AWCI's Centennial: The 1930s“For the first time, there is a spirit of cooperation between manufacturer, labor and contractor for industry good.” WorldWith the Great Depression, between 13 million and 15 million workers lost their jobs, but crews somehow completed the Empire State Building. IndustryIn the 1930s, plastered walls and ceilings were common. The number of full and part-time employees in the plastering and lathing industry decreased from approximately 127,000 in 1929 to 23,000 in 1933. The number of working lathers and plasterers had dropped by 82 percent. This was unacceptable—and unbearable. 
In a letter drafted probably in 1933, CPIA provided workplace wages and hours to the NRA’s deputy administrator.  Maintaining Our Competitive LeadFrom a construction standpoint, last year was one of the most productive in city history. According to the New York Building Congress it is safe to assume that New York has not witnessed this level of production since the early 1970s. To maintain our place in the bidding wars, we have to be even more frugal in our operations and run a tighter ship. Think new software, better use of communications, better management techniques. more / less Concern for this was highlighted at AWCI Industry Executives’ Conference & Committee Meetings held in last October. A leading topic was Retaining the Right People and Building Your Talent Pool for Future Growth. It addressed the current reality for the construction industry that there is not only an insufficient quantity of craft workers, supervisors, managers and staff for available positions, but also that the industry may not be appealing enough to attract and retain the younger millennials or the upcoming Generation Z. New York City hasn’t felt the large-scale impact of this problem yet, but we have to be ready for it if we want to continue to keep union work as the best option for construction in New York. Replacing people who did not come back after the recent recession or others who are retiring requires a significant amount of new training both in the field and in the office. This may mean providing educational opportunities, training classes and personal development for all levels of the workforce to maintain a competitive edge in our industry. John DeLollis After only a few months in office, President Roosevelt signed the National Industrial Recovery Act. The NIRA took the reins of the economy. It did so through the NRA, the federal agency established by a presidential executive order. The NRA set minimum prices for products, minimum wages for workers and maximum work weeks by industry.  UNITY PREVAILSThe government-controlled economy and work project programs of the 1930s were a mixed blessing. On the one hand, the “New Deal” put millions to work. On the other hand, government-run programs often gave the technical work of lathing and plastering to unskilled laborers. True, the industry survived. But not every company and journeyman did. The Contracting Plasterers’ International Association continued to fight to establish high standards for work, but new building materials and applications—“substitutes”—were on their way. And so was another world war. View this decade’s complete content in the Centennial Book’s digital edition. In 1933, CPIA surveyed its members and supplied the government with wage and work week data. In 1934, CPIA agreed to an industry wide code, and the NRA adopted it. Roosevelt approved the Supplementary Code of Fair Competition for the Plastering and Lathing Contracting Industry (A Division of the Construction Industry) on June 27, 1934. But the NRA was short-lived. In 1935, the U.S. Supreme Court ruled against the NRA, saying it infringed upon the separation of powers, giving the president too much power. Its legacy continued in the National Labor Relations Act of 1935 (the Wagner Act), where many of its provisions appeared. 
CPIA held its 18th Annual Convention at the Knickerbocker Hotel in Atlantic City, N.J., Sept. 30–Oct. 3, 1935. 
21st Annual Convention of CPIAA roll call at the 1938 Annual Convention of CPIA in St, Louis, Mo., convention showed 29 cities represented. AWCI: ActionCPIA worked with several associations and trade unions. They included the Operative Plasterers, the Brick Masons’ and Plasterers’ International Union, the Wood Wire and Material Lathers’ International Union, and the Hod Carriers’, Building, and Common Laborers’ International Union. 
In 1939, CPIA held its 22nd Annual Convention at the Hotel Pennsylvania Hotel in New York City. 
The Plastering CraftIn 1938, CPIA President Oscar A. Reum called The Plastering Craft “the best trade publication issued” and thanked its editor, Eddie McDonnell, for his hard work. Then in its 12th year of publication, Reum called it “truly the voice of the industry.” CPIA helped with collective bargaining over pay, work days and other labor-related issues. The result of a conference in July 1933 “was an agreement in substance upon wages and hours,” CPIA wrote to the NRA. CPIA supplied NRA with wage data—average U.S. plasterer wages of $1.06 per hour in the Southern zone, $1.18 per hour in the Central zone, and $1.19 per hour in the Northern zone. It identified the 8-hour work day in 321 cities. It noted a 5-day work week in 237 cities, a 5 1/2-day work week in 131 cities and a 6-day work week in nine cities. “For the first time,” Reum said, “there is a spirit of cooperation between manufacturer, labor and contractor for industry good.” As we know, the industry survived. But not every company and journeyman did. CPIA continued to fight to establish high standards for work, but new building materials and applications—“substitutes”—were on their way. And so was another world war. |
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