 recognized the principle of the 8-hour day and Supplement 4 gave time and one-half for work in excess of eight hours and also for Sunday and holiday work. Interpretation No. 3 to General Order 27 reduced the rates of piece workers, and piece work was finally abolished by executive order a few weeks later. The eflfect of the increases granted under General Order 27 and subsequent increases under the Director General, was to eliminate in a large measure the differential in the pay of the locomotive crafts and the carmen. In 1914 carmen received 66.5% of the average hourly earnings of the locomotive crafts. This had increased to 94% in the second quarter of 1921, and the differential which had previously existed was almost com- pletely wiped out. During the same period the real earnings of the locomotive crafts had increased 39% over 1914; the real earnings of the carmen increased 96% in the same period. See Charts 7 and 8. TABLE 6: EMPLOYMENT, WAGES, AND HOURS, MACHINISTS, BOILERMAKERS, AND BLACKSMITHS, CLASS I RAILROADS AVERAGE HOURLY AVERAGE WEEKLY Average EARNINGS EARNINGS number Average hours PERIOD number employed Actual Actual per week cents Index Index dollars Index Index per per actual "real" per actual "real" employe hour week July, 1914 49,564 38.5 100 100 $19.73 100 100 51.3 'uly, 1915 56,302 39.5 103 102 21.31 108 107 54.0 uly, 1916 59,268 40.8 106 98 22.46 114 105 55.1 /uly, 1917 62,158 46.0 119 91 26.60 135 103 57.8 une, 1918 69,515 72.6 189 124 44.87 227 149 61.8 .uly, 1919 86,948 74.5 193 112 36.14 183 107 48.5 Feb., 1920 96,172 78.3 203 105 39.95 202 105 51.0 May, 1920 95,291 85.1 221 110 42.82 217 108 50.3 Aug., 1920 97,493 89.7 233 115 45.16 229 113 50.4 Nov., 1920 98,011 89.9 233 120 44.19 224 116 49.2 Feb., 1921 82,837 88.8 231 132 40.24 204 116 45.3 May, 1921 67,673 88.4 230 139 40.74 206 125 46.1 July, 1921 75,523 79.7 207 127 36.66 186 114 46.0 Aug., 1921 80,453 78.8 205 127 38.15 193 119 48.4 Sept., 1921 84,093 78.5 204 124 35.90 182 110 45.7 Oct., 1921 86,815 78.5 204 125 37.85 192 117 48.2 The average weekly earnings show an even more favorable situation to the carman, for while the average weekly earnings of the locomotive crafts were $19.73 in 1914 and those of the 93 CHART 7: "money" earnings and "real" earnings, loco- motive CRAFTS, CLASS I RAILROADS Changes Relative to July, 1914, as Base 100. (National Industrial Conference Board) INDEX NUMBEBB 3DD- EBO EBD S40 eea aaa lao IBO 140 ISO IQO BO 1 1 1 Trends shown by years from 1914 to 1919; by quarters from 1920 to June, 1921; by months after June 1921. i r^ k>l. l\ A ^ *MaNi rCAnNINI 3 l\ / \ \ , M M^ t4 ,, ' /v. }/f / V V g> ir ^// \ [ n 1 f / / \ / • / , /CDST 'OF LIVING ^. 13.7 //'^ 1 1 11 /A I / \ •REAf'EABI INGS A / n i < 1 /^■ 3! '^ ^ 1 /hdurS As / 7V,^, : _^^ i^^^ ^ / ^v-:^! -^ ^ / □ T 1914 IBIS 1916 1917 IBIB IBI9 ISaO 1951 IBSZ Sources: Interstate Commerce Commission; National Industrial Conference Board. 94 CHART 8: money" earnings and "real" earnings, carmen, class i railroads Changes Relative to July, 1914, as Base 100. (National Industrial Conference Board) IBM 1915 I9IB 1917 1915 I9IS 1920 1921 I9SE Sources: Interstate Commerce Commission; National Industrial Conference Board. 95 carmen $15.09, these had increased to $40.74 for the locomo- tive crafts and $39.44 for the carmen in the second quarter of 1921; $37.85 for the locomotive crafts and $35.69 for the car- men, in October, 1921, with a net gain in real earnings of 17% and 45% respectively. See Tables 6 and 7. TABLE 7: EMPLOYMENT, WAGES, AND HOURS, CARMEN, CLASS I RAILROADS AVERAGE HOURLY AVERAGE WEEKLY EARNINGS EARNINGS Average number Average hours PERIOD number Actual Actual per employed cents Index Index dollars Index Index v^k per actual "real" per actual "real" per hour week employe July, 1914 72,835 25.6 100 100 $15.09 100 100 58.9 uly, 1915 87,853 26.3 103 102 15.62 104 103 59.3 :uly, 1916 91,453 27.5 107 98 16.26 108 99 59.2 uly, 1917 92,096 32.4 127 97 19.82 131 100 61.1 'une, 1918 100,885 56.1 219 144 35.19 233 153 62.7 :uly, 1919 114,211 68.6 268 156 33.91 225 131 49.4 Feb., 1920 123,652 72.4 283 147 36.18 240 124 50.0 May, 1920 122,690 79.7 311 155 39.96 265 132 50.1 Aug., 1920 128,679 84.3 329 163 43.42 288 142 51.5 Nov., 1920 125,244 84.4 330 171 41.54 275 142 49.2 Feb., 1921 92,136 83.4 326 186 38.83 257 147 46.6 May, 1921 79,624 82.9 324 196 39.44 261 158 47.6 July, 1921 106,189 74.3 290 178 34.61 229 140 46.6 Aug., 1921 112,823 73. S 287 177 36.20 240 148 49.3 Sept., 1921 116,973 73.5 287 174 34.07 226 137 46.4 Oct., 1921 121,129 73.5 287 175 35.69 237 145 48.6 A comparison of the wages of the skilled employes in the railroad shops with the skilled male employes in foundry and machine shops in outside industries shows that the average hourly earnings of the railroad shopmen closely approximated those of employes performing similar service in outside in- dustries in 1914, the average hourly earnings of the railroad shopmen being 29.8 cents per hour as compared with 30.3 cents per hour in outside industries. See Table 5. Although comparable figures are not available for the period between July, 1914 and June, 1920, the trend as shown on Chart 9 indicates that the wages in outside industries rose more rapidly than the wages paid railroad employes until the middle of 1918. In June, 1920, however, the average hourly earnings in the railroads were 81.7 cents per hour as compared with 68.5 cents per hour in foundry and machine shops. 96 CHART 9: HOURLY EARNINGS, SKILLED SHOP LABOR, CLASS I RAILROADS, COMPARED WITH SKILLED LABOR IN FOUNDRIES AND MACHINE SHOPS (National Industrial Conference Board) CENTS PES HQUD au 1 1 ■- 1 'ii 1 1 /- W ■ fln (railroads) shown by years from —,1914 to 1919; by quarters from. smuzo SHOP LAB »/ T 1920 to June, 1921, by months after June, 1921; for skilled labor — in foundries and machine shops, - by months from June, 1920, only. with July, 1914, as base. (RAILRDAC / I r 7n y 1 At / SKILLED ^FGU^4DI3I TUMCHINE LABOR :band_^ SHDHS* BQ / V # ^ My • \ DEC S7.3« 50 •" 40 30' / ^ ■ :': ' so - ■---,. :■.. "•' 10 './ ■■■■:■■> / 1914 1915 I9IB 1917 ISIB 1919 I9SD 1921 I9EZ Sources: Interstate Commerce Commission; National Industrial Conference Board. ♦Wages for foundries and machine shops for July, 1914 and from Jime, 1920 to June, 1921, based on returns from 1552 establishments; July to October, 1921, preliminary figiftes based on returns from 600 establishments. 97 Since June, 1920, railroad wages have been well above those of employes in foundries and machine shops, and though by June the wages of the latter had been reduced, railroad wages re- mained on the same high level. After the wage reduction in July, 1921, railroad wages were reduced 8.8 cents but still re- mained at 15.1 cents per hour above those of foundries and machine shops in June, 1921. By October, 1921, hourly earnings of railroad shop labor had fallen only slightly, to 75.4 cents while those of foundry and machine shop labor declined to 57.9 cents'. Thus the decline in foundry and ma- chine shop industries, from the peak of 70.7 cents to 57.9 cents, was more pronounced than in the railroad industry, where the decline was from 86.4 cents to 75.4 cents. No comparison of wages of railroad shop labor with wages paid in outside shops, can be considered fair without taking into account the fact that the rules of qualification and classi- fication both as they appear in the National Agreements and in the Revised Rules setting forth conditions of employment for the shop crafts as laid down by the United States Railroad Labor Board, have made it necessary for the railroads to pay at skilled rates, men who in outside shops would be paid as specialists or as unskilled labor. A study of four privately controlled locomotive shops revealed the cost to the railroads in this respect. As brought out in our discussion of the classi- fication rules' the classifications have rated men as specialists who perform only one of the various performances demanded of an all around mechanic, such as journeymen mechanics. In outside shops it may be seen from the following table that a number of rates are paid for various services, depending on the skill and training required to perform them, while in the railroad shops only one rate is paid whether a man is capable of performing only one or all of the services. Shop A listed 27 occupations in its machine shop, for which 21 rates were paid to mechanics. For helpers there were 9 occupations listed with 9 rates. Apprentices were paid two rates and laborers one rate. In the railroad shops with an equal number of occupations for each class, one rate would be paid to mechanics, except in the case of inspector or autogenous welders, who would receive a diflFerential of five cents per hour over the minimum rate for mechanics. Only one rat© can be paid to helpers and one to common laborers. > See footnote, p. 91. 2 See p. 28. 98 Mechanics Helpers Apprentices Laborers SHOP No. occu- pations No. rates No. occu- pations ■'No. rates No. occu- pations No. rates No. occu- pations No- ratel A 27 21 9 9 2 1 i B 36 29 21 12 10 3 C 31 27 13 16 2 2 D 34 26 11 11 7 7 128 104 51 48 2 20 13 The rates for apprentices vary, as we have seen, with the" number of years of their experience. In the four shops listed, 104 rates were paid for 128 occupations in the mechanics' class. For helpers there were 48 rates for 51 occupations and for common laborers there were 13 rates for 20 occupations. Clerical Employees Training For the proper performance of a beginner's work there is very little training necessary for a clerical employe except in the case of stenographers and some calculating machine operators. Junior clerical positions are usually comparable in this respect with the minor positions in the crafts, that is, apprentices, student firemen, brakemen, etc. The work of the young clerks is of a routine character, not requiring special skill nor the exercise of independent judgment. Generally, for junior clerks nothing more than a common school education is necessary, although as a rule, persons with some high school training are considered desirable. Senior clerks do miscellaneous work, under supervision, re- quiring varying degrees of skill and judgment. Supervisory clerks are those who have had years of training, who are de- pendable and capable of assuming responsibility in positions of a supervisory character. ^ The degree of responsibility de- pends entirely on the individual position and runs from small responsibility on routine work to very high responsibility on supervisory work in such positions as chief clerk, accountant, statistician, etc. iRailway Wage Hearings, 1920, p. 165. 99 Hazards Except in the case of yard clerks who are obliged to work in the yard near moving cars and engines, there is no hazard peculiar to railroad clerks. Insurance companies consider this a non-hazardous occupation. Many states, in making compen- sation laws covering disease or accidents, do not include clerks in their provisions. It is safe to say that the conditions sur- rounding railroad clerks are at least as healthful as those in other industries. Employment Clerical employes of railroads are less affected by fluctua- tions in business than any other class of labor. Their work is very regular and permanent and offers chances of ad- vancement through merit, ability and initiative. It is fre- quently true that as traffic falls off the number of clerical em- ployes increases. The reason for this is that a decline in traffic is generally a decline in the number of carloads of bulk freight and as car-load shipments fall off, less-than-car-load shipments increase. There is no difference, in the main, between the clerical work necessary for the shipment of the car-load of any commodity and the small package, and as the number of packages increases during the business depression, it is neces- sary to employ more clerks to take care of the business. The hours of the clerks are regular, and the duties, with some ex- ceptions, involve no Sunday or holiday work. In addition, they can tell in advance the hours during which they will be at liberty. Table 8 shows that since 1914 the number of clerks employed on Class I railroads had increased 76% in 1920, dropping to 48% in May, 1921, due to the seasonal increase in traffic, and rising again to 63% in October, 1921. Earnings Chart 10 shows the relation between the cost of living and the earnings of clerical employes and also shows that their average hourly earnings were 29.3 cents in July, 1914, and rose to 70.5 cents in the second quarter of 1921, which repre- sented a gain of 141%. After the July wage reduction, these figures dropped to 62.7 cents, or a net gain of 114%. During the same period the real earnings based on the average hourly earnings rose 46% up to the second quarter of 100 CHART 10: "money" earnings and "real" earnings, clerks, CLASS I RAILROADS Changes Relative to July, 1914, as Base 100. (National Industrial Conference Board) ISI4 1915 laiB 1917 1916 ISI9 l9Sa 1921 IS2S Sources: Interstate Commerce Commission; National Industrial Conference Board. 101 1921 and still showed a net gain of 31% after the wage reduc- tion of July 1. The real earnings based on the weekly earnings showed a rise of 25% in the second quarter of 1921 and still showed a net gain of 15% after the wage cut in July, which was further reduced to 16% in October, 1921. It should be noted that although the average weekly earnings increased from $16.00 in 1914 to $33.15 in the second quarter of 1921, with a drop to •129.21 in July, 1921, the average hours worked per week fell from 54.5 in 1914 to 47 hours in the second quarter of 1921 and rose again slightly to 47.7 hours after the wage cut. The falling off in the number of hours worked, due to the eight-hour day rule, adequately explains the comparatively slight rise in real wages based upon the average weekly earnings. TABLE 8: EMPLOYMENT, WAGES, AND HOURS, CLERKS, CLASS I RAILROADS j j j j AVERAGE HOURLY AVERAGE WEEKLY Average EARNINGS EARNINGS Average number hours PERIOD number Actual Actual per employed cents Index Index dollars Index Index week per actual "real" per actual "real" per hour week employe July, 1914 141,095 29.3 100 100 $16.00 100 100 54.5 Jlily, 1915 162,151 30.1 103 102 16.30 102 101 54.1 July, 1916 166,500 30.9 105 97 16.97 106 98 54.9 July, 1917 184,063 32.8 112 85 17.92 112 85 54.7 June, 1918 204,741 44.9 153 101 23.68 148 97 52.8 July, 1919 218,724 53.1 181 105 26.21 164 96 49.4 Feb., 1920 234,898 56.4 192 100 27.24 170 88 48.3 May, 1920 238,484 64.8 221 110 31.31 196 98 48.4 Aug., 1920 247,557 69.4 237 117 33.65 210 104 48.5 Nov., 1920 245,844 69.9 239 124 33.67 210 109 48.2 Feb., 1921 225,016 69.9 239 136 32.39 202 115 46.3 May, 1921 208,687 70.5 241 146 33.15 207 125 47.0 July, 1921 227,781 62.7 214 131 29.91 187 115 47.7 Aug., 1921 228,195 61.3 209 129 30.97 194 120 50.5 Sept., 1921 228,614 62.8 214 130 29.88 187 113 47.6 Oct., 1921 229,884 61.8 211 129 30.46 190 116 49.3 No information is available for a comparison of the wages of railroad clerks with the wages of clerks in other industries. Before the war the railroads were always able to secure an ample supply of clerical employes and it would seem that the wages in the railroad service were sufficiently attractive to allow them to compete favorably with other industries. The 102 special advantages enumerated below, in the general discus- sioni, apply with particular force to clerks and should not be lost sight of in the determination of their wages. Telegraphers Qualifications and Training The classification "Telegraphers" includes dispatchers, towermen, telegraphers, telephoners and station agents oper- ating telegraph instruments, whose requirements of skill and training vary considerably with the type of work performed. Aside from the learning of telegraphy, the average telegraph operator need only have a general knowledge of train operation, supplemented by such knowledge as is necessary for the par- ticular post at which he is employed. At a busy station or tower a very considerable degree of skill and judgment are required and the train dispatchers need long years of training and much experience before they are quahfied to properly handle the work of dispatching trains. With the exception of train service employes, there is no class of railroad labor which is burdened with so great a respon- sibility as the train dispatchers and towermen, and their work is of the most exacting nature, frequently involving a great deal of nervous strain. Agents at important stations usually rise from minor posi- tions after many years' experience. In the case of agents at small stations, telegraphers and telegraph clerks with but little training are required, although even at the small stations they are compelled to assume very considerable responsibility, which includes courteous dealing with the public and the care- ful handling of freight and baggage as well as accounting for the money of the company received for freight or from pas- sengers. Hazards In general, it may be said that the hazards of these classes of employes are not great except that towermen and station agents are frequently obliged to do their work in the vicinity of moving trains or cars or to cross tracks in going to and from their work. Agents at small stations handling express and baggage are also more liable to injury than clerks, but on the whole this may be considered as a safe occupation. 1 See p. 119. 103 Employment^ As to the character and regularity of the employment, em- ployes covered by the telegraphers' schedule are always able to work full time when regularly employed. Their numbers remain approximately the same and are not usually much diminished by reduction in traflSc. The work demands intel- ligence and because of this the employes command the respect of their fellow-workers. Although the hours are not excess- ive, the demand of the public for continuous train operation on Sundays and holidays necessitates much work at those times. The number of telegraphers in railroad employ, as shown in Table 9, increased 20% in 1920 from the figures of 1914, and fell off to a net gain of about 8% in 1921. The numbers employed in the commercial companies during the same period increased 35% over the 1914 figures in 1917, in 1919 decreased to 82% of the number employed in 1914, and in September, 1921, stood at 89% of the 1914 figure. Earnings The average hourly earnings of this class in 1914 were 27.0 cents and rose to 67.8 cents in the fourth quarter of 1920, drop- ping off after the wage reduction of July, 1921, to 61.9 cents. This represented an increase of 151% in the fourth quarter of 1920, with an increase in real earnings of 30%, which rose to an increase of 51% in real earnings in May, 1921, dropping off to 40% in July, after the wage reduction. See Table 9. During the same period the average number of hours worked per week fell from 57.3 in 1914 to 53.8 hours in the fourth quarter of 1920, with a slight decline to 53.7 hours after the wage cut of July, 1921. In spite of the fact that the average weekly earnings rose from $15.50 in 1914 to $36.49 in the fourth quarter of 1920, representing a gain in real earnings of 21% after the wage reduction of July, 1921, the average weekly earnings stood at $33.20, real earnings showing a further increase to 39% over the 1914 figure. This is explained by the rise in hours since the wage reduction and the continuation of the fall in the cost of living. Comparison of the earnings of railroad telegraphers and commercial telegraphers (See Chart 11) shows that the wages of commercial telegraphers are uniformly above the wages paid to railroad employes of the same class. While the average » Employment and wage data apply only to telegraphers and telephoners operating blocks and interlockers. 104 m ^1 pi 00 to t*> •n 00 00 rows 3 t^r4 00*H U3 1 >< O 1 1 11 .9s 11 ^1 1 tt 1 s § eo 00 1 t* §s 2S s § fO^esS II § 1 s 2 lO 8 is il •o lO to s WW5 eo ^ ^ s 33.20 33.47 32.68 33.40 1 o a < 5 ft s 1 1 s o s §; a II |g|Sg22|SKSS 1 1 oo^»o«»«*oio»t^*o^ 11 00<0^»tOO»»-*t*eM»o « s li 1 1 CO 00 1 22 22 5 5 1 s 1 n «4 in ^ CO c4 « OOOii^fOm^OCO Ov 8; s 00 GO s CO pi 1 O 2 - o *n aoov M 1 SSBS • o 1 1/ a 1/ s ,1 < a "a o s 1 OC c o c i c 9 "1 c i 1 c R 1 c ' ti R i i •2 1 li i 1 1 s "1 1 i 105 CHART 11: HOURLY EARNINGS, TELEGRAPHERS, CLASS I RAIL- ROADS, COMPARED WITH COMMERCIAL TELEGRAPHERS (National Industrial Conference Board) CENTS PEBhOUB SO BO — 70 — BO 50 40 30 80 10 7 1 shown by years from 1914 to 1919 byquarters from 1920 to June,1921 bymonthsafter June, 1921. Irend for commercial telegraphers shown by six-month periods, 1914 to Jan., 1921; by months aftei Jan., 1921. /t w 7« 1 i J v., T. 7« / J / i •■- ,/ COMh TELE nenciAL SRAPHEHg- if ^- r-'"^ > RAILBDAI ►-— r J OEGRAPHE !S --^^ / IBI4 1915 ISIB ISI7 I91B ISIS isao I9SI 1982 Sources: Interstate Commerce Commission; National Industrial Conference Board. 106 hourly earnings of railroad telegraphers were 27.0 cents in 1914, the average hourly earnings of commercial telegraphers stood at 34.0 cents, with a uniform rise somewhat above the earnings of railroad telegraphers until 1921, when the earnings of commercial telegraphers showed a drop of less than one cent per hour below those of railroad telegraphers. However, after the wage reduction of July 1, 1921, the wages of commercial telegraphers remained approximately the same, and were about 10% higher than those in the railroad service. The trend of money earnings and real earnings of telegraphers and tele- phoners operating blocks and interlockers, from 1914 to October, 1921, is shown in Chart 12. Unskilled Labor Qualifications and Training Unskilled labor represents chiefly track labor in the main- tenance of way department and common labor in the round houses and shops, and is work for which no previous training is required. In the permanent positions, such as section men and track walkers, the labor is recruited from along the lines of the railroads in the villages and farms, and for the seasonal work, such as the replacement of ties and re-ballasting in the summer, the labor is also recruited in the large industrial centers and sent out along the hne. The responsibility of these men is simply to do their work in the manner prescribed by their foreman. Hazards The hazards vary with the work. In the case of track laborers it depends on the nature of the country through which the railroad passes, on cuts and bridges and the speed of trains and density of traffic, but the number of accidents compared with accidents to train employes is small. In the last three years there was an average of about 30 injured per thousand men employed, including all minor injuries. Employment The work of regularly employed section men is permanent, as is also the work of round house and shop laborers; track labor being chiefly seasonal, especially in the northern parts of the country where it is possible to lay new rail and ties only in the summer months. 107 CHART 12: "money EARNINGS AND REAL EARNINGS, TELEGRAPHERS AND TELEPHONERS OPERATING BLOCKS AND INTERLOCKERS, CLASS I RAILROADS Changes Relative to July, 1914, as Base 100. (National Industrial Conference Board) oeu 300 Trends shown by years from 1914 to 1919; by quarters from 1920 to June, 1921; by months after June, — 1921. 200 > SBO \ HOU ILY ^4D A "^ /wee* ' L 820 // ^*\ i r" • H Ei; SOO A- / // ' / ■», IQO j / / \ V li ' /CO .4 '■'^ ITDF 1NG \ tBQ 5 Is / <# HE 3.7 E'' 140 V A. 4 r MINGS / A n 120 / .4^\ jhly/ /' / • A J / A ^/ 100 ^ z^-" ^y -■„/ f-^ ao / ^v/' m T. 1914 IBIS I9IB 1917 1918 1319 1920 1921 1922 Sources: Interstate Commerce Commission; National Industrial Conference Board. 108 A comparison of employment of unskilled labor on railroads with unskilled labor in manufacturing industries shows that at the peak in July, 1920, the numbers employed by manu- facturing industries had increased 54% over the number employed in 1914, and on the railroads the numbers had in- creased 52% over the 1914 figures. During the period of depression the numbers employed in manufacturing industries dropped off until, in June, 1921, they showed a decrease of 12% below the 1914 figures, while the railroads, notwithstanding that there was a considerable decline from the peak, still showed a net gain of 26% in Octo- ber, 1921 over the number employed in 1914. Earnings The average hourly earnings of unskilled labor on the rail- roads were 16.1 cents in 1914 and rose to 50 cents in the third quarter of 1920, which represented an increase of 211% in money earnings and 54% in real earnings. By the second quarter of 1921 this had fallen slightly to 47.1 cents, or an in- crease over 1914 of 193% in money earnings, but due to the great decrease in the cost of living, the purchasing power had risen to a point 77% above their real earnings in 1914. After the wage cut of July 1, the average hourly earnings decreased to 38.6 cents, which still showed a net gain of 140% over the 1914 figure and a net gain in real earnings of 47%. See Table 10. The trend of hourly earnings for this class of labor during this period is shown in Chart 13. Their money earnings are compared with real earnings and with the cost of living in Chart 14. The average number of hours per week showed very con- siderable decline in the same period— 58.5 hours per week in July, 1914 as contrasted with 51.0 hours per week in July, 192l'. In August, 1921, after the wdge decrease, the hours per week rose to 54.4, which can be explained by the fact that it is necessary for this class of labor to work long hours during the summer months. The average weekly earnings rose from $9.42 in 1914, to $26.50 in the third quarter of 1920, represent- ing an increase of 181% in money earnings and 39% in real earnings. After the wage reduction of 1921, the average weekly earnings dropped to $19.71, which represented an increase of 109% in money earnings and 28% m real earn- ings, despite the drop in the number of hours employed. The average hourly earnings of unskilled labor m manufac- 109 a < ^ o n a O o S^ w 1-4 <: 04 hJ D Q r: 1^ i-l D M IS CO < ;z; s & ij ctf < o « < en >J C^ & Q o M s ■J >J Q 1?; M < s « D u ri >-) 1 i-i ^ ^ ^ 14 o hj a. S M S'S.^ ir III 0< •Sg ^1 ■3C art Ss 1^ •s^ >9» §5 a S 00 pv Oi o\ 00 1^ 00 T^ • '•*^ • -00 • -lo • 'vo '^-^i-tad m in lo lO lO 'o - -to • ^^ ■ .<oooom .^'^^^'t*cst*^ooc^c^oooo 0''>00't~''~'0000 oo«Hesoooo>o .aesoooi ■ OCNOOi • lO*0'0\0*OlO»OT|HW)MMMT-t • Mt-OMOO^^OMOi»4^>000 oo»o.<*»^ OOOCMOO-^tOO* W-lfOW^t^-^TP Q»^»«< Tt<»n'Or*ooOvOOOOOOOOO^'-t'-'»-(.-iw^^*N^ A CN A A A O^ A On a ^ ^ ^ A A A A A 0\ A A A A A A A illiMii^lllliiic CHART 13: HOURLY EARNINGS, , UNSKILLED LABOR, CLASS I RAILROADS, COMPARED WITH UNSKILLED LABOR IN 24 MANU- FACTURING INDUSTRIES (National Industrial Conference Board) 1 1 1 1 1 ... Trend for unskilled railroad — labor shown bv vears from 1014 to 1919, by quarters from 1920 to June, 1921; by months after June, ly^i; 101 unskilled labor in manufacturing industries, month _ by month, from June, 1920, with July, 1914, as base. U JSKILLEO L >A mft: lur IBOR y .^ fc r y y 1 ^41.B« y Xrailro (IIUD ID LABOR r y y / / y / / / J ^^ ^ ^1^ / OI4 laiS ISI6 1917 I9IB IBIS 1950 1981 I9ES Sources: Interstate Commerce Commission; National Industrial Conference Board. Ill turing industries were uniformly higher than the average hourly earnings of unskilled railroad labor. Those of manufacturing industries were 20.6 cents per hour in 1914 and rose to 54.2 cents in the third quarter of 1920, as is shown in Chart 13. With the arrival of the period of deflation in the latter part of 1920, the average hourly earnings of unskilled labor in manufacturing industries began to decline and fell below the wages paid to unskilled railroad labor in March, 1921. This drop continued until after July, 1921, when, following the Labor Board's wage reduction the hourly earnings of unskilled labor on railroads dropped to 38.6 cents. Before Federal control it was the practice of many roads to pay unskilled labor in freight houses on a tonnage basis. After the average performance per man had been computed by averaging the tonnage handled for a long period, a bonus for extra tonnage was paid which enabled the more diligent workers to increase their earnings; or the gang was paid a stated price per ton handled, the sum of which was divided equally among the men constituting the gang, there being a number of gangs employed in the larger freight houses. In the same manner a bonus system for the maintenance of way laborers had also been worked out and installed on the Baltimore and Ohio Railroad, where it had worked successfully for five years prior to Federal control. The Pennsylvania Rail- road had also made arrangements for the installation of this system on its lines when the railroads were taken over by the Government. The hourly basis was thereupon substituted for the computation of wages; and bonuses for freight house and maintenance of way laborers were abolished by the United States Railroad Administration. All Railroad Wage Earners Except Executives, Clerks, Etc. In dealing with the wages of railroad labor, it is not pos- sible to consider the training and skill required for the proper performance of the duties of all classes of labor, as the railroad industry differs from other industries in being a combination of several industries, and the training and skill of any particu- lar class of employes must be taken up in the discussion of that class. The same must apply to the degree of responsibility and, in large measure, to hazards. As far as the character and regularity of the employment are concerned, it may be said 112 CHART 14: "money" earnings and "real" earnings, un- skilled LABOR, CLASS I RAILROADS Changes Relative to July, 1914, as Base 100. (National Industrial Conference Board) isi4 ISIS IBIB ISI7 I3ia I9ia I3ED ISEI 1922 Sources: Interstate Commerce Commission; National Industrial Conference Board. 113 that the railroads offer more regular employment than any other industry, with the possible exception of municipal and public utility companies. Railroad employes in general are not subject to part time employment, but are able to work a full day. The number of men employed varies with the fluctua- tions in the general business situation as reflected in the amount of traffic handled, but with the exception of some classes of shop employes and seasonal employes in the maintenance of way department, employment in the railroad service is of a very regular and permanent character. In the train service, crews are laid off during business depression, but since the period of federal control, even crews on the extra list which are maintained on the payrolls of the railroads, are given monthly guarantees and are entitled to the minimum month's salary, whether or not they are actually assigned to runs. The relation between the wages of railroad employes and the cost of living is shown on Chart 15. The average hourly earnings of all railroad wage earners was 25.4 cents in 1914 and rose to 70.2 cents in the fourth quarter of 1920, which represented a gain of 176% in money earnings and an increase of 43% in real earnings. After the wage reduction of July, 1921, the average hourly earnings fell to 58.9 cents, which still showed a gain of 132% in money earnings, and the cost of living having declined, the real earn- ings, in spite of the decrease in money earnings, showed a net gain over 1914 of 42%. See Table 11. The average weekly earnings, which were $15.17 in 1914, on the basis of an average number of hours per week of 59.7, increased to $36.88 in the third quarter of 1920, an increase of 143% in money earnings, and of 17% in r^a/ earnings, in spite of a decline in the number of hours to 53.6 per week. After the wage reduction of July, 1921, the average weekly earnings stood at $29.58, in spite of a further reduction in the average number of hours per week to 50.2. The net gain in money earnings over 1914 was 95%, and the real earnings at the same date showed a net gain of 20% over the 1914 figures. Compared with the wages of labor in other industries, as shown in Chart 16, aside from the element of hazard we find that the average hourly earnings of labor in manufacturing industries was approximately one cent below the railroad figure in 1914 and that, while the earnings in manufacturing industries increased more rapidly than those of railroad em- 114 CHART 15: "money" earnings and "real" earnings, all LABOR, CLASS I RAILROADS Changes Relative to July, 1914, as Base 100. (National Industrial Conference Board) INDEX NUMBERS 3Z0 300 aao EBD SAO zza soo 160 IBQ 140 ISO IQQi BQ . L Trends shown by years from 1914 _ to 1919; by quarters from 1920 to June, 1921; by months after June 1921. /• s. / 1 / 1 //. •w ONEr'EAl N1NG5 h\ L p- \ sy [• c 1 1 f \ A 'a Pl a y '#■ J' \ n r* -^/ \ . f *l / ,''CDST / UVINI IF M III 3.7 J ^ / 4 i / 7 I 14 J "ARNtr'"'^ / A J .0-. '^ — ■ \ / ,.- ''V, 12. J r A "^ It / ai9^ X / / ^^'.^rt -y ^ / T_ Sources: Interstate Commerce Commission; National Industrial Conference Board. lis CO M H CO Q U CO H > H O 0 00 of iH o o to ooONoooooes ^ ^ rH >-( *H iH c^ e«i 'Oooi0vr4Ooo>ot-r>i^oc^ooiOrHioo\«or4coc4to^ p. i o a o o O es r^ »H w lO ^ ^ ^ ^ ^ (.4 d C4 •^NO\o»e>i(<^roio .roes rot*) ■OtOIOOO ^O^Om^OOOOtOtiOcOOtiOCl t ^■oor-aoo\OOOOOOOOOiH«->i *-i*-iT-i*H*HiHr4C4r4C4csr4csr4r4ese^CNes)Nr4r4CNr4c>4 116 CHART 16: HOURLy;;^EARNINGS, ALL LABOR, CLASS 1 RAILROADS, COMPARED WITH MALE LABOR IN 24 MANUFACTURING INDUS- TRIES (National Industrial Conference Board) eCKT* PEB HOUQ SO ao 70 — BO so 40 30 20 I'll Trend for all railroad labor shown Dy years irom lyi* to iviv; by quarters from 1920 to June, 1921; by months after June, 1921. Male labor in manufacturing industries shown by months from — June, 1920, with July, 1914. as base. Does not include in either indus- try exec utives,ci :rKs,iore [nen,eic. allhai LABD J- ^ A .J' r ' ^% r 'i"^"- .-' / ALL UBD e4 MFa 1 '\^"8T, -■ ** ', ^'7 /" / X / / f • ^ J < • / ^^ ^ -, \ ■ / 1914 I9IS ISIB ISI7 laia 1919 I9ED I9ZI 1922 Sources: Interstate Commerce Commission; National Industrial Conference Board. 117 ployes up to the beginning of 1919, in June, 1920, the railroad employes'were well above those of other industries and that, as deflation took place in the privately controlled plants, wages decreased rapidly until, in June, 1921, the average hourly earnings in manufacturing industries stood at 55.4 cents as compared with 68.2 cents on the railroads. Thus, although the wages in manufacturing industries rose more rapidly than railroad wages, they have also come down much more rapidly than the wages of railroad labor, under the control of the Labor Board. Summary Discussion of the charts and tables in the present chapter establishes clearly the fact that, whether taken either sepa- rately by classes or as a whole, the economic status of railroad labor of every kind is much better at the present time than before the war, both from the point of view of money earnings and real earnings. The average number of hours of service per employe per week of all railroad labor has decreased from 59.7 to 52.2, for the latest date for which figures are available (October, 1921), while the average weekly money earnings have increased from $15.17 to $30.70, with a rise in real earnings of 23%. The wages of train employes and clerks are not comparable with the wages of other groups of employes outside of railroad service and must be considered on their own merits. But even here the tables show very considerable improvement over 1914. The hours of train employes have decreased slightly from 62.2 to 60.7 hours per week, but wages have risen so that the purchasing power or real earnings of wages of train employes are 22% higher than in 1914. In the case of clerks we find that the average number of hours per week has declined from 54.5 to 49.3 and that the real earnings, even after the wage reduction of July, 1921, show a considerable net gain over real earnings of 1914. For every class where it has been possible to make com- parisons, we find the railroad employe in much better posi- tion than his fellow performing a similar class of service in privately controlled industries, and even in the case of teleg- raphers, whose actual hourly earnings in October, 1921 were lower than those of the commercial telegraphers, the real earn- ings computed on the basis of average hourly earnings show an increase over 1914 twice as great as for commercial teleg- raphers. 118 In general, the unskilled or semi-skilled classes such as fire- men and brakemen, carmen, helpers, apprentices, and un- skilled laborers, have received increases which have brought up their real earnings to a far higher percentage of gain than the gains in real earnings of the more highly skilled employes, and this in spite of a great decrease in the hours of service per week. The average net gain of 23% in real earnings, com- puted on average weekly earnings, is not shown in the study of the most highly skilled employes. This net gain in real earn- ings of train employes is 22%, and with the locomotive crafts the net gain is 17%; while unskilled labor and telegraphers show a rise of 22% and 31% respectively, and carmen show a net gain of 45%. See Charts 17 and 18. It is probable that if the war and its attending disturbances in the railroad field had not taken place, the gain in real earn- ings of train service employes and the skilled labor of the locomotive crafts would have shown as much increase as at present, as wages cannot be expected to remain in a static con- dition but must rather be expected to show a normal growth to allow laborers to keep pace with such rise in the national standard of living as must go on in order to maintain social progress. Considered as a whole, and particularly in the case of the less skilled classes, the wages of railroad employes have not reflected either the drop in the cost of living since June, 1920, nor the increased supply of labor since the setting in of deflation in industry. No comparison of the wages of railroad employes with the wages of employes performing similar service in other indus- tries can be fair without taking into consideration advantages and disadvantages which are peculiar to the railroad service. Railroad employes are in a somewhat less favorable position than employes of other industries, because of the well recog- nized fact that for the proper maintenance of a high standard of service such as is demanded by the public, a degree of disci- pline must be maintained among railroad employes which is not usually necessary to the proper and efficient conduct of other businesses. On the other hand, railroad employes have many advantages which employes in other industries are unable to secure. In the first place, as has been brought out above, the employment is of a much more regular character and is less subject to fluctuations due to business 119 CHART 17: HOURLY EARNINGS, TRAIN SERVICE LABOR, SKILLED SHOP LABOR, AND UNSKILLED LABOR, CLASS I RAILROADS (National Industrial Conference Board) ceNTB PERHDUQ BO 80 70 BO 50 40 30 SO to 1 1 1 Tvttn/le eVinnrn hv vparc frnm lOlil "^ to 1919; by quarters from 1920 to June, 1921; by months after June, ^ X^ HI. f ■ fa I l.Zt SKlUa LAi \ SHOP> OR ^ • a ; ^A ;■ IAIN SCRVI CE / // I: 4 i "l -♦ •-7 UNSKILLEI LABOR i J \ )■■■• »„..♦•* y / 1.3 eii / / y ^-^ .*"^ Ml^ / OCT - 1814 IBIS I8IB ISI7 I9IB 1913 1BZ0 Source: Interstate Commerce Commission. laai lasz 120 CHART 18: HOURLY EARNINGS, TRAIN SERVICE LABOR, SKILLED SHOP LABOR, AND UNSKILLED LABOR, CLASS I RAILROADS Changes Relative to July, 1914, as Base 100. (National Industrial Conference Board) 1914 1915 I8IB 1817 I3ia 1919 ISSO Source: Interstate Commerce Commission. \BZZ 121 conditions than is the case in manufacturing industries. Secondly, railroad employes have great advantages in the mat- ter of free transportation, both for themselves and their fami- lies, as it is the general practice of railroads to grant employes free transportation on their own lines, after a short period of service, and to secure transportation either gratis or at reduced rates on the Hnes of other railroads after the employe has completed from two to five years of service. A third factor, which is generally overlooked, is the peculiar fascination of the work itself, which has resulted in the establishment of a class spirit among railroad employes probably not equalled in any other employment. Railroad employes also have considerably higher social status than employes of other industries receiving the same wages. These facts should not be overlooked in the comparisons between wages of railroad men and those of other classes of labor. 122 CHAPTER V THE ECONOMIC CONDITION OF THE RAILROADS AND ITS EFFECT ON INDUSTRY AND COMMERCE The railroad industry, comprising from one and one-half million to two million employes, is in point of numbers a very important single industrial group. These employes, together with their families, probably constitute from 5% to 10% of the country's total population, and their earnings and working conditions are of vital importance not only to themselves but to industry at large. Another important consideration is that the whole com- mercial and industrial fabric, and hence the welfare of the country, is affected by the vitality of the railroad system. In normal years the railroads consume a large percentage of the iron and steel production of the country, as well as bituminous coal, oil, lumber, and many other commodities. Therefore, aside from the question of the actual wages paid railroad employes, the economic condition of the railroads is of vital concern to commerce and industry. The economic welfare of the transportation system is, in its turn, dependent upon the volume of traffic, the rates charged for service, the efficiency of management, the rates of wages, the conditions of labor which affect the efficiency and pro- ductivity of the employes, and the regulations of the Govern- ment. All of these factors are interrelated and any one of them may introduce into the transportation system adverse conditions which would ultimately affect industry at large. Railroad wages and working rules established by artificial regulations not in conformity with economic laws, may have most detrimental effects upon commerce and industry. These effects may be both direct and indirect. Of the direct effects, probably the most serious is the disturbance caused by the existence in any community of a class of employes whose wages or conditions of employment are either above or below those of employes of other industries in the same community. 123 o a < CL, < H O ►J < 2 « z u hH Cki X >< u ^ o p z n < H Si w u t» a. O s< n >J z CO U > o w Z (ri < s o u z & H Z z CL< »H o o rn CL. Q Z < w O ^ d CO ►J Bi < Si P o K MH Z en < < s »-] U >J C o OsOO*^oooO*Ht-*ioro ro lO f>t ■* VO '5 o OCN-^0\-H-^\OrOO'-4 »-( :^^^^CSCN)(N<^rr)CS cs d eg cs c< ■^ \0'-HTt<«^iomoies»0»H Ov fO O t^ »0 H 00r ^ oT t^" po 9 o O\»OCS\O^Ot^0000(N « ^ t^ o o •j 000)rOOt^>0-^ONCNr*5 sq_ 00 o) ^ cs «»«v«M>vAnr.n 1 < OvOO\es»Os'- PO <*5 f) s" c^es(Nrr> ^^,-(.^.-1 M o oOOsOOONr^OO^OvVO *-* fO i-H 00 ^ o »-lC>lTj^t^t-*Os00»O'*CX) 00 Ov ^ O M i »^ ^v-,^^,-t.^vHCSr ■«* oT oo" ^^ vs O\^OTt» po vp o ov m fo^ -^ io '**< in 00_ ro\0^0^00*-<^rOf0^r*^t-^ro^ «s ro'f*f'<*-^iO'^w»-H'^i-r •H •Ml '^■•■•^ C o OOsfOOO^OO^vO*^ t- r* i-H t*. ^ TS o CNC^iOrOTj^OOfSi^-^i^'O -^ es Tj< fo to "o C! ^-H *-i^^HCNCS(>jfOfOCOCS «N CM CS CS IM to OO'^CNIOOO'^'^t^VO lO lo to es ov S^ f- ^O\-^-^Tj.^ Os^ 0_ H U < ■* \d'oo On ooo lor^cs cs"*^ oT -^ r^ fo" t^ ro SOvOrOOCSOvOiOOOiO Ov «-< M CN PO .-H ro -^^ t-.^ vo^ M 4^ ON O^ 0\ t^ VO CS CS CN (N »-< T-T -r-T ■^ (n" cs ^-T t«. o t^»H00Ti<(Nt^00'^OvO ^ lO VO PO O nd o ir-ICSCS^CSO CN Ov O O tH 3 a lOtOvOvoOroOvr^-^-^ 00 1^ VO M VO ^.^.^.o51 s (NCSr400-«*.^ CN^ u O < fo t^c^^C^r^f^t^'^C^oS u^ c>r -t-T »-( lo* H PO'-0^t^vO^OC^^vOOO^O^>. Ti< O ^ VO O s ro^ ■*-tO00vO'-HiOt-^0vP0^ ^^ lO^ CN^ ^-^ Ov^ a 3 VO Os-^fOfOOOvOiOvOOv 00 VO r^ O O u VO VO 0\ P*5 OO M H < UT^vOI>;,oq^O\^Os^O*-^0 VO "1 "1 ^- ^« '^^ Q o to »0^<^000>0000'^ ■ »' ♦' •* •' >H ■^::r'^i::'^^f^<>^cNCN - 1 ;■• 1 /m \\ \ 1 \ i \ ! \ f ■ I I 1\ J TOTAL PAYHOLL / ^- \\ / / \V^^ s f 1 / 4 .••OPEBAT NG / vi 1 y •' EXPCN! . if r-v.^.^ ..V \ DTAL \ V \z y y ; ^'■' /^ ^^/ / IT 1914 1915 laiB 1917 igiB 1919 iseo igai laea Source: Interstate Commerce Commission. 126 cisely this situation which has confronted the railroads for the last two years. Many of the railroads have been able to show an increase in net earnings only because maintenance work, which should be carried on every year, has been cut down. The railroads have been forced to this measure by lack of funds and by the necessity of showing higher earnings, and the results of such a policy upon the physical condition of tke property must be disastrous if the policy is long continued. No further proof is needed of the railroads' reductions in maintenance than the figures issued from month to month by the American Railway Association on the number of cars and locomotives in need of repairs. At the end of 1921, more than 23% of the entire number of locomotives owned by the various railroads of the country, and over 13% of the total number of freight cars, were unfit for service, whereas 8% to 15% and 4% to 7% respectively constitute a normal condition. Because of the business depression and the falling off in the number of cars loaded, this neglect of maintenance as yet has had no serious effect upon the industrial and commercial inter- ests of the country, but it is highly probable that as business conditions approach normal, this shortage of power and of cars will seriously impede the manufacturers and producers of the country in their efforts to restore trade. High railroad wages are not the only factors which cause the lack of funds for maintenance purposes on the railroads. The railroads are large buyers of materials produced by indus- tries in which deflation has not yet taken place, and where wages, in some cases, are maintained at even higher levels than those paid railroad employes. For instance, it is a fact that the cost of coal and of building materials has fallen com- paratively little below the figures reached during the peak months of 1919 and 1920; deflation in prices in these indus- tries undoubtedly will help the railroads to increase their earn- ings. In addition, it must be remembered that the volume of traffic, as expressed in ton miles, declined over 23% in 1921, from the previous year. This decline was the greatest in rail- road history, and was the first decline to go beyond 10% in any one year. Nevertheless, despite all these other contribute- ing factors, it is probable that the disproportionate wages which the railroads have been forced to pay are at least equal in importance to any other cause in the lowering of railroad net earnings. 137 The Government, through two independent commissions, on the one hand regulates the rates charged for railroad serv- ice, thereby affecting the volume of traffic; and, on the other hand, regulates the rates of wages and conditions of employ- ment of railroad workers, which may seriously affect the efficiency of management and the productivity and efficiency of employes. It may fairly be said, therefore, that the regu- lations of the Government constitute the most important single factor in the economic situation of the railroads today. The rates charged by the railroads for transportation services are regulated by the Interstate Commerce Commis- sion, which was established by the Act of 1887, and the regu- latory powers of this body have been increased from time to time until at the present date it has the undisputed right to fix freight and passenger rates both in interstate and intra- state commerce. In delegating the power to fix passenger and freight rates, neither the authors of the Act of 1887 and its various amendments, nor the decisions of the courts upon disputed points in the Act, took into consideration the relation of railroad revenues to the wages of railroad employes, until the Act of 1920, which provided in Section 15a (3) that the Interstate Commerce Commission "Shall from time to time determine and make public what percentage of such aggregate property value constitutes a fair return thereon. . . . In making such determination it shall give due consideration, among other things, to the transportation needs of the country and to the neces- sity (under honest, efficient and economical management) of enlarging such facilities in order to provide the people of the United States with adequate transportation; provided that during the two years beginning March 1, 1920, the Commission shall take as such fair return to the sum equal to five and one-half percentum of such aggregate value, who may in its discretion, add thereto a sum not exceeding one-half of one per- centum of such aggregate value to make provision in whole or in part for improvements, betterments, or equipment, which according to the ac- counting system prescribed by the Commission, are chargeable to capital account." Although, taken by itself, this section of the law has no bearing upon the wages of railroad employes, it becomes very important when considered in relation to the sections of the Transportation Act of 1920 dealing with the duties and pro- cedure of the United States Railroad Labor Board. The latter was established for the regulation of the wages and rules governing working conditions of railroad employes, and is completely independent of the Interstate Commerce Commission. The Railroad Labor Board is not concerned with transportation rates or the general financial condition of the 128 carriers, but is charged with the fixing of just and reasonable conditions of employment, in accordance with Section 307 (d), to wit: "All the decisions of the Labor Board in respect to wages or salaries and of the Labor Board or an Adjustment Board in respect to working conditions of employes or subordinate oiBcials of carriers shall establish rates of wages and salaries and standards of working conditions which in the opmion of the Board are just and reasonable. In determining the justness and reasonableness of such wages and salaries or working condi- tions the Board shall, so far as applicable, take into consideration, among other relevant circumstances: (1) the scales of wages paid for similar kinds of work in other indus- tries; (2) the relation between wages and the cost of living; (3) the hazards of the employment; (4) the training and skill required; (5) the degree of responsibiUty; (6) the character and regularity of the employment; and (7) inequalities of increases in wages or of treatment, the result of pre- vious wage orders or adjustments. Due to the independent functions of the United States Railroad Labor Board and the Interstate Commerce Com- mission, it is natural that some confusion has resulted. In the case of the Railroad Labor Board, however, the circumstances which it must take into consideration in the fixing of wages, have been laid down, and among these the Act mentions "other relevant circumstances," which undoubtedly include the effect of railroad wages on other industries, the payment of a reasonable return on the capital invested in the railroads, and the eiFect of wages on freight rates. It is to this clause that we must look for the coordination of the functions of the two regulatory agencies. The intent of the law in this respect appears to be clear, and puts upon the Railroad Labor Board the responsibility of regulating wages in a manner that will not be prejudicial to other interests. Another section of the law, moreover, provides that the Railroad Labor Board shall suspend any increase in wages which in its opinion might cause a radical readjustment of the rates charged for transportation by any carrier. In any upward revision of wages, therefore, the Railroad Labor Board is limited by law, so that no apprehension need be felt on the part of the public that the Board may make undue increases in wages which would throw a heavy burden both on the railroads and industry. This does not necessarily mean that the wages of railroad employes should be based on the earning power of the rail- roads, for if this were done, the employes of many roads 129 would receive practically nothing for their services. Nor can wage rates be based solely upon the employer's opinion of what he can pay. Just and reasonable rates must be de- termined finally by general economic conditions. Wages consume about 50% to 60% of the total operating revenues, and represent the most important item in railroad expense. If, as management alleges, the entire industry has to suffer because of excessive wage costs, it would appear that the financial condition of the railroads is one of the pertinent and relevant circumstances which the Railroad Labor Board must consider in adjusting wages. Neither from the point of view of the employer nor from that of the employe, can standard wages be established for railroad employes of the same classes in all sections of the country, because both the cost of living and the supply and demand of labor vary greatly from locality to locality, and standard rates may work a hard- ship either to the employes or to the railroad managements where their relations to the cost of living and the supply of labor are not properly adjusted. Standardization of working rules may, to an extent, result in benefit both to the railroads and to the employes, provided the rules are made sufiiciently elastic to permit of changes to suit local conditions. It may be said, in general, that the ability of the railroads to provide the industries of the country, as well as the general public, with efficient transportation facilities at low rates, and at the same time maintain a sound financial condition permit- ting of adequate maintenance of equipment and roadway and of making such additions as the industrial growth of the country demands, is a prime consideration among the factors affecting the industrial and commercial welfare of the nation. The volume of traffic, the rates charged for service, the efficiency of management, the rates of wages and the condi- tions of labor are interrelated and any one of them may so unfavorably influence the transportation system as ultimately to hamper industry in general. If the efficiency and financial condition of the railroads are adversely affected by govern- mental regulations which control rates, wages and working conditions without relation to each other or to the economic requirements of the transportation industry, the effects will make themselves felt through all industry and commerce and hamper the economic progress of the country at large. 130 PUBLICATIONS OF THE NATIONAL INDUSTRIAL CONFERENCE BOARD {Prices liven are for paper-bound copies; doth binding fifty cents additional) Research Reports Research Report No. i. Workmen's Compensation Acts in the United States— The Legal Phase. 60 pages. April, 1917. Revised, August, 1919. $1.00. Research Report No. 2. Analysis or British Wartime Reports on Hours of Work as Re- lated to Odtpdt and Fatigue. 58 pages. November, 1917. $1.00. Research Report No. 3. Strikes in American Industry in Wartime. 20 pages. March, 1918. SO cents. Research Report No. 4. 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