localities showing increases of more than 300 union members were: Worcester, 5,576; Springfield, 4,393; Lowell, 1,068; Westfield, 1,056; Salem, 663; Haverhill, 624; Chelsea, 465; and Taunton, 338. The localities showing decreases of more than 300 members were: Lawrence, 2,454; Boston, 1,531; and Rockland, 369.

Of the 118 unions formed during 1915, 25 were in Boston, 13 in Springfield, nine in Lowell, seven in Holyoke, six in Worcester, and five each in Fitchburg and Salem. The remaining 48 unions were distributed among 27 municipalities. It therefore appears that the work of organization of new unions during the year was by no means confined to the largest industrial centers.

C. COMPARISONS BY INDUSTRIES AND OCCUPATIONS.

(a) Industries.1

Inasmuch as local unions are not always organized strictly on an industrial basis, it is somewhat difficult to so classify them, consequently when one union represents, through its membership, more than one industry, it has been classified with that industry in which the greatest number of its members are employed.

The 1,425 unions in Massachusetts at the close of 1915 have been classified as follows: Building trades, 363; transportation (steam and electric), 170; boot and shoe manufacturing, 106; iron and steel manufacturing, 101; textiles, 66; printing and allied trades, 56; and all other industries, 563. In numerical strength boot and shoe manufacturing ranked first, with a membership of 42,714, followed by building trades with 38,591 members; transportation, 35,932; textile manufacturing, 17,287; iron and steel manufacturing, 16,742; and printing and allied trades, 6,550.

On page 25 appears a chart showing, graphically, the number and membership of local labor organizations in Massachusetts at the close of each year from 1908 to 1915, and the statistics on which the graphs are based appear in the table on page 24.

During the period of three years, 1908 to 1912, there was only a very moderate increase in the aggregate number and the aggregate membership of unions in the State. In 1912, however, the number of unions increased from 1,282 to 1,361, with a corresponding increase of 45,730 members, these increases being due in considerable measure to special work of organization in the textile industry and in transportation service during

1 For a tabulation showing in detail, by industries, the number and membership of local unions in Massachusetts at the close of 1914 and 1915, see Table 6, on p. 54.

Number and Membership of Local Unions in Existence at the Close of Each Year, 1908– 1915, Classified by Principal Industries.

that year. In 1913 the increase both in number of unions and in membership was fairly large, but in 1914 there was a net loss, both in the number of unions and membership, while in 1915 there was a net gain of 33 in the number of unions, and of 9,269 in membership.

In the following paragraphs the principal industries are separately considered.

Boot and Shoe Manufacturing. — Organization in this industry received an impetus in 1909, when there was an increase of 25 in the number of unions, and an addition of more than 8,000 to the membership. Since then the advance has been more gradual; in fact, the entire increase in membership since 1909 has been hardly more than one-half the increase in 1909. Although the number of unions for 1915 (106) has not quite reached the number in 1913 (108), the membership (42,714) is, by a slight margin, the highest yet reported for this industry.

Building Trades. The increase both in the number and membership of unions in this industry has been gradual, but rather constant, although the increase since 1913 has been very small. During the entire period, 1908 to 1915, the number of unions has increased from 333 to 363 (only 9.0 per cent), while the membership has increased from 27,539 to 38,591 (40.1 per cent).

Transportation (Steam and Electric). During the period under consideration, the greatest increase in this branch of industry was in 1912, when special efforts were made to organize the street railway employees, and there was an increase of nearly 10,000 members. During the entire period of eight years, the number of unions increased from 122 to 170, or 39.3 per cent, and the membership increased from 17,971 to 35,932, or nearly 100 per cent. In 1915 the increase both in number and membership of local unions was very small.

Textile Industry. During the years 1908 to 1911 there was no change of any magnitude either in the number or membership of unions in the textile industry. In 1912, as the result of an organizing campaign conducted in the leading textile centers of Massachusetts by the Industrial Workers of the World, the membership increased from 15,863 to 31,962, or over 100 per cent. Since the close of 1912, owing to the disbanding of, or loss of membership by, local unions of Industrial Workers, the aggregate membership has rapidly declined until, at the close of 1915, it was only 17,287. Nevertheless, the number of local unions identified with the American Federation of Labor, has increased at a fairly constant rate each year, and there has also been a fairly constant increase in the aggregate membership of these organizations.

Iron and Steel Manufacturing. In 1908, there were in this group of trades 106 unions, with an aggregate membership of 9,021. Although the membership for 1910 and 1912 was somewhat in excess of that in 1908, in every other year until 1915 the total number was decidedly less, and in 1914 the membership was only 7,535. In 1915, however, there was a notable increase when the number was 16,742. This increase was due to an organizing campaign among machinists and metal polishers, coincident with the more than ordinary activity in those trades, due primarily to the receipt of orders for large quantities of munitions.

Printing and Allied Trades. From 1908 to 1914 there was a yearly increase, small but steady, in the number of unions and the aggregate membership. In 1915, however, there was a slight falling off in membership from 6,769 to 6,550, the number of unions remaining the same as

While local unions are for the most part organized on the basis of a specific craft or trade, it occasionally happens that one is formed of workers in correlated occupations, or in different branches of the same occupation. Thus, in certain localities, where there is not a sufficient number of persons in a single craft to form a distinct local for each craft, the American Federation of Labor has made it a practice to form what are known as "federal labor unions," in which are associated those wageearners whose occupation is such that they are not eligible to join any of the existing locals in those localities. Another example of unions of this character is the "mixed union" of boot and shoe workers, which may include lasters, stitchers, and others employed in the various branches of boot and shoe manufacturing. Such unions have been classified in this report under that occupation in which the greatest number of their members are employed.

The occupations in which there were 25 or more unions at the close of 1915 were as follows: Carpenters, 151; boot and shoe workers, 106; textile workers, 66; painters, decorators, and paperhangers, 61; bricklayers, masons, and plasterers, 49; machinists, 48; electrical workers, 432; plumbers, steamfitters and gasfitters, 43; municipal employees, 42; teamsters, chauffeurs, and stablemen, 42; barbers, 34; molders and coremakers, 30; bartenders, 29; musicians, 28; theatrical stage employees, 27; and street and electric railway employees, 26. In the following

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

2 Includes 12 local unions of telephone operators affiliated with the International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers.