The Deckhands' Quick Strike
When the company tried to undercut union wages, local deckhands walked off the job and forced a swift concession.
The story, cleaned up
A cleaned-up reading of the newspaper page: spelling and layout repaired, one story lifted off a crowded page. It follows the original closely but it is not a transcription. The original page is below; read it if a detail matters.
A ripple of excitement was caused among the labor unions last week by a strike of the deckhands employed on the steamers State of Washington, Sehome, and Fairhaven. This was done because the company operating these boats persisted in employing non-union deckhands on the Henry Bailey at $5 per month less than the union scale. The men only remained off duty one day, when the company promptly came to the terms demanded by the strikers. Meantime the non-union men on the Bailey had taken to their heels and deserted the boat. Union men were employed in their places.
“The men only remained off duty one day, when the company promptly came to the terms demanded by the strikers.”
Labor disputes in the maritime and ferry industry have remained a fixture of Seattle's economy for over a century. The quick, successful action of these deckhands reflects a long history of waterfront solidarity that continues to shape the region's labor politics today.
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