Chapter III: Part 3

Is there a man of you who would put his money in the savings bank and leave it there for one year even, unless he was sure to get at least four per cent. interest? Otherwise you would say that the savings bank was trying to cheat you out of a proper return on your money.

But for fourteen years, to my knowledge--how much longer I do not know--the common stockholders have gotten not one cent out of this company. I just want you to put that in your pipes and smoke it, and see if it tallies with what you have heard about the stockholders oppressing you and trying to get the better of you. That does not sound like oppression, like trying to get the best of the bargain!

And you cannot expect that any one of the partners will remain indefinitely in this or any other corporation if he does not get a fair share of the earnings, with the others. Capital is entitled to a fair return, just the same as labor is.

Would you continue working in some mining camp for even a week, much less a month, a year, or fourteen years, without pay? Of course you would not. You would go to Pennsylvania, Indiana, Ohio--anywhere else on God’s earth where you could get a fair return for your work.

Now, the stockholders have been pretty patient all this time; they have taken a lot of abuse because people have not told the truth.

I think if we had all gotten together, as we have to-day, months and years ago, and discussed these questions, and the facts had been fairly presented, that there is not a man in this room but who would have said:

“That is not a square deal, and in so far as I have anything to do with this company, whether I am digging coal, driving mules, or sitting in an office directing operations--whatever my position, I will do what I can to see to it that every last man in this big family here gets a square deal.”

Now, I am not here to seek sympathy for the common stockholders, but I just want to point out to you what you ought to know: that capital will not stay indefinitely where it does not get proper recognition and a reasonable return.

And not one man in this room can afford to have the capital invested in the mines of the Colorado Fuel and Iron Company become discouraged and withdraw, because as capital gets discouraged and withdraws, work falls off, mines are closed, wages go down, men are thrown out of employment, and the whole enterprise is endangered, and all of these things may result because only three of the four sides in the corporation have received consideration.

(_Interruption by Mr. Ben Beach, superintendent of Coal Creek mine_:)

“Mr. Rockefeller, I wonder whether I may say a word right here?

“Mr. Rockefeller and Fellow Workmen: What Mr. Rockefeller has stated in regard to the common stock I can vouch for, for about eight years ago I bought some common stock in the C. F. & I. Co. and I have been one of those sorry men because I never got any returns for it.”

Mr. Rockefeller: That is testimony that comes directly home. I have been expecting to hear such expressions from the stockholders. I have been expecting that there would be criticism, and just criticism, from men, like our friend here, who have had no dividends on their stock all these years. They may well say:

“What right have you to go on spending money for club houses, bath houses and fences, for this improvement in the camps, or that, simply to add to the comfort of the men, when we common stockholders have never gotten a cent?” That is just the way the stockholders may well feel. I am glad you brought up that point, Mr. Beach.

I want to show you another thing in connection with this table, this corporation with its four sides, working harmoniously, and with earnings piling up. When any one side says to itself:

“I am not satisfied with my fair portion; I am going to grab all I can and let the others take care of themselves,” and thereupon commences to reach up and lay hold of more than its fair share of the earnings, then it happens that the earnings commence to fall off, there is trouble and nothing is left to divide.

(_At this point, Mr. Rockefeller raised one of the legs of the table, thereby tilting it and causing the coins piled upon it to slip off._)

There is still another thing I want to speak of in regard to this table. Here is one of the four parties in the corporation who says:

“I am tired of doing my share, holding up my end of the game. We wage-earners are tired of this thing, we don’t like to carry our fair share of the burden, let us try to get all we can out of the company and put in just as little as we can. Let us do each day just as little work as we can and hold the job down.”

Now, you know there are men going over this country from one end to the other who are saying to the workmen of the country:

“Your game is to get the shortest possible working day you can, to do the least possible work that you can get away with and not lose your job, and to get just as much as you can for what little you do.”

Any man who preaches that doctrine, instead of being your friend, is your deadliest enemy, because see what happens. Here is the side of Labor; it says:

“We will get out from underneath, we won’t work so hard; we will do just as little as we can.”

And Labor’s corner begins to drop down (_lowering the corner of the table_), the earnings fall off (_coins slip off_) and there is nothing left for anyone (_the table is bare_).

Men, only when every man connected with that square corporation which is on the level, is interested, unselfishly, not in what he can get out of the corporation, but what he can put into it for the benefit of every man in the concern, will that man himself get the most out of it.

And I think there is no one thing that threatens greater harm to the interests of the workingmen of this country than that pernicious, that wicked, that false doctrine, that a man should do just as little work in a day as he possibly can, and just as poor work as he possibly can, and hold on to his job.

We see, then, what this company ought to be, what any corporation ought to be: a concern that is square, and always on the level, with every man doing his part. You do not need to take my word for it, you see from the illustration of the table that the interest of every man is sacrificed when any other principle governs.

Now--the problem which lies before the Colorado Fuel and Iron Company is to so interrelate the different elements in the company that the best interests of all will constantly be conserved, and the wage-earners, seeing the situation as it is here shown, must say and will say--because they are square men:

“We only want a square deal; we only want what is our fair proportion of return from this corporation; we will do our best to make it a success because we know that our success is dependent upon the success of all our partners.”

The officers must say:

“Our interest is to have every man that works with us realize that we are his friends, not his enemies; that there is no reasonable thing that he may want to talk about which we will not gladly discuss with him and explain.”

The directors must, on their part, give their best energies and efforts to the devising of policies which will be in the interest of all. The common stockholders must be patient yet awhile as they look at that empty table from which the rest of you have rightly taken your earnings, and they will be patient, I am sure, if they feel that all of the other elements in the company are earnestly coöperating to bring about the highest success of each and to secure a fair deal all around.

This meeting has been called to-day for the purpose of seeing whether we can work out and agree upon, among ourselves here, some plan which will accomplish what I feel sure we all want to accomplish. I have been asked to explain the plan which is up for our consideration.

I may say, men, that for years this great problem of Labor and Capital and of corporate relationships has engaged my earnest attention and study, while for the last eighteen months I have spent more of my time on the particular problems which confront this company than I have put on any other one interest with which I am related.

I have talked with all of the men whom I could get in touch with who have had experience with or have studied these vital questions. I have conferred with experts, and I have tried in every way to get the best information I could, looking toward the working out of some plan which would accomplish the result we are all striving to attain.

Nearly a year ago the officers of the company, after having studied this question with us in New York, introduced, as you know, the beginning of such a plan, namely, the selection by the men at each camp of duly chosen representatives, to confer with the officers of the company in regard to matters of common interest.

That was the beginning, and Mr. Welborn, in discussing the plan with you men, told you that it was only the beginning, that as rapidly as it became clear what further steps should be taken in order to conserve the common interest, those steps would be jointly discussed and introduced as soon as agreed upon. And so, in conjunction with Mr. Welborn and other able advisers, we have worked out a further development of the plan adopted last fall.

Then I said to myself: nothing shall be said about this plan, nor will we undertake to complete it until I have myself seen every mining camp operated by the company.

And now I have visited every camp, with the exception of those on the western slope, and lack of time alone has prevented my getting over there to see you men.

I have gone, as you know, to every camp in the southern fields, have talked privately with every superintendent, except one who was away, and with all of the representatives at each camp with the exception of some two or three who were not available at the time; I have gone into scores of your homes and I met your wives and children, and have seen how you live; I have looked at your gardens, and in camps where fences were only recently built have seen how eagerly you have planted gardens the moment opportunity was afforded, and how quickly you have gotten the grass to grow, also flowers and vegetables, and how the interest in your homes has thereby been increased.

I inquired specifically about the water supply at each camp; I went down into several of the mines and talked with hundreds of the miners; I looked into the schools, talked with the teachers, inquired what educational advantages your children were getting.

I asked what opportunities you men, my partners, had for getting together socially, and I visited some of your club houses and saw plans for others. I went into your wash houses and talked with the men before and after bathing.

As you know, we have pretty nearly slept together--it has been reported that I slept in one of your nightshirts--I would have been proud had the report been true.

If any man could have gone more carefully, more thoroughly, into the working and living conditions that affect you, my partners, I should be glad to have had him make me suggestions as to what further I might have done.

Now, it was only after that careful and exhaustive personal study that I was willing to go on with the plan of representation and undertake to complete it for presentation to you. And, frankly, every waking moment since I left you men in the Fremont district last Saturday, practically every daylight hour of this last week has been spent with the officers of this company in constant, careful, earnest thought looking toward the development of such a plan as would serve our common interest in the best possible way.

I have made a very lengthy introduction, and will now proceed to the explanation of the plan. I shall be glad if Mr. Welborn, Mr. Weitzel, Mr. Matteson, or Mr. King, whose assistance has been of the greatest value in working out this plan, will correct me as I go along in case I make any mistake or omit any features.

(_Mr. Rockefeller then explained the plan in detail, calling attention to the fact that if it met with the approval of the representatives and officers in the meeting, together with an agreement respecting wages, working and living conditions, both would be submitted on the one hand to a vote of the men in the camps, and on the other to the directors of the company, and if then approved, the agreement would be signed and become binding until January 1, 1918. Mr. Rockefeller went on to say:_)

I want to stay in Colorado until we have worked out some plan that we all agree is the best thing for us all, because there is just one thing that no man in this company can ever afford to have happen again, be he stockholder, officer, or employee, or whatever his position, and that is, another strike.

I know we are all agreed about that, every last man of us, and I propose to stay here if it takes a year, until we have worked out among ourselves, right in our own family, some plan that we all believe is going to prevent any more disturbances, any more interruption of the successful operation of this great company in which we are all interested.

I have been hoping that the votes in all the camps could be taken early next week, so that we would know without delay what the spirit and wish of the men and the directors is. I speak of this point so that in explaining the matter to the men in your camps you representatives will make it clear to them why we are proceeding a little more rapidly than we would if I lived here all the time, and if I was not so desirous of seeing some agreement reached before I go away.

There will be a meeting of the Board of Directors on Monday next, and if this meeting should accept this plan and recommend its adoption, the Board will act on that day. I should hope that meetings could be held in the various camps on Monday, Tuesday and Wednesday. You men can explain the plan to the men in the camps privately and in little groups so that they will be ready to consider it fully and then vote on it by the middle or toward the latter part of next week.

FOOTNOTE:

[5] Address at the joint meeting of the officers and representatives of the employees of the Colorado Fuel and Iron Company, Pueblo, October 2, 1915.

VI

TO THE PEOPLE OF COLORADO[6]

Of all the many cordial receptions which have been accorded me since I was so fortunate as to enter your hospitable State, none has been more gratifying or more deeply appreciated than the one which you citizens of Denver have to-day tendered me. And I count it a most gratifying climax to my visit to Colorado that I should have this opportunity of meeting so splendid a gathering of the representative business men and citizens of this fair State.

As I have traveled about Colorado the past three weeks I have been charmed with the beauty and grandeur of the scenery; I have been inspired by the invigorating climate, the clear air, the blue sky. I have been impressed with the fertility of your soil, with the vast extent and richness of your mineral wealth. But above all, I have been captivated by the cordiality of your people.

And so I am very happy to have this opportunity to-day of expressing to you, and through you to the people of Colorado, my deep appreciation of the many kindnesses and courtesies which have been shown me during my stay among you.

These I have accepted as intended partially for myself, but largely for my father, whose representative I am, and in whose name as well as my own I thank you.

My father has been for many years a good friend of the people and State of Colorado. His friendship for you, his belief in you, his confidence in the future of this State, have been clearly shown by his having put considerable sums of money into the steel and coal industries of the State through his investments in the Colorado Fuel and Iron Company; and, as many of you know, during the fourteen years since he made his first investment in that company, except for one payment made on the preferred stock on account of an accumulation of dividends, there has not come back to him or the common stockholders one single cent of return.

And yet my father has not lost his faith in the State of Colorado nor in the people of Colorado; he believes in you, and the fact that his interest in this company continues to be a very substantial one is a sure proof of his attitude.

I wish very much that he were here to-day himself. I have often had that wish as I have gone among you during these weeks.

Some of the papers have mentioned my democratic spirit. If my father had been among you as I have been, no comment in regard to my attitude would have been made, for of all men he is most democratic and approachable, as hundreds of those who know him will testify, and in that atmosphere of democracy I have been reared. Born and brought up in the country, at an early age he learned what hard work meant.

When his period of schooling had been completed he went into active business for himself, and during the many years following, when he was actively engaged in business, he was constantly in close personal touch with the working classes, among whom he found many of his best and truest friends.

At his country place on the Hudson there are constantly employed several hundred men of different nationalities; many of these employees he knows by name; he is constantly mingling with them in their work, interested in their progress and in their home life, and it is not an infrequent sight, at the close of the day’s work, to see him returning home in his automobile with half a dozen or a dozen Italian and Hungarian workingmen crowded about him on the seats and standing on the running board as he gives them a lift on their way home.

When motoring about the country he may frequently be found talking with a group of men at the country store in a little village, and when he comes upon school children returning from their school he delights to load as many of them into his automobile as possible and give them a ride on their way.

I recall not long since the death of a colored teamster who had for some years been in my father’s employ. My father was among the first to visit the bereaved family in their humble home above the work stable, that he might express his sympathy with them in their sorrow, and as he stood at the grave his tears were mingled with the tears of the other mourners as he paid his last tribute of respect to a faithful employee and a true friend.

When called as a witness in New York by the Industrial Relations Commission last winter, my father stated very clearly his attitude toward workingmen.

Briefly, these were the three points that he made:

That he believed that Labor and Capital were partners, not enemies.

That in any industry with which he was connected he would gladly welcome the workers as stockholders, and further:

That it would be his wish that those who work with their hands be given representation upon the Board of Directors, so that they might come to have a closer knowledge of the problems with which the management of the corporation is confronted.

The word “fear” is not found in my father’s vocabulary, nor does he know what the sensation is, and yet he has the gentleness and the tenderness of a woman.

Although he has been accustomed to think in world terms in the development of the business and philanthropic enterprises to which his life has been devoted, there is no person in his household too humble to receive his frequent kindly and personal thought.

Criticized, maligned, and condemned these many years, not only for his business success achieved through his ability to gain the confidence and coöperation of men, to bring all parties into harmony and to effect economies in every possible way, but also because of his philanthropic endeavors, there is still not the slightest trace of bitterness in his character and he holds in his heart nothing but good-will toward every man.

And if, in their kindness of heart, the people of Colorado have found in me anything that may have seemed admirable, that, and whatever else I am or may be, I owe to my sainted mother and my honored father, whose training and example I regard as a priceless heritage. And so again I say I wish that my father were here that he might meet you men personally and be confirmed in the view which he has held during past months of unrest and conflict, to the effect that many of the evil and censorious reports which have been spread about the country in regard to this great State and its people are untrue; that you, on the other hand, coming to know him, might realize the injustice and the cruelty of the things that have been said and written about him during these many years.

And again, in his absence, on his behalf, as well as for myself, I thank you for your kindness and the evidences of your friendship to him and to me, which have been countless during these days of my happy residence among you.

There has been so much said with regard to the views which my father and I have held and do hold in regard to the organization of labor, and also in regard to the relations which should exist between the various parties in any company or corporation, that it is perhaps not unfitting for me to state in a few words just what those views are.

The position I took when called before the Subcommittee of Mines and Mining of the House of Representatives in Washington two years ago, in regard to the right of every American workingman to work for whom he pleased and upon such terms as he pleased, has been frequently misunderstood and misrepresented.

It has been construed as indicating that my father and I were not only opposed to the organization of labor, but that we were persistently and continually fighting it. No such inference is correct, for absolutely the contrary is the fact.

I can, perhaps, present in the briefest and clearest way the views which we hold on these two subjects by referring to several paragraphs from a statement which I read before the Industrial Relations Commission in New York last January:

“First, with reference to my attitude toward labor unions: I believe it to be just as proper and advantageous for labor to associate itself into organized groups for the advancement of its legitimate interests, as for capital to combine for the same object.

“Such associations of labor manifest themselves in promoting collective bargaining, in an effort to secure better working and living conditions, in providing machinery whereby grievances may easily and without prejudice to the individual be taken up with the management. Sometimes they provide benefit features, sometimes they seek to increase wages; but whatever their specific purpose, so long as it is to promote the well-being of the employees, having always due regard for the just interests of the employer and the public, leaving every worker free to associate himself with such groups or to work independently, as he may choose--I favor them most heartily.

“Combinations of capital are sometimes conducted in an unworthy manner contrary to law and in disregard of the interest both of labor and the public. Such combinations cannot be too strongly condemned nor too vigorously dealt with.

“Although combinations of this kind are the exception, such publicity is generally given to their unsocial acts that all combinations of capital, however rightly managed or broadly beneficent, are thereby brought under suspicion.

“Likewise, it sometimes happens that combinations of labor are conducted without just regard for the rights of the employer or the public, and methods and practices adopted which, because unworthy or unlawful, are deserving of public censure. Such organizations of labor bring discredit and suspicion upon other organizations which are legitimate and useful, just as is the case with improper combinations of capital, and they should be similarly dealt with.

“I should be the last, however, to allow the occasional failure in the working of the principle of the organization of labor to prejudice me against the principle itself, for in that principle I strongly believe.

“In the further development of the organization of labor and of large business, the public interest, as well as the interest of Labor and Capital alike, will, it seems to me, be best advanced by whatever stimulates every man to do the best work of which he is capable; by a fuller recognition of the common interest of employers and employed; and by an earnest effort to dispel distrust and hatred and to promote good-will.

“I believe that the ultimate object of all activities in a republic should be the development of the manhood of its citizens; that such manhood can be developed to the fullest degree only under conditions of freedom for the individual, and that industrial enterprises can and should be conducted in accordance with these principles.

“I believe that a prime consideration in the carrying on of industry should be the well-being of the men and women engaged in it, and that the soundest industrial policy is that which has constantly in mind the welfare of the employees as well as the making of profits, and which, when the necessity arises, subordinates profits to welfare.

“A business to be successful must not only provide to labor remunerative employment under proper working conditions, but it must also render useful service to the community and earn a fair return on the money invested.

“The adoption of any policy toward labor, however favorable it may seem, which results in the bankruptcy of the corporation and the discontinuance of its work, is as injurious to labor which is thrown out of employment, as it is to the public which loses the services of the enterprise, and to the stockholders whose capital is impaired.

“I believe it to be the duty of every citizen to do all within his power to improve the conditions under which men work and live. I believe that that man renders the greatest social service who so coöperates in the organization of industry as to afford to the largest number of men the greatest opportunity for self-development, and the enjoyment by every man of those benefits which his own work adds to the wealth of civilization.

“In order to live, the wage-earner must sell his labor from day to day. Unless he can do this, the earnings from that day’s labor are gone forever. Capital can defer its returns temporarily in the expectation of future profits, but labor cannot. If, therefore, fair wages and reasonable living conditions cannot otherwise be provided, dividends must be deferred or the industry abandoned.

“I believe that a corporation should be deemed to consist of its stockholders, directors, officers and employees; that the real interests of all are one, and that neither Labor nor Capital can permanently prosper unless the just rights of both are conserved.”

It was in line with these views that the plan of industrial representation recently proposed by the Colorado Fuel and Iron Company, and already adopted by the directors and by a majority vote of the employees of the different camps, was developed.

The underlying principle is that of coöperation, the theory being that the interests are common interests, and this leads to the development of the committees called for in the plan, as joint committees, on each of which the representatives of the workers have equal place with the representatives of the officers of the company.

In contrast with this spirit of coöperation is the spirit which too often has been in evidence in some organizations of labor. There, seemingly, labor is arrayed against capital. It is war! And apparently success cannot come to either party except failure or harm comes to the other.

I need not point out to you men the fact that in this day and generation we cannot hope for industrial peace, we cannot hope for prosperity in this fair land, until labor and capital join hands and recognize that their interest is a common interest, that what hurts one hurts the other, that what develops the well-being and the prosperity of one must of necessity develop the well-being and prosperity of the other.

May I also point out the spirit of democracy which underlies this plan? All of the employees in the corporation are entitled to join in it, regardless of whether they are or are not members of any society, fraternity or union, as contrasted with any plan, where only those who elect to join an organization are eligible to the benefits which come from it.

Every man in the camps of the Colorado Fuel and Iron Company is considered in this industrial plan, is represented and can be heard, and his complaint, be it great or small, can be carried from one officer to another until it reaches the ear of the president of the company.

Those who have coöperated in the development of this plan recognize that it is far from perfect, that it will have to be changed and adapted to the requirements of the company in which it has been adopted.

On the other hand, it is the earnest hope of all who are associated in the plan that it may point the way toward a closer coöperation between the employees and the other parties in interest in this company, that it may so establish relations of friendship and of mutual confidence, that it may so benefit the workers, the officers and the stockholders of the company, that there may never come a day when there will be repeated the industrial disorders which have occurred in the past in this company and in other companies in this State.

And it is our hope that toward that end all of the citizens of the State will coöperate, for, as I have said to the representatives of the workers of the Colorado Fuel and Iron Company, to many of the men themselves, as well as to the officers and directors of the company, there is one thing which must never happen again in that company, and that is a strike. Wantonly wasteful of human life and human property, no parties in interest are benefited thereby, but all seriously and permanently harmed as well as the public and the citizens of the State.

The way to prevent war is to cultivate and develop those qualities of head and heart which promote happiness and peace, and it is with that purpose in mind that this plan, to which I have referred, has been developed.

The time has come when the business man of this State and county must think in terms of the laboring man, and the laboring man must think in terms of the business man; when each must strive to imagine himself in the other’s place; when the teaching that every man is his brother’s keeper should no longer be a dead letter but a living reality; when coöperation and not conflict should be the watchword.

The opportunity to lead the nation in the permanent establishment of industrial peace is yours; if you will lay hold upon it, the name of this fair State will be written large in the history of the nation; if you let it pass, you and your children and your children’s children, will never cease to regret this day.

And if in any smallest way my coming to Colorado may prove to have been of service to you in approaching the solution of this world problem of industrial relations, I shall feel a sense of satisfaction and gratitude beyond expression.

FOOTNOTE:

[6] Address at the Chamber of Commerce Luncheon, Denver, October 8, 1915.

APPENDIX

THE INDUSTRIAL CONSTITUTION

PLAN OF REPRESENTATION OF EMPLOYEES IN THE COAL AND IRON MINES OF THE COLORADO FUEL AND IRON COMPANY OF COLORADO AND WYOMING

I

REPRESENTATION OF EMPLOYEES

_1. Annual meetings for election of employee’s representatives._

Employees at each of the mining camps shall annually elect from among their number representatives to act on their behalf with respect to matters pertaining to their employment, working and living conditions, the adjustment of differences, and such other matters of mutual concern and interest as relations within the industry may determine.

_2. Time, place and method of calling annual meetings, and
persons entitled to be present and participate in the election of
representatives._

The annual meetings of employees for the election of their representatives shall be held simultaneously at the several mining camps on the second Saturday in January. The meetings shall be called by direction of the president of the company. Notices of the meetings, indicating their time and place, as well as the number of representatives to be elected, shall be publicly posted at each camp a week in advance, and shall state that employees being wage-earners in the employ of the company at the time of the meeting and for at least three months immediately preceding, but not salaried employees, shall be entitled to be present and vote. Special meetings shall be similarly called when removal, resignations, or other circumstance occasions a vacancy in representation.

_3. Method of conducting meetings, and reporting election of
representatives._

Each meeting for the election of employees’ representatives shall choose its own chairman and secretary. At the appointed hour, the meeting shall be called to order by one of the employees’ representatives, or, in the absence of a representative, any employee present, and shall proceed to the election of a chairman and secretary. The chairman shall conduct, and the secretary record, the proceedings. They shall certify in writing to the president of the company the names of the persons elected as the employees’ representatives for the ensuing year.

_4. Basis and term of representation._

Representatives of employees in each camp shall be on the basis of one representative to every one hundred and fifty wage-earners, but each camp, whatever its number of employees, shall be entitled to at least two representatives. Where the number of employees in any one camp exceeds one hundred and fifty, or any multiple thereof, by seventy-five or more, an additional representative shall be elected. The persons elected shall act as the employees’ representatives from the time of their election until the next annual meeting, unless in the interval other representatives may, as above provided, have been elected to take their places.

_5. Nomination and election of representatives._

To facilitate the nomination and election of employees’ representatives, and to insure freedom of choice, both nomination and election shall be by secret ballot, under conditions calculated to insure an impartial count. The company shall provide ballot boxes and blank ballots, differing in form, for purposes of nomination and election. Upon entering the meeting, each employee entitled to be present shall be given a nomination ballot on which he shall write the names of the persons whom he desires to nominate as representatives, and deposit the nomination ballot in the ballot box. Each employee may nominate representatives to the number to which the camp is entitled, and of which public notice has been given. Employees unable to write may ask any of their fellow employees to write for them on their ballots the names of the persons whom they desire to nominate; but in the event of any nomination paper containing more names than the number of representatives to which the camp is entitled, the paper shall not be counted. The persons--to the number of twice as many representatives as the camp is entitled to--receiving the highest number of nomination votes shall be regarded as the duly nominated candidates for employees’ representatives, and shall be voted upon as hereinafter provided. (For example: If a camp is entitled to two representatives, the four persons receiving the largest number of nominating votes shall be regarded as the duly nominated candidates. If the camp is entitled to three representatives, then the six persons receiving the largest number, etc.)

_6. Counting of nomination and election ballots._

The chairman shall appoint three tellers, who shall take charge of the ballot box containing the nomination votes, and, with the aid of the secretary, they shall make out the list of the duly nominated candidates, which shall be announced by the chairman. The meeting shall then proceed to elect representatives by secret ballot, from among the number of candidates announced, the same tellers having charge of the balloting. If dissatisfied with the count, either as respects the nomination or election, any twenty-five employees present may demand a recount, and for the purposes of the recount the chairman shall select as tellers three from the number of those demanding a recount, and himself assist in the counting, and these four shall act, in making the recount, in place of the secretary and the tellers previously chosen. There shall be no appeal from this recount, except to the president of the company, and such appeal may be taken as hereinafter provided, at the request of any twenty-five employees present and entitled to vote.

_7. Appeal in regard to nomination or election._

The chairman of the meeting shall preserve for a period of one week both the nomination and election ballots. Should an appeal be made to the president within seven days in regard to the validity of the nomination or election, upon request in writing signed by twenty-five employees present at the meeting, the chairman shall deliver the ballots to the president of the company for recount. Should no such request be received within that time, the chairman shall destroy the ballots. If after considering the appeal the president is of the opinion that the nomination or election has not been fairly conducted, he shall order a new election at a time and place to be designated by him.

_8. General proceedings at meetings._

At annual meetings for the election of representatives, employees may consider and make recommendations concerning any matters pertaining to their employment, working or living conditions, or arising out of existing industrial relations, including such as they may desire to have their representatives discuss with the president and officers of the company at the Annual Joint Conference of the company’s officers and employees, also any matters referred to them by the president, other officers of the company, the Advisory Board or Social Joint Committee appointed at the preceding annual joint conferences of officials and employees of the company. A record of the proceedings shall be made by the secretary of the meeting and certified to by the chairman, and copies delivered to each of the representatives, to be retained by them for purposes of future reference.

II

DISTRICT CONFERENCES, JOINT COMMITTEES AND JOINT MEETINGS

_1. District divisions._

To facilitate the purposes herein set forth, the camps of the company shall be divided into five or more districts, as follows: the Trinidad District, comprising all mines and coke oven plants in Las Animas County; the Walsenburg District, comprising all mines in Huerfano County; the Cañon District, comprising all mines in Fremont County; the Western District, comprising all mines and coke oven plants located on the Western Slope; the Sunrise District, comprising the iron mines located in Wyoming.

_2. Time, place and purpose of district conferences._

District conferences shall be held in each of the several districts above mentioned at the call of the president, at places to be designated by him, not later than two weeks following the annual election of representatives, and at intervals of not more than four months thereafter, as the operating officers of the company, or a majority of the representatives of the employees in each of the several districts, may find desirable. The purpose of these district conferences shall be to discuss freely matters of mutual interest and concern to the company and its employees, embracing a consideration of suggestions to promote increased efficiency and production, to improve working and living conditions, to enforce discipline, avoid friction, and to further friendly and cordial relations between the company’s officers and employees.

_3. Representation at district conferences._

At the district conferences the company shall be represented by its president or his representative and such other officials as the president may designate. The employees shall be represented by their elected representatives. The company’s representatives shall not exceed in number the representatives of the employees. The company shall provide at its own expense appropriate places of meeting for the conferences.

_4. Proceedings of district conferences._

The district conferences shall be presided over by the president of the company, or such executive officer as he may designate. Each conference shall select a secretary who shall record its proceedings. The record of proceedings shall be certified to by the presiding officer.

_5. Joint committees on industrial relations._

The first district conferences held in each year shall select the following joint committees on industrial relations for each district, which joint committees shall be regarded as permanent committees to be intrusted with such duties as are herein set forth, or as may be assigned by the conferences. These joint committees shall be available for consultation at any time throughout the year with the Advisory Board on Social and Industrial Betterment, the president, the president’s executive assistant, or any officer of the operating department of the company.

(a) Joint Committee on Industrial Coöperation and Conciliation: to be composed of six members.

(b) Joint Committee on Safety and Accidents: to be composed of six members.

(c) Joint Committee on Sanitation, Health and Housing: to be composed of six members.

(d) Joint Committee on Recreation and Education: to be composed of six members.

_6. Selection and composition of joint committees._

In selecting the members of the several joint committees on industrial relations, the employees’ representatives shall, as respects each committee, designate three members and the president of the company or his representative, three members.

_7. Duties of Joint Committee on Industrial Coöperation and
Conciliation._

The Joint Committee on Industrial Coöperation and Conciliation may, of their own initiative, bring up for discussion at the joint conferences, or have referred to them for consideration and report to the president or other proper officer of the company at any time throughout the year, any matter pertaining to the prevention and settlement of industrial disputes, terms and conditions of employment, maintenance of order and discipline in the several camps, company stores, etc.

_8. Duties of Joint Committee on Safety and Accidents._

The Joint Committee on Safety and Accidents may, of their own initiative, bring up for discussion at the joint conferences, or have referred to them for consideration and report to the president or other proper officer of the company at any time throughout the year, any matter pertaining to the inspection of mines, the prevention of accidents, the safeguarding of machinery and dangerous working places, the use of explosives, fire protection, first aid, etc.

_9. Duties of Joint Committee on Sanitation, Health and Housing._

The Joint Committee on Sanitation, Health and Housing may, of their own initiative, bring up for discussion at the joint conferences, or have referred to them for consideration and report to the president or other proper officer of the company at any time throughout the year, any matter pertaining to health, hospitals, physicians, nurses, occupational disease, tuberculosis, sanitation, water supply, sewage system, garbage disposal, street cleaning, wash and locker rooms, housing, homes, rents, gardens, fencing, etc.

_10. Duties of Joint Committee on Recreation and Education._

The Joint Committee on Recreation and Education may, of their own initiative, bring up for discussion at the joint conferences, or have referred to them for consideration and report to the president or other proper officer of the company, at any time throughout the year, any matter pertaining to social centers, club houses, halls, playgrounds, entertainments, moving pictures, athletics, competitions, field days, holidays, schools, libraries, classes for those who speak only foreign languages, technical education, manual training, health lectures, classes in first aid, religious exercises, churches and Sunday schools, Y. M. C. A. organizations, etc.

_11. Annual and special joint meetings._

In addition to the district conferences in each of the several districts, there shall be held in the month of December an annual joint meeting, at a time and place to be designated by the president of the company, to be attended by the president and such officers of the company as he may select and by all the employees’ representatives of the several districts. At this meeting reports covering the work of the year shall be made by the several joint committees and matters of common interest requiring collective action considered. A special joint meeting of any two or more districts may be called at any time upon the written request to the president of a majority of the representatives in such districts or upon the president’s own initiative, for the consideration of such matters of common interest as cannot be dealt with satisfactorily at district conferences. Notice of such special joint meetings shall be given at least two weeks in advance.

III

THE PREVENTION AND ADJUSTMENT OF INDUSTRIAL DISPUTES

_1. Observance of laws, rides and regulations._

There shall be on the part of the company and its employees, a strict observance of the Federal and State laws respecting mining and labor and of the company’s rules and regulations supplementing the same.

_2. Posting of wages and rules._

The scale of wages and the rules in regard to working conditions shall be posted in a conspicuous place at or near every mine.

_3. No discrimination on account of membership or non-membership
in labor or other organizations._

There shall be no discrimination by the company or by any of its employees on account of membership or non-membership in any society, fraternity or union.

_4. The right to hire and discharge, and the management of the
properties._

The right to hire and discharge, the management of the properties, and the direction of the working forces, shall be vested exclusively in the company, and, except as expressly restricted, this right shall not be abridged by anything contained herein.

_5. Employees’ right to caution or suspension before discharge._

There shall be posted at each property a list of offenses for commission of which by an employee dismissal may result without notice. For other offenses, employees shall not be discharged without first having been notified that a repetition of the offense will be cause for dismissal. A copy of this notification shall, at the time of its being given to an employee, be sent also to the president’s industrial representative and retained by him for purposes of future reference. Nothing herein shall abridge the right of the company to relieve employees from duty because of lack of work. Where relief from duty through lack of work becomes necessary, men with families shall, all things being equal, be given preference.

_6. Employees’ right to hold meetings._

Employees shall have the right to hold meetings at appropriate places on company property or elsewhere as they may desire outside of working hours or on idle days.

_7. Employees’ right to purchase where they please._

Employees shall not be obliged to trade at the company stores, but shall be at perfect liberty to purchase goods wherever they may choose to do so.

_8. Employees’ right to employ checkweighmen._

As provided by statute, miners have the right to employ checkweighmen, and the company shall grant the said checkweighmen every facility to enable them to render a correct account of all coal weighed.

_9. Employees’ right of appeal to president of company against
unfair conditions or treatment._

Subject to the provisions hereinafter mentioned, every employee shall have the right of ultimate appeal to the president of the company concerning any condition or treatment to which he may be subjected and which he may deem unfair.

_10. Duty of president’s industrial representative._

It shall be the duty of the president’s industrial representative to respond promptly to any request from employees’ representatives for his presence at any of the camps and to visit all of them as often as possible, but not less frequently than once every three months, to confer with the employees or their representatives and the superintendents respecting working and living conditions, the observance of Federal and State laws, the carrying out of company regulations, and to report the result of such conferences to the president.

_11. Complaints and grievances to be taken up first with foremen
and superintendents._

Before presenting any grievance to the president, the president’s industrial representative, or other of the higher officers of the company, employees shall first seek to have differences or the conditions complained about adjusted by conference, in person or through their representatives, with the mine superintendent.

_12. Investigation of grievances by president’s industrial
representative._

Employees believing themselves to be subjected to unfair conditions or treatment and having failed to secure satisfactory adjustment of the same through the mine superintendent may present their grievances to the president’s industrial representative, either in person or through their regularly elected representatives, and it shall be the duty of the president’s industrial representative to look into the same immediately and seek to adjust the grievance.

_13. The right of appeal to the superior officers of the company
against unfair treatment, conditions, suspensions or dismissals._

Should the president’s industrial representative fail to satisfactorily conciliate any difference, with respect to any grievance, suspension or dismissal, the aggrieved employee, either himself or through his representative--and in either case in person or by letter--may appeal for the consideration and adjustment of his grievance to the division superintendent, assistant manager or manager, general manager or the president of the company, in consecutive order. To entitle an employee to the consideration of his appeal by any of the higher officers herein mentioned, the right to appeal must be exercised within a period of two weeks after the same has been referred to the president’s industrial representative without satisfactory redress.

_14. Reference of differences in certain cases to Joint Committees
on Industrial Coöperation and Conciliation._

Where the president’s industrial representative or one of the higher officials of the company fails to adjust a difference satisfactorily, upon request to the president by the employees’ representatives or upon the initiative of the president himself, the difference shall be referred to the Joint Committee on Industrial Coöperation and Conciliation of the district and the decision of the majority of such joint committee shall be binding upon all parties.

_15. Representation on joint committees to be equal when
considering adjustment of differences._

Whenever a Joint Committee on Industrial Coöperation and Conciliation is called upon to act with reference to any difference, except by the consent of all present the joint committee shall not proceed with any important part of its duties unless both sides are equally represented. Where agreeable, equal representation may be effected by the withdrawal of one or more members from the side of the joint committee having the majority.

_16. Umpire to act with joint committees in certain cases._

Should the Joint Committee on Industrial Coöperation and Conciliation to which a difference may have been referred fail to reach a majority decision in respect thereto, if a majority of its members so agree, the joint committee may select as umpire a third person who shall sit in conference with the committee and whose decision shall be binding upon all parties.

_17. Arbitration or investigation in certain cases._