TYPOGRAPHICAL UNION OF NORTH AMERICA, TuE INTERNATIONAL. The labor organization of the printers and those engaged in kindred trades, the oldest national trade union in the United States. It was organized in 1850 as the National Convention of Journeymen Printers, but assumed the name National Typo graphical Union in 1852, and the present name in 1869. The International Typographical Union is an industrial union and claims jurisdiction over all branches of the printing and kindred trades, except those over which jurisdiction has been conceded by agreement. in 1902 the Inter national Typographical Union concluded an 'arbi tration agreement' with the American Newspaper Publishers' Association to last until 1907 which the former undertakes to arbitrate all trade differences with members of the Publishers' Association who agree by contract to accept arbi tration. About 90 per cent, of the publishers have concluded such contracts.
In organization the International Typographi cal Union is a typical industrial union. Provision is made for the separation of the different trades into trade district unions. which retain a large measure of autonomy, although they combine for purposes of defense, in each jurisdiction where there are unions of more than one trade, in al lied printing trades councils. The International
itself, however, strictly regulates the maximum hours of labor of all members. the number of days' work per week, the method of securing work and the discharge of employees (through foremen, who must belong to the union), the em ployment of substitutes. type standards in the fixation of piece scales, the use of sub-lists (lists of authorized substitute workers), and the interchange between newspapers, not owned by the same company, of matter previously used either in the form of type, matrices, or photo engraved plates. Of the receipts from the regu lar dues, one-sixth is apportioned to the general fund, one-fourth to the defense fund. one-fourth to the burial fund, and one-third to the endow ment fund of the Union Printers' Home at Colo rado Springs, Colo. In the fiscal year ending May 31, 1902, the receipts amounted to $151,141 and the expenditures to $145,760. The average membership in 1901 was 34,948. The official organ, The Typographical Journal, is published monthly at the headquarters in Indianapolis, Ind.