On the same day the Carpenters and Builders held a mass-meeting at the
Builders' and Traders' exchange. The first action taken was to agree to
stand together on the questions of wages and hours. A resolution was
adopted that eight hours should constitute a day's work, fixing 30 cents
an hour as the minimum price, and to grade the wages from that price up,
according to the worth of the employe.
The executive board of the United Carpenters' Council made the following
announcement:
In view of the fact that no communication has been received from
the bosses, it is ordered that no union carpenter be allowed to go
to work until further notified. The board will be in session at 8
A. M., April 7, at room 8, Nos. 76 and 78 Fifth avenue. All
carpenters not on committees are requested to report at 10 A. M.
The strike of the carpenters had begun to affect labor of all kinds on
buildings. Many walls were advanced as far as they could be without the
intervention of the carpenter. No man, other than a union carpenter,
would be allowed to even set a joist. Any attempt to infringe a union
rule was sure to precipitate a strike in another trade. A nervous
feeling pervaded the building interests generally. Every other trade was
in a state of apprehension. The Master Masons were among these. In order
to guard against complications with the bricklayers and stonemasons the
Master Masons' association had a meeting April 7th and adopted the
following resolution:
_Resolved_, That a committee of three be appointed with full power
to represent this body in all matters relating to the Bricklayers'
union, and with instructions to pave the way for the appointment of
a standing committee of arbitration, to which all questions and
controversies shall be referred for settlement, in order to prevent
pecuniary losses to both sides in the future and foster a friendly
feeling among the members of both bodies.
There had been a few slight differences between employers and employes
which were not readily adjusted, because there seemed to be nobody with
whom an adjustment could be made. A copy of this resolution was sent to
the Bricklayers' union.
April 8th a few boss carpenters called on President Campbell, of the
carpenters' union, and asked for men in order to finish a little
pressing work. They were refused, the president of the union saying:
"Not a man will be allowed to go to work until the bosses recognize the
union and the demands that have been made."
The announcement was made that two hundred and sixty non-association
bosses had signified their willingness to accede to all the union had
asked, and that they would meet at 3 o'clock in Greenebaum's hall to
organize a new association. None of them arrived until long after the
hour, and at 4 o'clock nineteen of the two hundred and sixty got into
the large hall and were comparatively lost. They adjourned to a small
room where they remained but a few minutes and then dispersed. They
acknowledged they had been misled by the strikers, some of whom had
arranged the meeting for the purpose of ascertaining how much
disaffection there was in the ranks of the employers.
The small attendance was a great disappointment to those in charge of
the strike. But they determined to secure an organization among the
"outside bosses," believing it would weaken the effort of the "bosses"
who were standing out against the demands which had been made.
The United Carpenters' Council held a meeting and adopted a resolution
that no terms should be accepted looking toward a settlement of the
difficulty other than a full recognition of the union and every demand
that had been made.
The Bricklayers met and decided to take a hand in the strike of the
carpenters. They adopted a resolution providing that members of their
union should set no window frames, handle no joists, nor do similar work
on buildings in course of construction until the pending trouble was
adjusted. The carpenters were delighted when they were officially
notified of this action, and once more reaffirmed their determination to
stand out. Similar action was taken by the Hodcarriers' union.
Eight union carpenters were arrested for intimidating non-union men
employed on a building on Canal street. They became so violent that the
patrol wagon was called and they were taken to the Desplaines street
station. They were heavily fined.
Prominent Knights of Labor were of the opinion that the offer of the
Master Carpenters of eight hours and 30 cents an hour should have been
accepted. Believing this, they called a meeting of the Knights of Labor
at Uhlich's hall for the purpose of ordering the carpenters to return to
work. This meeting was held April 10th. The hall was packed by a crowd
that was opposed to conceding anything. Those who called the meeting
soon discovered that they would be mobbed if they presented any
proposition to order the carpenters to go to work. A. Beaudry, who was
one of those who called the meeting, and who strongly favored accepting
the offer of the bosses, presided at the meeting, but he dared not
present such a proposition. Instead of the meeting accomplishing the
object for which it had been called, it reversed the expected order and
advocated unity of action, expressing its sentiments by adopting the
following resolution:
_Resolved_, That this meeting sustains the action of the United
Carpenters Council and pledges our individual support in their
future efforts during the struggle.
The result of this attempt to restore harmony was enough to satisfy
fair-minded men that the demands were not those of reason, but were
backed by an element which was composed of the rule-or-ruin class, and
they were satisfied that it was uncontrollable.
A feeble attempt was made to hold a meeting of the "consulting" bosses
at No. 106 Randolph street for the purpose of settling the strike, but
less than a half-dozen appeared on the scene, and the meeting was not
held.
In the evening the Carpenters' and Builders' association met at the
Builders' and Traders' exchange. Vice-President William Hearson
presided. A delegation of sixty representatives of the Carpenters
council invaded the corridors of the exchange. A committee composed of
Messrs. Frost and Woodard, was sent out to see what they wanted, and
returned with the statement that the carpenters were very pleasant, but
full of fight and disposed to stand out all summer.
William Mavor read a communication from the United Carpenters' Council,
stating that it would stand by its original proposition for 35 cents an
hour, and that the union must be recognized. Mr. Mavor stated that the
latter proposition was the sticker, and a great many voices said that
they would never consent. They were willing to treat with the men as
individuals. The report of the committee was received and laid on the
table by a unanimous vote.
S. H. Dempsey presented the following resolution, which was adopted by a
unanimous vote, followed by loud applause:
_Resolved_, That the secretary of this association be instructed to
notify through the newspapers all carpenters who are willing to go
to work on Monday morning at the rate of wages offered by this
association to appear at their respective places of work, and that
they will be protected. Otherwise the Master Carpenters will
advertise for outside workmen.
The following committee was appointed to look after the general
interests of the association:
Francisco Blair, S. H. Dempsey, J. W. Woodard, Jonathan Clark and John
Ramcke.
Monday, April 10th. The executive committee met and organized by
electing officers as follows: J. W. Woodard, chairman; Jonathan Clark,
secretary; John Ramcke, treasurer. The committee issued the following
notice to the public:
As a notice has been circulated to-day among the master carpenters
of this city, calling a meeting of the master carpenters for this
afternoon, we would respectfully ask you to publish the fact that
this meeting is in no way authorized by the Master Carpenters'
association, and we will not in any way voice its sentiments or
recognize its action. Also, that this association will hold no
meetings, except those authorized by the president or secretary of
the executive committee. We would also like to make public the fact
that there are now 175 members in this association, and they
represent about seven eights of the carpenters in the city. Because
incorrect reports are apt to be published, and the public interests
will suffer if this occurs, we would be glad to receive reporters
at all meetings and place all information in our possession at
their disposal.
An erroneous idea of the present situation, or cause of
disagreement exists, not through the fault of the press, but rather
through an inaccuracy in presenting the matter. What we would lay
down as our statement of principles is the following, which were
formulated as a part of those adopted by the National Association
of Builders:
This association affirms that absolute personal independence of the
individual to work or not to work, to employ or not to employ, is a
fundamental principle which should never be questioned or assailed;
that upon it depends the security of our whole social fabric and
business prosperity, and that employers and workmen are equally
interested in its defense and preservation.
While upholding this principle as an essential safeguard for all
concerned, this association would appeal to all employers in the
building trades to recognize that there are many opportunities for
good in associations of workmen, and, while condemning and opposing
improper action upon their part, they should aid and assist them in
all just and honorable purposes; that while upon fundamental
principles it would be useless to confer and arbitrate, there are
still many points upon which conferences and arbitrations are
perfectly right and proper, and that upon such points it is a
manifest duty to take advantage of the opportunities afforded by
associations to confer together, to the end that strikes, lockouts,
and other disturbances may be prevented.
When such conferences are entered into, care should be taken to
state clearly in advance that this fundamental principle must be
maintained, and that such conferences should only be competent to
report results in the form of resolutions of recommendation to the
individuals composing the various organizations participating,
avoiding all forms of dictatorial authority.
The present question is not one of wages or hours, but is solely
upon our recognition of the union and our acceptance of the
conditions proposed by the letter received from the Carpenters'
Union at the meeting of this association Saturday night and printed
last week. As our code of principles state, we do not oppose
unions, as we affirm the right of all individuals to form
associations. This body has received but one communication--that
referred to--and that a week after all the carpenters in the union
had struck work. This communication purported to be from the
executive committee of the Carpenters' Union, but there was neither
seal nor letter press on the stationery, and there were no names
representing the executive committee. This association means to
treat the present disagreement with all fairness, recognizing the
entire rights of the journeymen, but claiming that we, as
contractors, have rights as well. Very respectfully,
JONATHAN CLARK,
Secretary Executive Committee Carpenters' and Builders'
Association.
About thirty carpenters met at No. 106 Randolph street and organized an
independent Master Carpenters' Association. Among them were several
members of the union who were bosses in a small way. The new association
at once agreed to the terms demanded by the carpenters, and a list of
the members was sent to the United Carpenters' Council, after which an
order was issued by the council, permitting the employes of the members
of the new association to return to work. This action, it was claimed,
would compel the members of the Carpenters' and Builders' Association to
yield every point demanded, but it had no such effect.
The agitation was kept up, and a mass-meeting was held by the strikers
at No. 311 Larrabee street, at which they were urged to stand out. They
were also told they never could win if the bricklayers did not support
them.
The council expected its action would meet the wishes of the men, but it
did not. They saw that only a very few would be given work, and demanded
that all remain out until the success of the strike was assured. A
mass-meeting was held April 13th, at Twelfth street Turner Hall, at
which the action of the council was severely criticised, and a
resolution was adopted that all should remain out until their demands
were recognized by every master carpenter in Chicago.
The members of the new association of bosses were disappointed at the
reflex action of the carpenters. They regarded it as a breach of faith,
and were on the eve of breaking up their organization, but concluded to
obey the mandates of the union and held together a few days longer.
In the meantime a number of the carpenters had gone to work. These were
immediately taken off by walking delegates, and the little bosses
became satisfied that the fight was all on one side. But, as many of
their members belonged to the union as well, they were forced to remain
in the association and be laughed at.
Many of the workmen were incensed at the breaking of the agreement and
threatened to leave the union and return to their old employers. Some of
them did so, and they took others with them afterwards. They lost
confidence in the council and in the leaders of the strike.
On Thursday, April 14th, the executive committee of the Carpenters'
Council thought to heal all defection by the issuance of the following
form of agreement, which, they said, they would require all master
carpenters to sign before they would settle the strike:
We, the undersigned contracting carpenters, agree to the following
terms of settlement, and pledge ourselves to the following
propositions, which shall be in force and binding upon us from this
date until the 1st day of April, 1888, with the understanding that
the carpenters' council pledges that there shall not be another
demand for increase of wages or reduction of hours before said
date--April 1, 1888.
1. We agree to pay as the minimum rate of wages to carpenters 35
cents per hour.