{"value"=>"<p>Series documents the role of West Indian labor, local rate employees and the history of labor unions, all on the Canal Zone. Besides the publications and news articles written by Westerman, this series also contains several of his manuscripts about labor unions. Interspersed throughout the series are clippings that mention Westerman's involvement in labor issues as well as his correspondence. In addition, he also maintained a research file on labor consisting of academic histories written by others concerning West Indian labor in Panama dating to 1850. Various reports include a 1946 paper on alleged discriminatory treatment of Panamanian citizens and West Indian employees of the Panama Canal and Panama Railroad Company, an annual report of the Personnel Department (1954), and a study of socio-economic inequities relating to U. S. - Panama affairs on the Canal Zone (1960). Other information relates to labor unions, their formation and problems they dealt with in regard to the AFL and the CIO, as well as collective bargaining, salary and benefit disparities and working conditions of the \"local rate\" employees as compared to U. S. employees. \"Local rate\" employees were paid according to the Canal Zone Wage Structure, also known as the Caribbean Wage Scale. This wage scale was established in 1903 and refers to the lower rate of compensation for Panamanian workers ostensibly to prevent conflict with the surrounding Caribbean countries from which local labor was recruited.</p> <p>The unions represented in this series are Panama Canal Zone Workers' Organizing Committee (PCZWOC) of the CIO, Locals 713 and 900 (also affiliated with the CIO), United Public Workers, the Government and Civic Employees Organizing Committee (GCEOC) and the Panama Canal West Indian Employees Association (PCWIEA). Files of Local 713 pertain to organizing the union and to the expulsion of the UPW from membership in the CIO due to the charge of having communist leanings. The material for Local 900 includes reports Local President Edward Gaskin prepared regarding socio-economic problems affecting Panamanian nationals employed in the Canal Zone and correspondence with John L. Yancey, assistant director of the GCWOC.</p> <p>Additional papers pertain to the National Maritime Union (NMU), which represented approximately 5000 workers, both American and non-U. S. citizens. There are news clippings and correspondence concerning the efforts of the Canal Zone Central Labor Union and the Metal Trades Council to achieve equality of treatment for Americans and Panamanians working for the Canal Zone Company. News clippings, speeches and other material reflect Edward Gaskin's ongoing involvement with labor issues including his role as staff representative with Government Operations of the NMU. There is a position paper (1976) regarding proposed changes to the Canal Zone Wage Structure and the tropical differential (a monetary incentive established in 1903 to attract American employees to live in unhealthy conditions). Other positions papers propose recommendations regarding labor protection during the 1977 Panama Canal Treaty Negotiations, and the Panama Area Wage Base and Cost of Living Allowance (1981-1984). News clippings about the NMU's opposition to the exportation of Alaskan oil to foreign countries (1983) are also in this series. A file on the NMU sponsored scholarship program for children of NMU members to attend any accredited high school in Panama contains correspondence and news clippings discussing the selection process and winners. Westerman served as chairman of the Scholarship Committee.</p> <p>About one-half of the series consists of a chronological ordering of documents related to a wide variety of labor issues. The 1950s papers pertain to the Caribbean Wage Scale, the proposal to have a single wage scale for Canal workers (a report by Adam Clayton Powell, Jr. with appendices by Westerman is included). Also, there are annual reports for the Personnel Bureau, and files about the Canal Zone Replacement Program which replaced the Panama Canal Company employees with local rate employees, and information about the working conditions of employees of the United Fruit Company. Material related to Hilton E. Hanna, labor relations specialist who studied labor-management problems in Panama, consists of correspondence, speeches and news articles by and about Hanna. News articles discuss the impact the 1955 Panama Canal Treaty had on wages of the local rate employees. Other news clippings and reports deal with the retirement system for non-U. S. citizens and pensions for local rate employees. There are also reports concerning grievances of U. S. employees.</p> <p>The 1960s material includes legislation to improve the Cash Relief Act of 1937 regarding benefits to widows of retired employees who had worked in the Canal Zone, and the 25% tropical differential for U. S. employees working in the Canal Zone. The 1970s files contain the transcript of a conference with Ellsworth Bunker and delegates from labor unions in the Canal Zone, news articles about the ways the minimum age law affected Canal Zone workers, results of the Pestillo report about the Panama Canal Company's labor relations with U. S. employees, and news articles documenting the 1976 strike by U. S. employees caused by austerity measures.</p> <p>The 1980s material includes a report about the Panama Area Wage Base (PAWB), which went into effect in 1979 with the implementation of the 1977 Panama Canal Treaty. The PAWB established a pay system for new local employees based on locally prevailing rates for similar work in Panama. A paper in this series discusses the implementation of the Upward Mobility Program which helped employees reach their highest potential by providing opportunities for advancement according to their abilities. The series closes with a letter concerning the cost of living allowance for U. S. employees. News clippings for each decade have been placed at the end of the file for each decade.</p> <p>The final part of this series deals with general information about labor on the Canal Zone from 1904 through the 1940s, and consists of photocopies of original documents regarding Barbadians who helped construct the Panama Canal; lists of contract laborers from Barbados, 1904-1913; notes about a silver labor strike on the Canal Zone, 1919-1920; information about discriminatory labor practices regarding the gold and silver roll, 1942-1946; and a report by the rate review sub-board.</p>"}