how much did coal miners get paid in the 1980s

This is a New Zealand government document. Source: Shows wages by occupation in Belfast, Cork, Glasgow, Dundee, Cardiff, London, Manchester and more. Since money wage rates of foreign countries have little meaning for economists in America, only the real wage rates are given.", Shows the average hourly and weekly wages of various occupations for both skilled and unskilled laborers. Wages of pattern makers, molders, drill press operators, lathe hands, machinists and more. The failure of a mine boss to dampen the coal dust was the reason the Red Ash mine blew up in 1905, killing thirteen men and boys on Fire Creek. The workday ended at 5:30 in the evening when the sunlight had already faded over the mountains. Source: Shows lawyers' incomes instates and regions, by size of community served, by the age of the lawyer, number of years in practice, etc. Smoke from explosions of black powder,the reek of oil lamps, and the pervading coal dust made breathable air something of an obsession with the miner, one miner recalled. by OCCUPATION The legislature rejected all proposals for reform, however. This table covers pages 357-360 in this source. Click for more info about the kind of home a family earning less than $2,500 annually could buy in 1928. Data is broken out byoccupation, sex and district. From the Newcomb-Endicott store, Detroit, Michigan. by SEX Table shows average cost to rent houses by the number of rooms in each of 25 New Zealand cities and towns. Source:Federal Reserve Bank of Saint Louis. Government Documents Department, Ellis Library Hourly Rate. 294-295. Source: U.S. Dept of Agriculture. Source: Teachers' salaries and salary trends in 1923. Source: U.S. Bureau of Education. Wages are shown in both Italian lire and contemporary U.S. dollars. Taken from the 1921 U.S. Department of Agriculture Yearbook, starting on page 804. Source: Lists results of 22 studies that show the % of family budget spent in various categories (rent, food, health, etc.). Source: U.S. BLS. Wages are shown in Italian lire. In the hand-loading era, an underground miners workplace, usually called a room, was only as high as the coal seam. The union was very important to miners. Some picked slate and other debris out of the coal on fast-moving conveyor belts. Includes a table showing. Photographer + writer. Source: BLS Monthly labor review, Oct 1927, Shows the average daily wages for 14 different occupations in the Florence district. See quartile, "Women in Alabama industries: a study of hours, wages and working conditions," Women's Bureau Bulletin #34 (. Source: BLS, Shows clothes prices paid by working class families in Great Britain. Source: BLS. 25-38. Shows compensation for individualjudgeson the U.S. Supreme Court, circuit courts and district courts. Boys discovered that serious men turned into jokers when they toiled underground. Postal Service. Wages are shown in Dutch guilder. 285, Bulletin of the United States Bureau of Labor Statistics, No. Board a ship to cross the wave; By law, judges earned 1,500 per year. 59-71. Shows by county the price of undeveloped land, plow land and farm land. Tip: use the search tool to look for words like cents or rate. Details the price of various building materials on pp. A Latvian immigrant and devout member of the Russian Orthodox Church of the Old Believers, Michael Simon wore this cross as he labored in Pennsylvania coal mines. It also summarizes the years from 1907-1922. In the late 1800s mining was rough physical labor. Wages are shown in Brazilian milreis. Union wages by occupation and city, 1922-1928, Women's median wages by state and industry, 1910s-1920s, Cigarette packs - Average retail price by brand, 1929, Average college expenses and tuition by institution, 1928, Family budgets by income group, 1918-1930, https://libraryguides.missouri.edu/pricesandwages, Common labor - Average entrance wage rates, 1926-1934, Union wages by occupation and city, 1920-1921, Steam fitters' and sprinkler fitters' helpers, Structural-iron workers: finishers' helpers, Union wages by occupation and city, 1929-1930, Captains, masters, mates, pilots, and engineers, Maintenance-of-way employees: Gang foremen, Maintenance-of-way employees: Assistant gang foremen, Maintenance-of-way employees: Iron workers, Maintenance-of-way employees: Masons, bricklayers, and plasterers, Maintenance-of-way employees: Section laborers, Maintenance-of-way employees: Crossing and bridge flagmen and gatemen, War and postwar wages, prices, and hours, 1914-23 and 1939-44, Urban Negro weekly earnings by sex and occupational class, 1925, Negro wages by occupation - Chicago, 1920, Teacher salaries by race - North Carolina, 1922, Teacher salaries by race - Texas, 1925-1926, Accountants, auditors, bookkeepers, etc. Data is separated by sex and age. Coal miner Bill Keating composed the ballad Down, Down, Down to break my loneliness and to show my mule I was in a friendly mood., President John L. Lewis, United Mine Workers, convention badge, 1936. Covers the states of NH, VT, MA, CT, KY, SC, AL, MO, KS, IA and OH. Source: This short article about wages in Nanking, China reports barbers' earnings in US dollars. Wages are shown in contemporary U.S. dollars. 297. Separate listings forinspectors, police superintendents, captains, sergeants, privates, etc. Source: BLS, Shows the cost of various foodstuffs in the Riga markets. Source: BLS, The explanation states: "real wage rates have been computed by the Statistical Office on the basis of the official German cost-of-living index. Meanwhile, his wife Mary operated the Nellis boarding house for foreign-born miners. They provided their own equipment and often hired assistants; managers extended credit for supplies like dynamite. It provided a $1.20-a- day wage increase effective Jan, and an increase of 80 cents a day beginning April 1, 1959. Shows the average weekly wages of various occupations in 8 different industries in Budapest. The laborer's work is often made difficult by the water and rock which are found' in large quantities in coal veins. Source: Howard University, States "the average student probably spends about $700 per year for a college education" and shows, This source shows the cost of funerals and burial in 18 states and in 10 major cities. In West Virginias colliers, miners were paid 49 cents per ton of clean coal, compared with 76 cents in the unionized mines of Ohio. Patterns for sewing children's clothes, stockings, union suits, toys, bicycles. Includes clam, lobster, oyster industries and more. Processing plants called breaker buildings were symbols of pride for mine communities. In 1925, motor vehicles were scrapped at an average age of 6.5 years. Wages are shown in both contemporary Yen and US dollars. Source: BLS, Shows the retail prices of foodstuffs and other necessities throughout different areas of Denmark such as Copenhagen. Compares wage rates and hours of work for the WWI and WWII eras, focusing specifically on the manufacturing, mining, railroad, printing and maritime industries, as well as farm labor wages. Mine foremen attempted various forms of industrial discipline to maximize productivity, but in the early 1900s, coal miners experienced little of the supervision foremen and factory managers imposed on workers; in fact, veteran colliers often became surly when a mine foreman came by their place on his little scooter to check on them. Wages are shown in both German marks and contemporary U.S. dollars. Constitution Avenue, NW Appalachias traditionally small, locally owned mines started merging with larger energy firms in the 1960s, and by 1970 bituminous coal employment had dropped to 140,000 people from its 1923 peak of 740,000. $15 - $30. A miners compulsion to load as much coal as possible was tempered by experience, however. Total Pay. Shows data for 12 cities located in NY, OH, PA and MA, including NYC, Boston, Philadelphia and more. Coffee cost an average 47 per pound in 1920. Shows average wages by industry in both rubles and US currency. NOTE: Forhouseholdincome data for 1929, we recommend a1934 Brookings Institution report titled America's Capacity to Consume. Wages are shown in Japanese yen. Shows average public employee pay for each state. Owners claimed property rights and managerial entitlements over the workplace. Workers focused on the pace of work, safety, and wages. Wages are listed in Mexican currency with exchange rate for calculating amounts in U.S. dollars. Stealing another mans coal was considered a terrible crime. A thief could commit this offense easily, simply by removing one miners brass check from his coal car and replacing it with his own; but the miners often detected this kind of trickery and banded together to demand the thiefs termination. Source: Report of the Salary survey commission to the Pennsylvania General assembly, 1929. Shows prices for articles of clothing sold in 35 retailer shops in twelve cities. Watch the rocks, theyre falling daily, See answers (2) Best Answer. Source: BLS. Article compares the cost of renting versus buying a home in 1928. The lawmakers apparently agreed with West Virginias Republican governor, G. W. Atkinson, who said in 1901: It is but the natural course of mining events that men should be injured and killed by accidents.. Source: BLS, Shows the daily wages for various occupations in Tokyo. Following legal tradition, companies usually placed blame and responsibility for injuries on the workers. Shows weekly wages for male and female workers in common industries such as textile manufacture and mining, and also more uncommon like ice cream manufacture and hospitality services. This calculator allows you to compare the buying power of wages earned at different points in history. Source: Very simple table shows average hours and earnings for all production workers in manufacturing for each year from 1919-1960. From, Average monthly wages by state,with and without board. Girl's: Source: 1930 Census of Agriculture. By the 1940s, the United Mine Workers union had established better wages and somewhat safer conditions for miners, though a contentious relationship between workers and bosses persisted. Covers Great Britain, France, Belgium, Germany, Sweden, Norway, Switzerland, Italy and Austria. But Appalachian coal production peaked in 1918. Shows the wages of Japanese mining workers by gender and age. It was a dreadful experience Booker T. Washington never forgot. Report published in 1925 mainly covers wages in manufacturing industries. Wages for workers engaged in the manufacture of iron and steel goods, machinery, railway rolling stock, boilers, vehicles, aircraft, electrical apparatus, scientific instruments and more. Tables are broken down by type of job, gender of employee, and geography. Compares average retail prices for drug-store items at independent stores and chain stores in Cincinnati and Washington DC. Wages shown in litas, and US dollars in parentheses. Coal mine owners and superintendents rarely went underground. Wages of certain women in the District of Columbia. Compares to national averages. Table shows average tax by acre for each state in 1929. 613. Source: "Income of Lawyers, 1929-1948" in the August 1949 issue of. Source: Table shows 52 years of time-series prices on individual foods, such as. Describes the labor policy of Mexico in the 1920's and throughout the rest of the early 20th century. Shows the standard wages for different shift at ports in Antwerp, Belgium. Source: For each college, this table shows tuition for residents and non-residents by course of study. BookTok is Good, Actually: On the Undersung Joys of a Vast and Multifarious Platform, Seven Crime Novels Centered Around Musicians Out in 2023, Arlington Road: The Conspiracy Thriller That Foresaw the Spread of Far-Right Extremism in America, If you want to laugh, watch this Mitchell and Webb sketch about inviting Shaggy and Scooby Doo to a party, Uncrackable: 5 Films Featuring Devilishly Difficult Heists. Many of the reports can be found in. See list of the most common occupations for women in 1910 and 1920 (source: Census Bureau). Source: BLS, Shows the average retail prices of foodstuffs in Madrid and Barcelona. See data considerations for explanation. "The fees and cost of books, instruments, board, room, laundry and incidentals will hardly be less than $400 per session of thirty-two weeks." Handkerchiefs, slippers, watches, umbrellas, hair brushes and combs, Christmas decorations. of Agriculture report. Dresses, dresses (in color), coats, bonnets and coats, hats, shoes, girl's toys. FromTHE DEVIL HERE IN THESE HILLS(Atlantic Monthly Press), now out in paperback. Report published in 1923 tells wages by race and by industry. Covers New York City, New Jersey towns, Fall River MA, Cleveland, Chicago, Dallas, San Francisco and Portland OR. For best detail, see the full chapters on. Source: BLS, Shows wages of various industrial and agricultural gender, in both Romanian leu and contemporary U.S. dollars. View object record Steam whistle With industrialization, workers lost control of when to start, eat, and end their day. Nothing was the answer, nothing but the miserable life he and his family endured living inrented shanties hard on the railroad tracks. West Virginias mine safety laws were the weakest in the nation. 45-57. Fascinating book that shows various imported items (such as kid gloves, bloomers, silk nightgown, men's pipe, electric flatiron, glass lamp, etc.) Expressed in pounds, shillings, and pence. 1920, Wages by occupation - Manchuria, 1920-1921, Daily and monthly wage earnings - Soviet Union, 1926-1927, Average yearly wages in the Soviet Union, 1929-1932, salaries paid school teachers throughout Russia, seldom exceed 12 rubles per month in late 1923, Agricultural wages - Switzerland in 1914, 1921, 1930, Earnings and prices - Switzerland, 1920-1921, Wages in Great Britain, France and Germany (with addendum for Switzerland), Minimum wage legislation in various countries, Comparative wage rates in the U.S. and in foreign countries, 1927, Wages paid on steamships by country and occupation, 1922, wages paid to Chinese and Lascar (Indian or southeast Asian) employees, Farm family incomes in Wake County, North Carolina - 1926, Foods - Average retail prices over time, 1923-36, Foods - Average retail prices across 39 cities, 1920-1928, corn meal, rice, potatoes, granulated sugar, coffee and tea, onions, navy beans, prunes, raisins, canned salmon, evaporated milk, margarine, lard, oats, corn flakes, wheat cereal, macaroni, canned baked beans, canned corn, canned peas, canned tomatoes, bananas, oranges, Food price averages for each year from 1890-1970, Cigarette, cigar and rolling papers - Los Angeles, 1921, Farm houses in Iowa - Value and size, 1923, Sears homes with costs to build, 1908-1939, Cost of materials to build a Sears home, ca. Coal operators often provided services like company stores. along with the country of origin, value in that country, transportation charges, duty charges and retail price in the U.S. Includes a photo of most items. A man sometimes had to get down on his hands and knees, with his left shoulder, well padded, against the car, bracing himself with his toes against the ties and the dirt of the floor, wrote a former miner, while his partner controlled the brakes to keep the car from rolling back on the pusher if he slipped or grew tired. Back injuries, broken legs, and severed feet and fingers were common. Time became important to managers as they changed their labor model. Source: BLS. Source: Compares 1922 to1940 wage rates for a variety of RR jobs, pp. Tools and hardware: in FOREIGN COUNTRIES, FOOD Washington, D.C. Email powered by MailChimp (Privacy Policy & Terms of Use), The American Twins, Harpers Weekly, 1874, African American History Curatorial Collective. The regions first coal miners primarily were African Americans, both enslaved and free. Engineers used anemometers to measure airflow within mines. Includes both land and buildings. Shows average value for farm land and buildings from 1850-1982. Priced by the single unit. Bathroom: Wages are in contemporary US dollars. As the men removed one pillar after another, the wooden posts used to support the mine top would be strained as the roof started getting heavy. The wood would then creak and groan and then splinter as the miners heard the roof working above their heads and planned their retreat accordingly. Aboveground, many miners suffered at the hands of the company men who short-weighed tonnage a man had loaded or docked his pay because slate was found mixed in with the coal. Tables are broken down by occupation, sex, and state. Mr. Here Are the Best Reviewed Books of the Month. Acquiring a sense of humor helped mask a workers dread of the mine, but joking was no substitute for learning how to be careful. Prices are shown in Swiss francs. The coal industry required more labor than southern West Virginia could supply. Source: National Education Association of the United States. There was little prospect then that coal would be in demand as it is today or that the daily wage of miners would be multiplied 8 to 10 times by 1974. Source: This calculator can be used to determine the historical purchasing power of currency in the United Kingdom from 1270 to 2017. After they loaded coal from the fallen pillars, the colliers and their helpers pushed their cars out into the main entry as fast as possible before sections of the roof collapsed. A mail order catalog for the Fall/Winter season, 1920-1921. Wages are shown in German marks. Read more Employment in coal mining industry in the United Kingdom (UK) 1920-2021 . In West Virginia, where mineswere cut near the mountaintops, the overburden was looser and more prone to collapse than in the deeper shaft mines of the North. Shows the average daily wages Greek workers were receiving in metal mines, lignite mines, smelting and refining plants, and quarries. Self-respecting craftsmen were even known to stop working when a foreman came by to inspect their room. Source: U.S. BLS Bulletin #682, chapter 9: "Monthly earnings of professional engineers," pp. "75 Years of American Finance: A Graphic Presentation 1861-1935" Boys frequently were assigned the most-dangerous jobs. Must use "search in this text" feature to navigate. The average hourly pay for a Coal Mine Worker is $21.49. Source: BLS, Shows the average daily or monthly wages for various occupations in 5 different cities in Brazil. Retail prices for brick, cement, lumber of various kinds, window glass, shingles, nails and more. Fixtures, chamberpots, bathroom soaps, towels, toilet paper. 2-4. Wages are shown in Spanish pesetas. MERCHANDISE Shows the changes in wages of united Illinois coal miners following a labor agreement. Shows wages by occupation grouped by industries, with breakouts for males and females. Source: BLS, Shows the cost of foodstuffs and other necessities in Greece. School and office supplies: A paid subscription is required for full access. Shows average dollar amount spent annually in categories such as food, clothing, maintenance of health, personal goods, furniture and more. Kanawha County coal seams were relatively thick, so men could often stand or just bend slightly, but some coal cutters had to work bent over all day in low coal. After sorting out the slate fragments and loading the car, the miner attached his brass check to the side of the car and pushed it out into the main tunnel, where mules or a small locomotive pulled the load out of the mine to the weigh station and then to the tipple, where the coal would be prepared and funneled into railroad cars. When he lit the fuse, the lead miner hollered, Fire in the hole, and scuttled out of the room with his buddy. Typical compensation for directors, camera men, editors and more in, Shows typical earnings for reporters, feature writers, sports editors and others, in. Wiki User. Cabinets and cookware. Wages are shown in French francs. Veteran colliers knew competitive individualism bred greed, hostility, thievery, and a disregard for mine safety. Then the men and boys would gather their tools and trudge down the mountainside to their little cabins to wash off the coal dust that smudged their faces, necks, arms, and hands, and to sit down for an evening meal. Source: BLS, Shows the average pay for a 48 hour week throughout 5 different industries in Milan. Source: Bulletin #269 of the North Carolina Agricultural Experiment Station, "Farm Family Living Among White Owner and Tenant Operators in Wake County," pages 24-28. Prices are shown in Japanese yen. As a novice, Keeney learned the colliers trade from older craftsmenthe skills of cutting the face, setting the charges, and loading the coal without wrenching his back or crippling himself. Also tells pay for court clerks and marshals. A strong, skilled coal loader might fill five or more cars in a day. Source: Shows the earnings per hour and week for sawmill workers over a 20 year period. Wages are shown in contemporary U.S. dollars. Source: BLS Monthly Labor Review (July 1930). Source: AAUP report, p. 162. Women's: Compares average retail prices for "warehoused" name brand grocery items at independent and chain stores in Cincinnati. Source: BLS, Shows the average wages for an 8 hour work day in Riga within various industry groups. Source: Covers elementary schools and junior high schools in American cities with populations of 2,500 or more. Links to government documents and primary sources listing retail prices for products and services, as well as wages for common occupations. The wage data is broken out by sex. Source: BLS Bulletin no. Source: Source: BLS Handbook of Labor Statistics, 1931 edition. Retreat mining required the rapid destruction of these pillars, each containing tons of valuable coal, before the mine collapsed. Wages are shown in French francs. Engineers working for Philadelphia and Reading Coal and Iron Co. used this model to visualize the coal seams and design their mines. Red Ash mine was also the location of a disaster in 1900, which killed forty-six miners. Describes the labor policy of New Zealand in the 1920's and throughout the rest of the early 20th century. Source: BLS, Shows the earnings over different times for both government employees and manual workers in Hamburg. Salary data for teachers, principals and school administrators in New York City, Philadelphia, Cleveland, Detroit, St. Louis, Chicago and Kansas City. Shows wage data by manufacturing categories for 1914, 1919, 1921, and 1923. Managers liked immigrants because they worked for low wages. Shows expenditures by category with prices per article and amounts needed annually for a family of five. Report published in 1923 gives wages for Arkansas women by occupation and race. In the words of the popular song Miners Lifeguard, written by a miner from Oak Hill, West Virginia: A miners life is like a sailors, 7-8 in: Extensive, 219-page report published in the Bureau of Labor StatisticsBulletin no. Source: The cost of living among wage-earners, Cincinnati OH, pp. Manufacturing wages -- SEE box further below. Between 12th and 14th Streets 664. By 1910, more Italian immigrants lived in McDowell County than anywhere else in the state. 1920, Home plans and costs to build in California, 1920, Retail prices of building materials by city, 1922, Building material prices paid by farmers, 1923-1924, Cost to construct houses, by type of material - 1921, Building material prices paid by farmers, 1910-1960, Farm real estate - Average value by state and county, 1920, Price of farm land by county in selected states, 1912-1924, New England farms and land - Average value by county, 1920-1930, Farm real estate values in Midwestern states, 1912-2019, Land in Missouri - Cost to rent or buy by county, 1922, Rents in working class neighborhoods in Cincinnati, 1920, Household heating fuel costs and expenditures by city, 1927, Electricity - Average monthly bill, 1924-1950, Household electricity costs and expenditures by city, 1927, Changes in retail prices of electricity, 1923-38, Car prices with illustrations, 1900-1920s, Gasoline prices andtaxes, and annual consumption per vehicle, 1920-1939, Horse-drawn carriages, buggies and accessories, 1920, Horse and mule prices by state, 1919-1920, City transit fares in NY, PA, OH and MA - 1927, Streetcar, omnibus and subway rates, 1926, Passenger train fare in the U.S., 1871-1933, RR ticket prices between NYC and Chicago, 1910-1944, accessories (diapers, baby bottles, etc.