Nine men in two rooms. SERVIAN LODGING GROUP ON THE WEST SIDE A man and his wife act together as "boss"; the woman had prepared soup for breakfast, and the twelve plates were found on the table ready for breakfast (photograph taken at 10 P.M.) The following table shows the number of men who were paid at weekly, fortnightly, or monthly intervals. A table is also given showing the number of men whose wages were held in arrears one week, from seven to fifteen days, and from fifteen days to a month. According to these tables the Italian is receiving the best wage and working the shortest hours. This may again be due to the fact that the visits were made at different seasons of the year, for the supply and demand for labor obviously affect the wages, but a more probable reason is that the Italian has been here longer and has learned the language and has been able to take advantage of the work of the labor organizations. Many of the Italians working for contractors on the streets, and all of the men working at the building trades were union men. In the steel mills at the time when the Bulgarian and Croatian groups were visited, the wages paid were 16 cents an hour for laborers. Two shifts were maintained, a ten-hour day and a twelve-hour night shift, with the same wages for each. The men alternated shifts each week, and at the time of changing, one group worked the double shift (both the day and the night shift), while at the time of shifting the next week that shift was laid off for 24 hours. Payment was made every fifteen days, by checks which were good in any store or bank, with no exchange charged. In one of the mills a voluntary insurance. company was maintained by the company, and men who were willing to join were preferred as employees. The work on the railroad varied according to the employing company and the kind of work done. The working day was ten hours, and the wages varied from $1.50 to $1.75 per day. By almost all the companies wages were paid monthly by checks, about a fortnight's wages being held in arrears. The cashing of these checks is a serious problem for men working in camps in the country. It is evident that those working in the building trades had by far the best wages and hours. The men were hod-carriers and strongly organized and had gained an eight-hour day and a threedollar wage. No attempt is made to set out plans for remedying the conditions described. Obviously the problem is one in world industry as well as in local sanitation. It may be said, however, that in the machinery of the city Health Department and in the intelligent use of inspectional visits, combined with instructions upon sanitary matters, there could be formed an agency little utilized as yet. Inspectors who would interest the men in the hygienic side of the question would find a welcome response among many of the groups; for frequently questions. were asked by the men as to the number who could sleep in a certain room without danger to their health. A method of ticketing the rooms or placarding on the doors has been tried very successfully in many cities and might be beneficial with many of the groups if the placards were printed in the language of the groups and if the co-operation of the men was secured. |