II. NUMBER AND MEMBERSHIP. 1 1. INTERNATIONAL ORGANIZATIONS. 1 The relationship between local unions and international unions with which, in most cases, they are affiliated, is so intimate that any adequate consideration of the locals in Massachusetts must include at least a brief statement relative to the number and aggregate membership of the locals in Massachusetts affiliated with the respective international unions. A careful canvass 2 of the international unions having one or more affiliated locals in the United States showed that there were 150 organizations of this character, of which number 117, or 78.0 per cent, were represented by at least one affiliated local in Massachusetts, and that the aggregate number of local unions in the United States was approximately 29,000, of which number 1,403,3 or about 4.8 per cent, were in Massachusetts. According to a report by the New York State Bureau of Labor, the aggregate trade union membership in the United States in 1913 was 2,604,701,4 and accepting this aggregate to be approximately correct, we find that Massachusetts, with 241,726 trade unionists at the close of the year, furnished approximately 9.3 per cent of the aggregate number in the United States. A large majority of the international unions in the United States are affiliated with the American Federation of Labor. It is therefore important that a statement be made with reference to the number and membership of the local organizations directly or indirectly affiliated with this Federation. Of the 150 internationals having affiliated locals in Massachusetts, 109, or 72.7 per cent, were affiliated with the American Federation of Labor, and of these 109 internationals, 83, or 76.1 per cent, were represented by at least one local in Massachusetts. The total number of local labor organizations in Massachusetts affiliated with the Federation (either directly or through the 83 affiliated internationals which had one or more chartered locals in the State) was 1,093, or 77.9 per cent of the 1,403 locals in the State, while the aggregate number 1 For definitions and usage of terms in this and other sections of this report, see Appendix, pages 60 and 61. 2 For the statistics in detail, see Table 1 on pages 47 to 50. 3 Of this number 44 were directly affiliated with the American Federation of Labor and 28 were independent, i.e., were not affiliated with any international organization. No effort was made by this Bureau to ascertain at first hand the aggregate membership of all unions affiliated with each international as it was not deemed advisable to duplicate the work of the New York Bureau of Labor Statistics in compiling information of this character. See article on "International Trade Union Statistics" in New York, Labor Bulletin No. 67, November, 1914. of organized wage-earners in Massachusetts directly or indirectly affiliated with the Federation was 177,723, or 73.5 per cent of the 241,726 organized trade unionists in the State. The aggregate membership of the American Federation of Labor "paidup and reported" in September, 1913, was 2,054,526.1 Using this aggregate as a basis it is found that Massachusetts, with 177,723 trade union members directly or indirectly affiliated with the Federation (at the close of the year), furnished approximately 8.6 per cent of the aggregate membership of the Federation. National and International Unions Represented by over Five Thousand Members in Massachusetts at the Close of 1913. Teamsters, Chauffeurs, Stallemen, and Helpers of America, National There were 13 internationals, each of which was represented in Massachusetts by affiliated locals having an aggregate membership of over 5,000 members. These internationals are listed in the table on this page in the order of their aggregate membership, and for each organization the number of affiliated locals in the United States and in Massachusetts, 1 See "Report of the Proceedings of the Thirty-third Annual Convention of the American Federation of Labor," page 41. 2 In addition to the organizations having over 30 locals in Massachusetts listed in this table, there were four others each having over 30 locals in this State, but the affiliated membership of each of which was less than 5,000. The totals for this organization include also the corresponding data for the National Industrial Union of Textile Workers which forms a constituent part of the Industrial Workers of the World. 4 Number confidential. and the aggregate membership of affiliated locals in Massachusetts, are also shown. The Boot and Shoe Workers Union, with an affiliated membership of 28,663, ranked first in point of membership, followed in order by the United Brotherhood of Carpenters and Joiners of America, with 19,966 members, and the Amalgamated Association of Street and Electric Railway Employees of America, with 14,312, while each of ten other organizations were represented by over 5,000 members in affiliated locals in Massachusetts. With reference to the number of affiliated locals in the State it should be pointed out that the relative rank of the several organizations on the basis of number of affiliated locals by no means corresponds with their rank on the basis of aggregate membership. Thus the United Brotherhood of Carpenters and Joiners of America, with 154 locals in Massachusetts, ranked first with respect to number of locals in this State, the Boot and Shoe Workers ranked second with 71 locals, and the Brotherhood of Painters, Decorators and Paperhangers of America, with 67 locals, ranked third. In addition to these three organizations mentioned there were seven others (four of which are not listed in the above table) which had over 30 affiliated locals in the State. For the purpose of comparison with the number of locals in Massachusetts, the corresponding number of locals in the United States is also shown in the table, and it is of interest to note the proportionate representation in Massachusetts as indicated by the number of locals affiliated with the several internationals listed, ranging as high as 52 per cent in the case of the United Shoe Workers of America, and 43 per cent in the case of the Boot and Shoe Workers Union. In these two cases the percentage is naturally high for the reason that a considerable portion. of the boot and shoe manufacturing establishments in the United States are located in this State. The number of locals as classified under each occupation elsewhere in this report does not represent invariably the number of locals in Massachusetts affiliated with any international having jurisdiction over that occupation, for in some cases one or more of these internationals conflict in their jurisdiction over the same occupation or group of occupations, while in other cases several closely related occupations may be under the jurisdiction of a single international. Thus it will be found that the number of unions classified under the several internationals in the table on page 12 and in Table 1 on pages 47 to 50, will not be in full agreement with the number of unions classified under the several occupations in Table 4 on pages 52 and 53. 2. DELEGATE ORGANIZATIONS. A. INTRODUCTORY. While affiliated with their respective international organizations, nearly all of the local organizations in Massachusetts are at the same time affiliated with what this Bureau has found convenient to designate as "delegate organizations," which have no direct membership but consist merely of "delegates" or "representatives" from groups of local unions. These organizations have for convenience been grouped under three classes: (A) State, District, and Trades Councils; (B) Central Labor Unions; and (C) Local Trades Councils. B. STATE, DISTRICT, AND TRADES COUNCILS. The total number of organizations included in this group 2 at the close of 1913 was 71 as compared with a total of 69 at the close of 1912. These 71 organizations included 11 State Branches, comprising locals affiliated with various internationals; seven New England District Councils having affiliated locals in Massachusetts; 25 Railway Adjustment Committees, Grievance Committees, and Conference Boards; and 28 District Trades Councils (including carpenters, 11; painters, four; machinists, three; and others, 10). The number under each class in 1913 varied but little from that in 1912. The only variations were a decrease of two in the number of New England District Councils, and an increase of three in the number of miscellaneous District Trades Councils. The organizations of this character having at least 25 affiliated organizations in Massachusetts were: The Massachusetts State Branch of the American Federation of Labor which at the close of the year represented 31 central labor unions and 337 local unions; the Massachusetts State Council, United Brotherhood of Carpenters and Joiners, with 153 locals; the Grand Council of Carpenters of Eastern Massachusetts, with 64 local unions and 6 Local District Councils; the Massachusetts State Conference of Bricklayers, Masons and Plasterers, with 45 locals; the Massachusetts State Conference of Painters, Decorators, and Paperhangers, with 31 locals; and the International Association of Machinists: District Lodge No. 19, with 30 locals, of which 25 were in Massachusetts. 1 See definition on page 60. ? For a comparative statement for the years 1908-1913, see Table 2 on page 50. C. CENTRAL LABOR UNIONS. The number of central labor unions in Massachusetts at the close of 1913 was 35 as compared with 33 in 1912, 35 in 1911, 35 in 1910, 33 in 1909, and 33 in 1908. There was one such body in each of 25 cities and ten towns. In eight cities there was no organization of this character, namely, Beverly, Everett, Medford, Melrose, Newburyport, Newton, Waltham, and Woburn. During the year two new central labor unions were organized, one in Marlborough and the other in Montague (Millers Falls), and no central labor unions were disbanded. The aggregate number of local unions (including a few duplications) affiliated with the 35 central labor unions in Massachusetts was 760. There were fourteen central labor unions each of which had 20 or more affiliated locals as follows: Boston, 155; Springfield, 58; Worcester, 46; Brockton, 41; Lowell, 34; Holyoke, 31; New Bedford, 30; Lynn, 29; Lawrence, 28; Fall River, 26; Haverhill, 25; North Adams, 23; Cambridge, 22, and Taunton 21; making a total of 569 locals affiliated with these 14 central labor unions. The number of locals affiliated with the remaining 21 central labor unions was 191. D. LOCAL TRADES COUNCILS. Within this group 2 there were 56 organizations at the close of 1913 as compared with 63 at the close of 1912. Among these 56 organizations there were 10 carpenters' district councils, nine building trades councils or sections, seven allied printing trades councils, six joint shoe councils, three textile councils, and 21 other local trades councils. Of these 56 organizations 21 were in Boston, five in Springfield; four each in Brockton and Lynn; three each in Lowell, New Bedford, and Worcester; two each in Fall River, Holyoke and Lawrence; and one each in Haverhill, North Adams, Pittsfield, Quincy, Salem, Taunton, and Whitman. The organizations of this character were confined to these 17 localities, all of which are cities, except Whitman. In each of these 17 localities, except Whitman, there was also a central labor union. (See Section C preceding, relative to Central Labor Unions.) 1 While these cities had no central labor union, at least one of the local unions in each of these cities was affiliated with a central labor union in a neighboring city. ? For a comparative statement in detail for the years 1908-1913, see Table 2 on page 50. |