. The National Civic Federation review . havebeen more satisfactory than under any other methodthat has been tried in our trade. We have 350,000coal miners who are working under agreement,whose wages and conditions of employment are de-termined by a joint conference. I do not know of any other industry that willshow so marked a change as the coal industry. Iremember only eight or nine years ago, when eachemployer fixed the conditions of employment at hisown mines, when the workmen at those mines re-sorted to strikes or other means to change thoseconditions. The net result was that wages consta
. The National Civic Federation review . havebeen more satisfactory than under any other methodthat has been tried in our trade. We have 350,000coal miners who are working under agreement,whose wages and conditions of employment are de-termined by a joint conference. I do not know of any other industry that willshow so marked a change as the coal industry. Iremember only eight or nine years ago, when eachemployer fixed the conditions of employment at hisown mines, when the workmen at those mines re-sorted to strikes or other means to change thoseconditions. The net result was that wages constantlyfell, until the earnings of the miners were so lowthat they were unable to live and provide for them-selves as we all believe American workmen on the other hand, the profits of the operatorshad fallen so that many of them were in practicalbankruptcy. One mine owner did not know whaihis neighbor was paying for labor. The man atone mine didnt know what the wages were at theneighboring mine. In the competition for business,. Grange Sard there would be a cut here and a cut there, and soon all along the line; and with the desire to securetrade, the outcome was unsatisfactory to both sides. Competition and Wages. In 1897 we held our first joint convention andfixed a uniform competitive wage scale. That is tosay, in our trade the wages are not uniform, butthey are fixed upon a competitive basis. The prin-cipal element entering into the wage scale in themining industry is competitive opportunity of allinterests represented. We have to make our miningscale so as to give, say, Mr. Robbins, in Pennsylvania, a wage scale that will enable him to competewith coal men in Ohio. It that in thiscase the wages are the same, but if they could nptenter into the same markets on the same competitivebasis we would have to change the wage scale toenable them to do so. Of course, what is true of our trade would notnecessarily be true of other trades. For instance,in the buildin
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Keywords: ., bookcentury1900, bookdecade1900, booksubjectlaborandlaboringclas
