Appeal of the Hotel, Restaurant and Domestic Workers Industrial Union by Ernst Holmen from One Big Union Monthly. Vol. 1 No. 2. April, 1 1919.

A state of society based on profits, such as our present one finds its true reflection in the in-dividual thereof. Space does not allow the classification of the many social by-products I bear in mind. I shall endeavor only to dig into the grim, harsh and economic forces that determine the ex- working conditions of hotel and restaurant workers. In this day of rapid working class awakening, the World has come to acknowledge the necessity of changing completely the environment before Industrial Democracy can be accomplished. And in this capacity nothing is more capable of functioning than the One Big Union, that shining light of social progress and the only hope of the toiling millions.

Hotel and Restaurant Workers.

Now for an expose of the conditions under which the workers in hotels and restaurants labor. Here we find that the hand of capitalism has organized the cook, porter, dishwasher, etc., like a smooth running machine, operating in unison and harmony to the material interests of their employer; altho individually concerned we find them wrapped up in ideals, by which they believe themselves better by far than their fellow workers of a lower station, than that in which they have to work. Is it not easy for a boss who, realizing this, grinds you and me into a state of absolute subjection? Without co-operation on our part, without a union of some sort to offset this condition it becomes very easy for him to impose a twelve hour day at a wage so low that it serves only as a means of bringing us back to work the following day. The serfdom of medieval ages cannot compare with this.

How maddening it is for a cook to spend 12 hours beside the infernal heat of a kitchen range working as if possessed, constantly obsessed by the blatant cries of meal orders during rush hours. Is it any wonder that these workers, sapped of their very life energy—a soul crushed and warped—become the drunkards or lunatics of tomorrow?

Still worse—there is the much ridiculed ‘Pearl- Diver” (dish washer). Seldom if ever, do we see him dressed as a human being should. Ragged, unkempt, scorned by his own comrades in toil, and rarely getting over a dollar and a half a day. Yes, it must be a blessing to him to think that as a last resort he may find oblivion through the joyful medium of drink.

The waiters and waitresses are in much the same category, sore-footed, flat-footed, they carry on the struggle for existence. Annually thousands are carried off with consumption and other disorders. In other respects the social position of the former is on par with the others of this class, while the latter is apt to sink even lower in the social mire. I venture to say that hundreds of Chicago’s hotels and restaurants have generously contributed to the White Slave trade. All because long, unbearable hours, meager wages, and a vicious tipping system, which places them under obligation to others, has made the “easier way” more desirable than the tortures of wage slavery.

It is well to remark in passing that this state of affairs has the same cause and effect among the domestic workers as well as in any other industry where women are robbed and exploited. (The Juvenile Protective Association of Chicago, in their statistics give ample proof to the ravishing tendency these industrial conditions inflict on waitresses alone.)

Fellow workers, let us change these conditions! We know that the power of the boss on the job is the potential factor, which places us in the exploited position we are in. We are robbed of the major portion of the wealth we produce, because we are too weak to resist.

There is but one solution, and that is—THE INDUSTRIAL UNION PLAN. A union that will organize all within this industry into one union; so when we find it necessary to strike, we can do it successfully, leaving the shop en-masse—in one fighting compact body. Or by withdrawing our efficiency while at work, in this way causing a silent strike, which is more powerful in its application than any other method of attack.

Trade unionism has always failed. They persist in dividing the workers into crafts, where each craft or trade acts independent of the other, each one tied up with contracts which expire at different periods, preventing in this way that solidarity of action so necessary and essential to working class welfare; thus the workers have been defeated times out of number. Instead of a cooks’ union, waiters’ union and so on down the line, why not have a One Big Union of the while? This is the only form of unionism which will prevent us from scabbing on each other in time of strike. An injury to one of our members must at all times be an injury to all! It is always to the material interest of the boss to keep you divided. Unity is the forerunner of success.

Domestic Workers.

Linked in close proximity to the Hotel and Restaurant Industry, the working condition of Domestic workers everywhere are so near and identical, that at present they are placed in the same Industrial Union. In the homes of the small bourgeoisie and the palatial mansions of “high society,’ housemaids, cooks, second girls, nursemaids, laundresses, seam- stresses, butlers, and all others employed in this industry are compelled to be menials, doing their dirty work and tending to their every want, and then withal the worker receives only a mere pittance in the way of pay, with a few hours off (on Thursday) occasionally, and the work is of such a nature that there are times when the working hours are never-ending. And this parasitic element is not only contented at you being their slave but you are constantly reminded, in haughty terms, that you are their inferior. Your only answer to this must be ORGANIZATION! On that magic word rests your independence!

“You Who Would Be Free Must Strike the Blow!”

The Hotel, Restaurant and Domestic Workers Industrial Union offers the only way out; unorganized you are powerless, united you present an undefeatable front. Which do you choose?

By organizing industrially every employee of the of the hotels and restaurants and in the domestic service will have created a power, a force that can at its will paralyze every hotel and restaurant, every home that employs domestic workers can be made to “wash its own dirty linen.” Under this form of unionism when a strike is called, if necessary, no ice, no milk, would be delivered nor any supply necessary in the operation of any given place of business, nor in any home where domestic workers are out for better living conditions.

We would not leave the bus boy to take the place of the waiter, we would not tolerate a house- maid acting the part of a butler, and the dish- washer scabbing on the cook; every one of them should leave the job and let their slogan be: “All for one and one for all!’’ Under these circumstances the issue would be clear and clean-cut—workers arrayed against your common enemy—the boss!

Again I say, organize into an industrial union. It means shorter hours and better pay. It means more time to live and enjoy life, to developmentally and physically. Moreover, you are destroying unemployment in your own ranks. The reason for low wages is that there is an over supply of labor power on the labor market. That can only be remedied by you, on the job, reducing the working hours.

In concluding this brief outline, it is fitting to quote the last paragraph in our preamble:

“It is the historic mission of the working class to do away with capitalism. The army of production must be organized, not only for the every day struggle with capitalists, but also to carry on production when capitalism shall have been overthrown. By organizing industrially we are forming the structure of the new society within the shell of the old.”

If you are not a member of our organization, then join today. Initiation fee $2.00 and dues 50 cents. For further information write the Secretary-Treasurer, ERNST HOLMEN, 1001 W. Madison St., Chicago, III.

One Big Union Monthly was a magazine published in Chicago by the General Executive Board of the Industrial Workers of the World from 1919 until 1938, with a break from February, 1921 until September, 1926 when Industrial Pioneer was produced. OBU was a large format, magazine publication with heavy use of images, cartoons and photos. OBU carried news, analysis, poetry, and art as well as I.W.W. local and national reports. OBU was also Mary E. Marcy’s writing platform after the suppression of International Socialist Review., she had joined the I.W.W. in 1918.

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