3. LOCAL TRADE UNIONS.

A. INTRODUCTORY.

In this report statistics are presented showing the number of labor organizations in Massachusetts at the close of each of the six years, 1908 to 1913, also, for the close of 1912 and 1913, the number and membership of locals in the leading cities and towns, the number and membership of local unions classified by occupations and by industries, and the number of women in these organizations classified by occupations.1

In the following table is shown the total number of local unions in Massachusetts at the close of each of the six years, 1908 to 1913, together with additional returns showing by sex the aggregate membership reported on corresponding dates.

Number and Membership of Local Trade Unions at the Close of Each Year Specified.

The membership of the 1,403 local unions in the Commonwealth at the close of 1913 was 241,726 as compared with a membership of 236,768 of the 1,361 local unions in existence at the close of 1912. The net increase in the membership during the year was 4,958 members, or 2.1 per cent. The number of new local unions organized during the year 1913 was 147 and the number which disbanded or combined with

1 The detailed tables will be found on pages 51 to 54 and are numbered respectively 3, 4, 5, and 6.

In the report for 1908 the number of local unions for that year was given as 1,256. This total included 13 unions which are not included in the totals for the other four years in the table, and which were not, strictly speaking, labor organizations, but rather educational and beneficial organizations. The totals for 1908 have, accordingly, been corrected as above in order that the totals for the several years may be strictly comparable.

* Does not include the membership of 83 local unions which failed to report.

4 Does not include the membership of 59 local unions which failed to report. 5 With reference to this increase see pages 6 to 8.

some existing local union was 105, making a net increase of 42 locals during the year, or 3.1 per cent. The average membership of the 1,403 local organizations in existence at the close of 1913 was 172.3 as compared with an average membership of 174.0 at the close of 1912. This decrease in average membership is due principally, if not entirely, to the marked decrease in the membership of a few unions of Industrial Workers of the World which had an exceptionally large membership at the close

of 1912.

The distribution of unions by cities and by towns has remained fairly constant during the six-year period, 1908-1913. In 1913, 21.7 per cent of the local unions were located in Boston, 57.3 per cent in the 32 other cities, and 21.0 per cent in the towns. There was a net gain of 16 unions in Boston during the year 1913, a net gain of 11 unions in the 32 other cities, and a net gain of 15 unions in the towns of the State.

C. DISTRIBUTION OF LOCAL UNIONS BY MUNICIPALITIES.

A classification of local organizations by cities and towns is a rather essential one because the unit sphere of union activity is the local community, whether that be a city, a town, or a section of a city or town. The preparation of such a classification is no simple task for the reason that in many instances a so-called "local organization" may have jurisdiction over one or more adjoining cities or towns, or, in the case of railroad organizations, over even an entire railroad system. In those instances where the jurisdiction of an organization covers more than one city or town the Bureau has classified such organization under that city or town in which it maintains its headquarters, the membership of such organization being largely confined to the locality in which its headquarters are located. The total membership of organizations classified under Boston, for example, is probably in excess of the actual number of organized workingmen who reside in Boston because, for convenience, certain residents of neighboring localities may be members of an organization having its headquarters in Boston. In the case of certain so-called local railroad organizations the membership may include employees from even distant points on the particular railroad system represented; nevertheless, the point of departure is the essential consideration, and it is partly for this reason that no attempt has been made to determine the actual residence of the members of such unions. Accurate showing on the latter basis would obviously be very difficult, rendering it necessary for the Bureau to ascertain the actual place of residence of each member of each local organization in the State, or, at least to secure a

statement in detail from each organization as to the residence of its members, a task which the value of the information would hardly justify. Boston far out-ranked all other cities both with respect to the number of unions and their aggregate membership, having 305 local unions at the close of 1913 with an aggregate membership of 96,621. The cities having 25 or more local unions were: Boston, 305; Worcester, 69; Springfield, 68; Lynn, 59; Lowell, 56; Brockton, 51; Holyoke, 45; Lawrence, 44; New Bedford, 38; Fall River, 37; Haverhill, 32; Salem, 32; Fitchburg, 29; Taunton, 29; and Quincy, 25.

The cities represented by a membership of over 2,500 were as follows: Boston, 96,621; Brockton, 16,239; Lynn, 13,645; Lawrence, 10,450; Fall River, 10,054; New Bedford, 9,078; Springfield, 8,715; Worcester, 8,568; Lowell, 6,435; Haverhill, 5,999; Holyoke, 4,152; Salem, 3,890; Cambridge, 2,728; and Quincy, 2,591.

At the close of 1913, 131 municipalities in the State were represented by at least one local trade union, there being at least one local in each of the 33 cities and in each of 98 of the 320 towns, leaving 222 towns not so represented. The municipalities represented at the close of 1913 were the same as in 1912, with the exception of Huntington and Warren, which were represented in 1912 but not in 1913, and Lexington and Westwood, which were represented in 1913 but not in 1912.

A comparison of the number of the local trade unions in these 131 localities at the close of 1913 with corresponding data for 1912 shows that in 71 localities there was no change in the number of local unions; in 36 localities there was an increase (Lexington and Westwood having had no locals in 1912); and in 24 localities there was a decrease (Huntington and Warren having no locals in 1913). There was a net increase in the number of unions in each of the following localities: Boston, 16;1 Lowell and Worcester, five each; Brockton and New Bedford, four each; Holyoke, Springfield, and Winchester, three each; Framingham, Greenfield, and Taunton, two each; and in 25 other localities, one each. The localities in which there was a net decrease in the number of local unions were the following: North Adams, four; Quincy, three; Adams, Chicopee, Haverhill, Lawrence, and Pittsfield, two each; and in 17 other localities, one each.

In each of 69 of the 1332 municipalities having one or more local unions in 1912 or 1913, there was a net increase in union membership, aggregating 18,382; in each of the 55 localities there was a net decrease,

1 Hyde Park (town) became annexed to Boston, January 1, 1912. The statistics for Boston presented in this report, both for 1912 and 1913, include Hyde Park.

2 Includes two municipalities which were represented by one union each in 1912, but by no union in 1913.

aggregating 13,424; while in nine localities the union membership remained unchanged. The net increase in union membership was 4,958. The localities showing increases of more than 500 union members were: Boston, 8,788; Fall River, 2,706; Worcester, 1,473; Lowell, 1,260; and Brockton, 699. The localities showing decreases1 of more than 500 members were: Lawrence, 6,877; Chicopee, 700; Lynn, 631; Adams, 553; Springfield, 539; and Haverhill, 526.

D. COMPARISONS BY OCCUPATIONS AND INDUSTRIES.
(a) Occupations.2

It is somewhat difficult to classify local unions on the basis of occupations or of industries because the locals are not always organized strictly on an occupational or industrial basis, consequently, it is necessary in some cases to classify a particular union under that occupation or industry in which the greater portion of its members may be employed or to combine several occupations under one title in those cases where the members of the local union are not all employed in the same occupation. Thus, in the case of certain unions of boot and shoe workers known as "mixed unions", the membership may consist of lasters, stitchers, cutters, and others in diversified branches of the work of boot and shoe manufacturing. Such mixed unions are more apt to be found in those localities in which there are not a sufficiently large number in any single branch of the trade to justify the formation of separate unions. Owing to these difficulties in classification it has not been possible to present the returns with that degree of detail or exactness in classification that might be possible were the returns supplied by the individual as the unit of investigation, as in the case of a census. Nevertheless, the returns by occupations and industries are presented sufficiently in detail to serve the present purpose of comparison.

The local unions for the most part are organized on the basis of specific occupations or crafts rather than on the basis of industries. The occupations in which there were 25 or more unions at the close of 1913 were, in the order of number of unions: Carpenters, 154; boot and shoe workers, 108; painters, decorators, and paperhangers, 68; textile workers, 67; bricklayers, masons, and plasterers, 49; teamsters, chauffeurs, and stablemen, 42; plumbers, steamfitters, and gasfitters, 42; municipal employees, 41; machinists, 37; barbers, 35; molders and coremakers, 29;

1 In Lawrence, Chicopee, and Haverhill the losses in membership were principally from local unions affiliated with the Industrial Workers of the World.

For information in detail by occupations, see Table 4 on page 52.

musicians, 28; bartenders, 27; retail clerks, 27; and street and electric railway employees, 26. In the following occupations there was a net increase of five or more unions in 1913 as compared with 1912 as follows: Boot and shoe workers, six unions; municipal employees, six unions; retail clerks, six unions; and painters, decorators, and paperhangers, five unions. There was a decrease of five in the number of unions of boilermakers and of textile workers.

The occupation comprising the largest number of organized workingmen in 1913 was boot and shoe making, including 42,204 organized employees in 108 local unions and constituting 17.5 per cent of the aggregate membership of all local trade unions in the State. Textile workers ranked second with a total membership of 25,028, or 10.4 per cent of the aggregate membership of all local trade unions in the State, followed in order of membership by carpenters, 19,966; street and electric railway employees, 14,312; teamsters, chauffeurs, stablemen, etc., 9,879; garment workers, 9,020; painters, decorators, and paperhangers, 6,409; bricklayers, masons, and plasterers, 5,670; hod carriers and building laborers, 5,368; musicians, 5,318; municipal employees, 5,168; machinists, 4,761; railroad trainmen, 4,429; bartenders, 3,811; cigarmakers, 3,517; plumbers, steamfitters, and gasfitters, 3,426; electrical workers, 3,194;1 molders and coremakers, 2,976; compositors, 2,861; stationary firemen, 2,821; and barbers, 2,710.

Comparison of the returns of membership for 1913 with those for 1912 indicates that in 37 of the 56 occupations specified there was an increase in the number of organized workingmen; in 18 there was a decrease, while in one occupation there was no change in the number of organized employees. The increases of more than 1,000 members were as follows: Garment workers, 3,421; street and electric railway employees, 1,445; carpenters and joiners, 1,295; and electrical workers, 1,272.1 Two occupations showed decreases of more than 1,000 members as follows: Textile workers, 6,928,2 and boiler makers, 1,256.

(b) Industries.3

Of the 1,403 local unions in all industries 513, or 36.6 per cent, are classified under manufacturing; 385, or 27.4 per cent, under building; 243, or 17.3 per cent, under transportation; 78 under domestic and

1 Not including telephone operators.

2 This decrease consisted principally of members of local unions affiliated with the Industrial Workers of the World.

For a tabulation of the number and membership of local unions by industries, see Table 5 on page 53. The classification of industries as used in this report is identical with that used in the report for 1912, and is based on the classifications adopted by the United States Bureau of the Census for its statistics of Population and Manufactures.