USA > New York > A short history of New York State > Part 57
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A SHORT HISTORY OF NEW YORK STATE
are permitted to work, and providing special working conditions for female labor. At first, this legislation applied only to women employed in manufacturing, but later it was extended to apply to women who worked in stores. Before public indignation was aroused by the Triangle Shirt Waist factory fire in 1910, the preliminary report of the Factory Investigating Commission in 1911, and its final voluminous report in 1915, all legislative measures affecting the employment of women and especially those proposing to prohibit night work were vigorously op- posed by employers and others on economic and constitutional grounds. The first law, enacted in 1899, providing for prohibition of night work for women was, in fact, declared unconstitutional by the New York Court of Appeals in 1907. In 1913 the state legislature, in response to the strong urging of the Factory Investigating Commission, again enacted a meas- ure prohibiting night employment for women in factories between the hours of 10 P.M. and 6 A.M. The constitutionality of this law also was tested in the courts, and in 1924, almost ten years after its passage, it was upheld by the United States Supreme Court in the case of Radice v. New York.
What was true of women workers was substantially true of child labor. A general eight-hour law and prohibition of child labor had been agitated by organized labor since 1850. Beginning in 1869 and for six successive years a child-labor bill was unsuccessfully introduced in the legislature. The compulsory education legislation enacted in the 1870's provided that
all children between eight and fourteen years of age shall attend school at least fourteen weeks of each year, eight of these weeks at least to be con- secutive; the employment of a child under fourteen in any business during school hours is forbidden unless the child has attended school at least four- teen weeks out of the fifty-two weeks next preceding the year of employment and presents a certificate so stating to the employer.
The state's penal code provided that any person might be held guilty of a misdemeanor
who having the care or custody of a minor either (1) wilfully causes or permits a minor's life to be endangered, or its health to be injured, or its morals to become depraved; or (2) wilfully causes or permits the minor to be placed in such a situation or to engage in such an occupation that its life is endangered, or its health is likely to be injured, or its morals likely to be impaired.
Neither of these laws were enforced.
Perhaps the first clear-cut bill to regulate child labor was framed by the Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Children in 1882. It failed, however, to become law. It was not until 1886 that an act providing for the regulation of the employment of women and children in manufac-
535
CHANGING STATUS OF LABOR
turing establishments, and for the appointment of inspectors to enforce the law, was passed. By the provisions of this act no boy under eighteen years of age and no woman under twenty-one were to be employed in a factory for more than sixty hours a week, unless for the purpose of making necessary repairs. Moreover, the employment of children under thirteen years of age was forbidden. The employer was to keep a register of all children under sixteen and have on file certificates stating their age and birthplace, verified by parent or guardian or by the child himself. This legislation also ran into enforcement difficulties, largely because of self-interest on the part of both parents and employers.
During the 1890's the legislation affecting the employment and work- ing conditions of children was stiffened. Among other things, the hours of labor were reduced to nine a day, employment of children in street trades was regulated, and both the compulsory education law and the factory law were amended to the end that educational requirements were broadened and made more effective. Since World War I child labor legislation has been primarily concerned with advancing the age of entry into employment, raising educational requirements, extending the list of prohibited employments, and strengthening methods of en- forcement.
Legislative efforts to put an end to the sweatshop type of homework have not been too successful. The law of 1883 prohibiting the manu- facture of cigars in tenement houses was declared unconstitutional. The principal form of regulation has been licensing. The licensing power rests in the hands of the industrial commissioner of the state, who is empowered to determine within what industries conditions may permit of industrial homework. Organized labor, especially in those industries susceptible to sweatshop production, has done much to curtail if not to eliminate such labor.
In the field of labor legislation, the state has made great strides since the beginning of the twentieth century. In fact, legislation which in the 1880's and 1890's would have had no chance of being enacted is now on the statute books. In this respect three pieces of legislation, each de- signed to afford the worker greater economic security, deserve brief consideration. These are the minimum-wage law and laws providing for compulsory insurance against industrial accident-familiarly known as 'workmen's compensation"-and for compulsory insurance against un- employment.
Agitation in the state for fixing minimum wages for women and minors goes back to the beginning of this century. Enthusiasm for such legisla- tion was dampened when, in 1923, the United States Supreme Court in the case of Adkins v. Children's Hospital declared the minimum-wage law of the District of Columbia to be unconstitutional. Hopes were re-
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A SHORT HISTORY OF NEW YORK STATE
vived, however, by the impetus labor legislation received from the dis- tressing conditions resulting from the Depression. Furthermore, those who championed governmental control of wages believed that it might be possible to draft an act which would be found to be constitutional. Governor Lehman shared this opinion and, in a special message to the state legislature in 1933, stated, "I am ... advised by competent con- stitutional authority that present-day conditions are so changed from those prevailing when the original statute was before the Court, that a mandatory, minimum wage law based on the minimum value of the serv- ices rendered might well be upheld by the Supreme Court of the United States."
Accordingly, a minimum-wage law effective April 20, 1933, was en- acted, only to be declared unconstitutional by the highest court in 1936 in the case of Moorehead v. New York ex rel. Tipaldo. In a dissenting opinion Justice Harlan F. Stone (later chief justice) protested against the majority's basing their decision and opinion on their own "economic predilections."
The action of the court in this case precipitated a storm of disapproval and criticism. The issue of the power of a state to enact protective legisla- tion was injected into the presidential campaign of 1936. Proposals to restrict the power of the Supreme Court by constitutional amendment were revived and widely debated. As a consequence, on May 5, 1937, the court overruled its earlier decision, this time holding that the more or less illusory freedom of an individual to bargain with a corporation should be supplemented or even replaced by the protection of the weaker mem- bers of society.
New York was the first state in the Union to enact compulsory accident insurance. Passed in 1910 as a result of the report of a legislative investi- gation (the Wainwright Commission ) instituted to inquire into the nature, cause, and consequences of industrial accidents, the Workmen's Com- pensation Act provided for elective compensation for most industries but compulsory coverage for an enumerated list of hazardous employ- ments. The compulsory feature of the act was promptly declared uncon- stitutional in 1911 in the now-famous Ives case (Ives v. South Buffalo Ry. Co.) on the grounds that it conflicted with both the Fourteenth Amendment and the state constitution.
This decree proved to be only a passing rebuff, for in 1913 a special enabling amendment to the state constitution made it possible to enact a new compensation law which became effective January 1, 1914. As with its predecessor, the constitutionality of the act was soon challenged (Rhemwald v. Builders Brick and Supply Co.). This time, however, the court upheld the legislation. In doing so it explained that injuries sus- tained by those who perform the manual and mechanical tasks of an
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CHANGING STATUS OF LABOR
industry must be deemed to have been intended by this statute to be made a social risk, a liability of the industry, a charge upon the pro- duction cost of the article manufactured or the service rendered.
The compensation law adopted in 1913 had provided that the state supervise the settlement for the injured worker, but under Governor Whitman provision was made for direct settlements between employers and employees. It soon became apparent that the latter was no match for the former in these proceedings, and an investigation instituted by Governor Smith in 1919 revealed that under the revised law underpay- ments totaled $50,000 for 114 cases. As a result of this investigation, the legislature in the same year restored the original plan for the state's supervision of all settlements for compensation cases. In the ensuing years the types of claims recognized under the law were considerably expanded and the weekly benefits were increased from fifteen to twenty- five dollars.
Since its inception the system of accident insurance has been peri- odically improved by the increase in standards of compensation, drastic reforms in administration, the development of the State Insurance Fund, and the gradual extension of the list of hazardous occupations to in- clude industries giving rise to occupational diseases.
With the growth in population, increased mechanization, and more efficient management, there was growing evidence even as early as the 1920's, the golden age of American business, of unemployment problems. Efforts in the state to solve or at least alleviate this problem by the passage of unemployment-insurance legislation met with little success at first. In fact, it was not until the impact of the Depression of 1929 made itself felt that the climate of opinion within the state changed sufficiently to enable the proponents of unemployment insurance to make headway. In April 1931 the legislature appointed the Marcy committee, which, after careful study of the whole subject, recommended legislation in the form of individual employer reserves. Taking the view that no additional costs should be imposed on employers until business had substantially im- proved, the committee held that the time was not ripe for mandatory legislation.
At the same time, Franklin D. Roosevelt, then governor of the state, in- vited the governors of Massachusetts, Ohio, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, and New Jersey to confer with him on the common problems of unem- ployment, relief, and public works. One result of this conference was the creation of an interstate committee on unemployment insurance, com- posed of representatives of the six governors. In its report this committee advocated compulsory unemployment insurance modeled after the Wis- consin plan.
This recommendation lent strength to the growing demand for legis-
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A SHORT HISTORY OF NEW YORK STATE
lation. So also did the change in policy of the American Federation of Labor, traditionally opposed to this type of legislation. Further support came when Roosevelt, having moved on from Albany to Washington, ap- pointed a cabinet committee, under the chairmanship of Secretary of Labor Frances Perkins, to draft a federal law. Meanwhile, the New York State Federation of Labor left no stone unturned in its efforts to secure the passage of the desired legislation. Under the impact of this combina- tion of forces, the opposition crumbled, and in April 1935 a compulsory unemployment insurance law was signed by Governor Lehman. Under the provisions of this measure, employers contributed a fixed percentage of their payrolls to a fund from which benefits up to a maximum of fifteen dollars a week were paid to each unemployed worker for a maximum of sixteen weeks in any one year.
In 1930 the state had adopted a state-wide mandatory system of old- age pensions. Although Governor Lehman had on numerous occasions requested the legislature to liberalize the provisions of this system, no action was taken until the Social Security Act made it advantageous for the state to conform to the standards set by the national government. Accordingly, in 1936 the legislature amended the 1930 measure to reduce ยท the minimum age from seventy to sixty-five and to cut the residence re- quirement from ten years to five out of the nine years preceding the ap- plication for assistance. Because these provisions conformed to those of the Social Security Act, the state payments to needy persons over sixty- five were matched by grants from the federal government. Disability in- surance, strengthening of the machinery for settling labor-management disputes, and a State Labor Relations Act were also enacted.
During 1954 the state certified unemployment insurance claims totaling over $290,000,000. At the end of the year 1954 the New York State Unem- ployment Insurance Trust Fund had a balance of $1,267,384,177.
At its session of 1955 the legislature also broadened labor benefits from thirty to thirty-six dollars a week. Coverage of unemployment insurance was extended to employers of three instead of four or more persons, except domestics, and, after December 1, 1956, to firms of two or more employees. Workhours of children under sixteen were reduced from forty-four to forty hours per week in factories and in mercantile and other establish- ments.
With passing years New York State, like its sister commonwealths, has learned that the efficacy of social legislation depends largely on the quality of its administration. Many of the early labor laws were barren of results because of lack of proper machinery of enforcement. With the growth of population, the increase of the working class, and more favorable public support for labor-industrial legislation came notable advances in the field of administration.
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CHANGING STATUS OF LABOR
A beginning in this direction was made during the late 1880's, but progress was slow. A real step forward was made in 1890 when eight women deputies were added to the inspection force, and the number periodically increased thereafter. The next major step toward improve- ment was taken in 1901, when the State Department of Labor was organ- ized through the consolidation of the Bureau of Labor Statistics, the office of the Factory Inspector, and the Board of Mediation and Arbitration.
Another decade elapsed before another landmark was erected. This came as a result of the investigations and recommendations of the State Factory Investigating Commission of 1911 and is known as the Reorgani- zation Act of 1913. By the terms of this act an industrial board was created as a "special legislative agency whose duty was to be the formulation and passage of an industrial code of rules and regulations which should have the force and effect of law." After two years of experience with two co- ordinate bodies, the Department of Labor and the Industrial Board, the Factory Investigating Commission recommended their consolidation. Con- sequently, the Industrial Commission assumed charge of the Department of Labor in 1915. Further reorganization occurred during the adminis- tration of Governor Miller when, in 1921, the Industrial Commission was replaced with a single commissioner, who was head of the Labor Depart- ment. To the department was added an Industrial Board empowered to hear "appeals from orders of the Commissioner issued by him to employers or factory owners directing compliance with various provisions of the Labor Law, and also applications for variations from the provisions of the Labor Law or of the Industrial Code." The volume of these adminis- trative orders has multiplied and they have become as important as the provisions of the legislation. During the last quarter of a century the De- partment of Labor has grown enormously in size, responsibility, and ac- complishment.
One phase of the history of labor development in the state which over the years has attracted more and more attention is the machinery for the settlement of disputes arising between management and labor. This ma- chinery had its beginning when the first Board of Arbitration was set up in 1886. At that time there were few collective bargaining contracts and even fewer provisions in these contracts for arbitration of disputes which might arise. Now almost all of the thousands of agreements provide for arbitration as the final step in grievance procedure.
The New York State Board of Mediation constitutes the present ma- chinery for adjusting disputes between management and labor. It was created "to promote permanent industrial peace and the health, welfare, comfort and safety of the people of the State." It has the duty not only to mediate disputes between unions and employers but also, with the con- sent of the parties involved in a dispute, to arbitrate their grievances.
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A SHORT HISTORY OF NEW YORK STATE
The board has seven members, appointed by the governor, who serve on a per diem basis. The board determines general policy, and, on occa- sion, its members serve individually as mediators and arbitrators. Four district offices are maintained in the state: in New York City, Albany, Buffalo, and Syracuse. Heading each office is a district director; attached to each of these offices is a staff of full-time mediators who regularly act as arbitrators. Each district office maintains a panel of citizens which it may draw upon in the selection of arbitrators. Unquestionably, the work of this board has reduced to a minimum the number of strikes or near- strikes which the state would otherwise have experienced.
Only when one compares the status of labor in the state in 1865 with that of today can he fully appreciate the great strides which have been made in bettering the conditions of employment and elevating the social and economic standards of the worker. Wages in terms of purchasing power have increased, hours have been shortened, greater security has been provided, and the battle for the right of the worker to unionize and bargain collectively has been won. Because of this changed condition, class consciousness is conspicuously absent. Instead of being proletarian, labor in the state is middle class in way of life and, above all, psychologically. Within the state, as elsewhere within the nation, the unity of organized labor was long disrupted by the A.F. of L .- C.I.O. con- troversy. The mending of this schism in the ranks of organized labor has now been accomplished. It was hastened by the fact that, in last analysis, both sought the same objectives-more money, shorter hours, and greater security for their members. Differences in theory between the two organizations disappeared as the A.F. of L increasingly recog- nized the need for broad trade-i.e., industry-unionism. Irrespective of A.F. of L. or C.I.O. affiliation, unions in the state, as elsewhere, have openly expressed their opposition to either state or federal legislation which in their opinion sought to weaken them. This accounts for their unanimous criticism of the Taft-Hartley Act. At the same time, no one acquainted with the labor situation in the state could truthfully deny that many unions are today demonstrating a greater sense of responsibility not only to their membership but also to the public welfare than they were a few decades ago.
As evidence of the growing tendency in this direction the results ac- complished by Local No. 3 of the International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers should be noted. During the early 1930's this New York City local had the reputation of being one of the most irresponsible in America. Under new and enlightened leadership the union began in 1933 to change its tactics. Labor management warfare was replaced by labor-management teamwork. A Joint Industry Board of the Electrical Industry was set up
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CHANGING STATUS OF LABOR
with twenty-four directors-twelve from the union and twelve from the employing contractors-with an employer as chairman.
Established in 1939, the Joint Board, or "the team" as it is known, has accomplished results that are many and widespread; strikes have ceased, wages have been increased, working conditions are vastly improved, an unhappy and inefficient working force has been transformed into one whose efficiency and production are second to none, a twenty-million dollar housing development has been sponsored by a pension fund, a rest home for members of the union has been established at Southampton, Long Island, dental and medical clinics have been set up, and a generous scholarship program for the sons and daughters of the members of the union has been created. Meanwhile the union has expanded its member- ship from six to thirty thousand in the state.
Similarly, the International Ladies' Garment Workers' Union has made enormous strides in demonstrating what a labor union can accomplish, not only for the benefit of its membership but for the promotion of the public welfare. Its educational program, dating back to the early 1920's, its interest in political liberalism, manifested in its support of the Liberal party in the State, and its most recent ventures into the field of slum clearance and better housing are evidence of its sense of public respon- sibility.
Labor's future in New York State will depend in large measure upon this growing evidence of trade-union maturity and responsibility and upon the economic prosperity of those within the state who employ labor.
Chapter 38
From Towpath to Airway
It is hard for us today to realize how very widely communi- ties were separated from one another when they depended for transportation wholly on the railroad and the horse and wagon-and when telephones were still scarce, and radios non-existent. A town which was not situated on a railroad was really remote. ... No wonder that each region, each town, each farm was far more dependent upon its own re- sources-its own produce, social contacts, amusements-than in later years .- FREDERICK LEWIS ALLEN
FEW of those who participated in the ceremonies marking the formal opening of the Erie Canal foresaw that within a half century its primacy as a carrier would be challenged by the railroad and, later, by the motor carrier.
The railroad industry of New York reached maturity as well as su- premacy in the field of transportation in the period between 1865 and 1900. By the latter date approximately 90 per cent of the mileage of all railway construction within the state had been completed and the great railway systems had come into being. Long before the end of the century most of the short lines constructed in the 1860's and early 1870's in re- sponse to the enthusiastic demand on the part of localities in every part of the state had been absorbed by the New York Central, the Erie, the Lehigh Valley, the Delaware, Lackawanna, and Western, and the Dela- ware and Hudson. The New York Central, expanding rapidly within as well as outside the borders of New York, was, by 1900, running trains to Manhattan Island, Montreal, St. Louis, and Chicago. During this period the railroad corporations were the most important aggregations of capital in the state, exerting strong influence upon both state and local govern- ments. By the end of the century the flamboyant freebooters and construc- tion giants of the age of promotion were already giving way to technically trained managers and persuasive spokesmen for Wall Street.
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FROM TOWPATH TO AIRWAY
543
ROUSES POINT
MALONE
RUT
BUT & NYC
RUT
PLATTSBURGHO
OGDENSBURG
WATERTOWN
VERMONT
LAKE ONTARIO
WHITEHALL
NYC
ME
ROCHESTER
ONEIDA
UTICA
SARATOGA SPRINGS
AUBURN
BUFFAL
GENEVA
SCHENECTADY
TROY
LAKE ERIE
ALBANY
DL&W
MASS.
EONTA
ITHACA
CHATHAM
SIDNEY
HUDSON
Ye
DAN
IKEEPSIE
GREENPORT
LONG ISLAND SOUND
IONTAUK
PORT
JEFFERSON
MIDE
CONN.
DL&W
N.J.
AMAI
ATLANTIC OCEAN
YONKE
NEW YORK CITY
ATLANTIC OCEAN
Map 13. Main railroad lines of New York State today.
D & H-Delaware and Hudson; DL & W-Delaware, Lackawanna and Western; ERIE-Erie; LI-Long Island; LV-Lehigh Valley; NYC-New York Central; NYNH & H-New York, New Haven and Hartford; NYO-New York, Ontario and Western; PRR-Pennsylvania; RUT-Rutland
Two companies-the New York Central and the Erie-were well estab- lished by 1860, but there remained the task of constructing the network of capillary lines needed to nourish the main arteries, to stimulate in- dustry and trade in small and more remote towns, and to encourage com- mercial agriculture in the isolated counties of the state. By 1900 over 5,400 miles of new track were added to the 2,682 miles constructed by 1860.
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