UQJOJ»
INTERNATIONAL LABOUR
OFFICE

Studies and Reports
Series

GKNEVA

No.

B
3

December ioth 1020.

The Conditions of Labour and Production
in the Upper Silesian Coalfield

SUMMAEY
I. Decline of production in Upper Silesia and in the Ruhr.
II. Social and national agitation in Upper Silesia since November 1918.
The mines and the Employers' Organisations;
The miners of Upper Silesia and the Trade Unions;
The disturbances of 1919 and 1920; their character; their causes;
their consequences.
III. Improvement in economic and labour conditions since November 1918.
Hours of work; wages; rationing of the miners.
The agreement for the supplementary shift; its nature and its effects.
IV. Conditions of development of mining.
The dearth of labour;
The housing crisis;
Improvement in methods of extraction;
The price of coal.
V. The necessity of a speedy determination of the future of Upper Silesia
by a plebiscite.

I.

DECLINE OF PRODUCTION IN UPPER SILESIA
AND IN THE RUIIH.

The diminution of coal production has been relatively
greater in Tipper Silesia than in the Ruhr. Mere comparison
of the total production does not demonstrate this fact. The
mines of Upper Silesia, which in 1913 supplied 43,801,05(>
tons of coal, in 1919 supplied 25,932,372 tons, a difference
of about 18 million tons.
In the Ruhr, the difference between the pre-war figure
and the post-war figure was about 44 millions on a production of 110,765,495 tons in 1914. The percentage diminution in the two areas as shown by these figures is practically
identical.
This is no longer the case, however, when comparison
is made of the diminution in output per man per day in Upper

ILO-SR/B 3
ENGL
COP.

1

IUI QU 11 II ¡ I I I ||

Silesia and in the R u h r area (figure arrived at b y taking
account of the whole working population of the mines :
193 3
1919
Ruhr
Upper

Silesia

.

.

.

Tons.

Tons.

1.0
1.192

0.7
0.567

This i m p o r t a n t difference of o u t p u t among t h e miners
of Upper Silesia and those of the R u h r is due to the fact t h a t
the conditions of social and economic life in the area of Upper
Silesia are now, as they were before t h e war, peculiar to
the district. I t would therefore be misleading to a t t e m p t
to establish exact comparisons between the production in
these t w o areas.
I t is true t h a t at the present moment an equal improvem e n t in production is recorded. In Upper Silesia, however,
t h e i m p r o v e m e n t came later. If did not take place until
the m o n t h of J u l y , 1920, as the following table shows :
April, 1920
2,581,702 tons
May,
<<
2,247,471 »
June,
»
2,659,111 >
July,
•>
3,036,598 »
I t is certain also t h a t in Upper Silesia, as in the R u h r ,
the i m p r o v e m e n t has been maintained in spite of the troubles.
The daily average of 112,467 tons obtained in J u l y , and
m a i n t a i n e d during the whole of the first fortnight of August,
fell suddenly at the time of the strike and the disturbances,
b u t was re-estalm'shed in the beginning of September (').
Nevertheless, the problem of labour and production presents itself in quite different wavs in Upper Silesia and in
the R u h r .
II.

T H E AGITATION ix

TUE U P P E R SILESIAN

(NOVEMBER 1 9 1 S - S K P T E M B K R

The

COALFIELD

1920)

mines

The mining región of Upper Silesia is only p a r t of the
immense area which includes t h e mines of D o m b r o w a on
the Bast, and the area of Mahrisch-Ostrau on t h e West.
I t extends to the whole Southern and E a s t e r n p a r t of
U p p e r Silesia, and may be divided into three great p a r t s
of equal extent but of uneqiral importance :—
a) The "Centralrevier" or industrial district, properly
so-called, in which are situated the great industrial centres
of Gleiwitz, Beuthen, H i n d e n b u r g or Zabrze, Konigshütte,
L a u r a h ü t t e , K a t t o w i t z and Myslowitz;
I1) Production in September was 2,757,287 tons in October 2,797,290
tons.

b) The district of Pless (Emmanuelsegen mines), Ober,
Nieder, and Mittellasisk mines).
c) The district of Rybnik (mines to the South of Rybnik,
and Dübensko mines).
Mining in these last two districts is not so advanced as
in the Centralrevier, although the oldest coal mine of Upper
Silesia is a mine in the district of Pless, the Emmanuelsegengrübe, opened in 1754.
There are today in the three districts taken together 63
mines belonging to 23 different companies or separate managements. The chief of these companies or managements :
are :—
The Prussian State;
The Kattowitzer Aktiengesellschaft;
The Königs und Laurahütte Aktiengesellschaft;
The Hohenlohewerke;
The managements on behalf of George von Giesche's heirs,
Count Schaffgotsch, Count Ballestrem, Prince of Donnersmarck,
Count Henckel of Donnersmarck, Prince of Pless, the Donnersmarckhütte Aktiengesellschaft, the Eybniker Steinkohlengewerkschaft .
The mines of Upper Silesia no longer belong exclusively,
as in former times, to great noble families, but belong also
to joint stock companies.
The mining wealth possessed by the companies and managements above enumerated is considerable.
A statistical
report published in the Manual of the Industrial Area of
Upper Silesia (Handbuch des Oberschlesischen Industriebezirks, Kattowitz, 1913, page 39) gives the following particulars :
"Including all the coal seams having a thickness of over
30 centimetres situated between a depth of 0 and 2,000 metres, the mining area contains 165, 987 millions of tons.
"Out of this total the quantity of coal capable of extraction amounts to 113,995 million tons.
"The working of the coal deposits situate between 0 and
1000 metres could continue for over 1200 years allowing for
a production of 50 million tons per annum, or over 800 years
if the annual production rose to 75 million tons."
The coal of Upper Silesia is of excellent quality. Unfortunately, it often contains a high proportion of gas, which
prevents it from constituting a sufficiently compact mass and
from being employed in the production of coke. The production of coke in Upper Silesia was in 1913, 2,201,899 tons,
and in 1919, 1,863,643 tons.
The Employers'

Organisations.

The metal working and mining industry of Upper Silesia,
like that of the Ruhr, was organised at an early date for
the defence of its particular interests and for securing its

development. It has possessed since 1861 an excellent representative body, The Metal and Mining Association of
Upper Silesia (Oberschlesischer Berg und Hüttenmännischer
Verein).
This Association corresponds practically to the
"Verein für Bergbaulischen Interessen" of Essen. I t has
its hedaquarters at Kattowitz, publishes a Review appearing at irregular intervals, and every year an important
statistical record. In 1913, on the occasion of the twelfth
congress of the mining industry, it presented a voluminous
study of the industry of Upper Silesia (Handbuch des Oberschlesischen Industriebezirks).
On the 1st October, 1898, there was created, side by side
with the Berg und Hüttenmännischer Verein, the Oberschlesische Kohlen Convention. This association also has
its headquarters at Kattowitz. It includes all the coal mines
administrations with the exception of two or three. It
was created to regulate the price and sale of coal, but it is
distinguished from the Coal Union of Westphalia and the
Bhine by the fact that it does not itself undertake the sale
of fuel, but leaves this to the mines administrations themselves. The coal of Upper Silesia is thus sold directly by
the mines to great coal-selling houses.
In the month of November 1918 the German employers
decided to enter into direct relations with the trade unions
and to regulate, in agreement with them, the conditions of labour and wages. The Berg und Hüttenmännischer Verein undertook the first negotiations and concluded the Convention of
the 18th November, 1919, with the workers' organisations.
Since that date an employers' association for the metalworking a-nd mining industry has existed in Upper Silesia,
as in the other regions of Germany. This Association, called
the "Arbeitgeberverband des Oberschlesischen Bergwerks
und Hüttenindustrie", henceforth conducted all négociations
with the workers. The first collective agreement in Upper
Silesia as regards the mines - that of 30 th January 1920 bears its signature.
Thus, in Upper Silesia, as in the Ruhr, the employers have
today an excellent economic and social organisation.
*The Mene- Workers of Upper Silesia
The great majority of the population employed to-day
in the mines of Upper Silesia are natives. The miner of Upper Silesia is a former peasant or the son of a peasant of the
district. As families in Upper Silesia are very large, a great
part of the surplus population has been utilised by the industry. It is this which has made possible the estabUshment
of industrial and mining undertakings in regions hitherto purely
agricultural. In consequence of this method of recruiting,
it is still impossible in Upper Silesia to establish a very clear
distinction between the peasant and the miner.

The Upper Silesian worker is diligent, patient, and skilful. The young men ordinarily m a r r y very young, remaining
with their p a r e n t s until t h e y are married. The ceremony
is the occasion of a little local fête in the village. The miners
living in the locality obtain a day's leave from t h e management of the mines, in order to t a k e p a r t in the fête.
W i t h this mixture of t h e habits of the workman and the
peasant, the mining population has not u p to now a d a p t e d
itself to the discipline of industrial work. The employers
complain of the frequent and unjustified holidays of their
employees. The n u m b e r of shifts (Schichten) workede ach year
in Upper Silesia is consistently lower t h a n t h a t worked in
other mining areas.
The Trade

Union Organisations of the
of Upper tiilesia

Miners

The peasant miners of Upper Silesia were hardly organised in Trade Unions until after t h e war.
There was, indeed, in 2 889 a Workers Association called
" T h e Workers' Mutual Aid Society of Upper Silesia" (Oberschlesischer Arbeiterverein gegenseitiger Hilfe) ( ! ), b u t this
Association was not, properly speaking, a Trade Union. I t
only distributed benefits to workers and their iamilies in
ease of sickness or death.
The Mutual Aid Society was founded in t h e following
circumstances. After the strike of May 1889 the Polish journals appearing in U p p e r Silesia pointed o u t to the workers
t h e necessity of organising themselves. A meeting of miners
took place at Beuthen, on t h e initiative of t h e Polish journalist Xapieralski, on t h e 25th August, 1889. I t decided
on t h e foundation of a Society the constitution of which
was prepared b y Abbé Radziejewski. The Society was only
to admit workers not belonging to t h e Socialist P a r t y .
I n 1902, there was founded in t h e R u h r the "Polish Trades
Association'' (Polnische Berufsvereinigung — Zjednoczenie
Z a w o d o w e Polskie). This Association p e n e t r a t e d into Upper
Silesia in 1909, absorbing the old Mutual Aid Society, which
then numbered 11,642 members, b u t u p to t h e date of the war
it h a d a t t a i n e d b u t little development. I t numbers t o d a y
90,000 miners out of a total of 155.000 members.
Some years before t h e war — in 1907 — t h e Christian
Miners' Union of Essen also established a b r a n c h in Upper
Silesia. I t a t t r a c t e d very few workers. At t h e present
time it still only n u m b e r s a b o u t 2,000 miners.
Like these t w o Christian Trade Unions, the Socialist
Miners' Union, the Bergarbeiterverband of Bochum, was
(') As to this Association, see 25 Jahre Gewerkvereirt Christlicher
Bergarbeiter. Imbuscli. fissen, 1919, page 25, and Deutsche Gewerkschaftsbewegung by Kùhleniann, 1910.

very feeble prior to 1914.
In 1007 it had 2,288 members
and in 1913, 4,078. In J u n e 1920 it numbered 24,517 miners.
Finally, on t h e 1st J a n u a r y 1914, a Polish Socialist Trade
Union Organisation was founded at Oswiecim (a little town
in Austrian Galieia on the frontier of Upper Silesia) with
t h e name of "Polnischer Centralverband - Centralny Zwiazek
Z a w o d o w y Polski", under the presidency of a former
official of the miners Union of Bochum, Adamek. The new
organisation had just begun to t a k e shape before t h e war.
To-day it numbers 32,000 miners out of a total of 45,000
members.
There are therefore at t h e present time in Upper Silesia
t w o Polish t r a d e union organisations and two German
organisations, all of recent formation viz :—
Polish Trades Association
90,000 miners
Christian Miners Union
2,000 >•
Central Polish Association
32,000 >•
Free Miners Union (1)
24,312
•
There is also in Upper Silesia a branch of t h e non-socialist
t r a d e unions, or " H i r s c h - D u n c k e r " and a branch of t h e communist association "Freie Arbeit e r u n i o n " . B u t these branches
are of very small importance.
The figures given above are those which are supplied
by t h e organisations themselves. They have given rise to
considerable controversy in the t r a d e union organs, each
organisation accusing its rivals of grossly exaggerating the
n u m b e r of its adherents. I t is none the less certain that
t h e Christian t r a d e unionist organisations have a marked
preponderance in Upper Silesia over the socialist organisations. The Upper Silesian miner is a Catholic. In the
buildings of m a n y mines there i s a large hall furnished wit h an
altar, in which Catholic worship is celebrated every Sunday.
The socialist, Christian, and non-socialist unions of the
miners of U p p e r Silesia after t h e l'évolution of November
established a common association, or "Arbeitsgemeinschaft",
entrusted with the conducting of négociations with the employers organisations and administrative bodies.
The Rising

of Miners

in Upper

Silesia

The development of t h e t r a d e union movement among
t h e working population of Upper Silesia has been continually arrested, compromised and disturbed by risings and
disturbances, t h e last of which took place on the 20th
August 1920.
The workers' agitation in Upper Silesia goes back to t h e
m o n t h of J u n e 1918, t h a t is to say, to the last m o n t h s of
(I ; The German Miners' Union points out that as a result of the cession
to Czecho-SlovHkin of the mines situated nt Hultschin, it has had to
transfer to the " Ber^arbeiterunion " of Töplitz 2.80'J of its members.

— 7 —

the war. Its causes in the beginning were inadequate wages
a n d excessive working hours. I t originated in t h e Von Giesche
mines, situated near K a t t o w i t z , and soon spread to the whole
area. The General Headquarters of the Oth A r m y Corps, which
had t h e industrial region in its district, ordered the workers
in the Von Giesche mines to resume work immediately, under
penalty o being sent to t h e front. The miners refused to
obey this order. 1,800 were prosecuted in the courts, a n d
condemned to penalties varying from one to three m o n t h s ' imprisonment.
The German Revolution broke out in t h e midst of these
events. An agreement was concluded on t h e 18th Xovember,
1918, between workers and employers. B u t the sense of irrit a t i o n was too great, the m o v e m e n t could not be stopped and
it broke out again with extreme violence.
In a series of articles published by t h e " A r b e i t g e b e r "
in its numbers of t h e 15th J u n e , 1st J u l y a n d 15th August
1919, under the title " T h e Reign of Terror in the Industrial
Area of Upper Silesia", the organ of t h e German Employers
Associations gives us t h e history of the troubles occurring in t h e
mines between Xovember, 1918 and August, 1919. The
m o n t h l y bulletin published in the course of t h e year 1919
by the " M i t t e i l u n g e n " or Bulletin of the " R e i c h s v e r b a n d der
deutschen I n d u s t r i e " also furnishes details in regard to this
period.
The miners' claims were no longer limited to questions
of wages and work. They d e m a n d e d by force if necessary :
1. The dismissal of m a n y foremen, overseers a n d
accountants ;
2. The expulsion of mine-workers who served in frontierguards formed after the Revolution (Grenzschutz) ;
3. The abolition of the s t a t e of siege.
Finally, on the night of t h e 17th a n d 18th August, 1919,
a general rising broke out. I t began in the mines in the districts of Pless and Rybnik, and afterwards extended to the industrial area properly so-called, or Centralrevier. The Prussian Government was obliged to send 80.000 men of t h e
Reichswehr.
The agitation did not cease. The miners continue even
to-day to d e m a n d the dismissal of employees whose brutalities
and severities they denounce. F o r instance, t h e dismissal was
demanded of 3 employees of the Prinzengrube on the 18th
August, and on the 11th September of 3 employees of the
Cleophasgrube
The movement has tended, however, during recent m o n t h s ,
to t a k e on a new aspect. The agitation is now directed
more particularly against t h e i m m i g r a n t German miners
or t h e Upper Silesian miners of German sentiments, against
the officials of the German Miners' Union of Bochum and the
workers belonging to the p r o p a g a n d a Association " V e r b a n d
der H e i m a t t r e u e n Oberschlesier ". Since May, 1920, the

I

"Bergarbeiterzeitung", the organ of the Bochum union, has
been publishing in its columns protests and complaints
e m a n a t i n g from its Upper Silesian Branch (see the numbers of
t h e 22nd i l a y , 12¿h J u n e , 21st August', and 4th September,
1920). The last miners' disturbance, t h a t of 20th August, 1920,
seem to h a v e been especially directed against t h e German
unions.
This increasing; hostility between German and Polish
Unions introduces a new element into t h e already complex
problem of production and labour in Upper Silesia.
The Consequences of the Disturbances

as regards Coal

Production.

The dismissal of a few miners or employees m a y not h a v e
a great effect on the progress of mining, but there is a decided
risk that disturbances like those of 1919 and 1920 will lead
to a serious and lasting diminution in coal production.
If the official statistics are consulted, it will be seen t h a t
as soon as a disturbance ends the miners quietly return to
work and p u t forth the same effort as before they took u p
arms and went on strike. The output was 8(J,(i22 tons a
day at the beginning of August, 1919, before t h e first disturbance.
I t was 87,198 tons at the end of t h e same m o n t h ,
after having fallen to 31,488 tons during the troubles.
Production followed the same acute oscillations at t h e
time of the disturbance of 1920, as the following table shows :
18th August. 1920
103,800 tons.
19th
••
>•
99.341 »
20th
»
»
73,737 «
21st
»
<•
39,606 ..
22nd
>
(Sundav)
23rd
•.
> . . . . ' . .
18,000 »
24th
»
•
18,751 „
25th
•.
•
23,499 ,
26th
;
49,221 •>
27th
-.
»
82,627 >•
28th
>•
93,976 '
29th
(Sundav)
30th
.
103,256 >.
When t h e m o m e n t of revolt passes, t h e miner of Upper
Silesia resumes his daily task with t h e same application.
I t is none the less the case t h a t during the period of dist u r b a n c e , production ceases or falls to a very low level.
III.

IMPHOVKMHNT IN ECONOMIC AND LABOUR
NOVEMBER

CONDITIONS SINCK

1918.

U p p e r Silesia today has therefore the appearance of a
profoundly disturbed country. Labour agitation is both
social a n d national in n a t u r e . The first condition of improve-

— 9 —
ment, or at least of the stabilising of coal production, is the
permanent removal from the country of the menace of new
troubles.
What do the miners of Upper Silesia claim from the
social point of view ? Having been organised for a much
shorter period than the miners of the Ruhr, they are less
directly interested in the new problems of economic democracy in which the German trade union world has been so
keenly interested since the revolution of November 1918,
and particularly in the measures taken ór projected for establishing the system of economic democracy in the coal industry : the operation of the AVorks Councils established by the
law of the 4th February 1920 in mining undertakings, the
organisation of the Reichskohlenrat, or Imperial Coal Council, created by the laws of the 23rd March 1919 and the 25th
March 1920 and modified by the resolution of the Eeichs
kohlenverband of the 28th May 1920, the projects of the Socialisation Commission of the 31st July 1920 for the socialisation of the mines, or rather for the establishment of a system
of "collective economy" (Gemeinwirtschaft) in relation to coal.
The miners of Upper Silesia are interested chiefly in the
improvement of the conditions of labour and wages.
Hours of Work
The hours of work in most of the mines of Upper Silesia
before the war were ten hours (from six in the morning until
four in the afternoon) or, deducting the time necessary for
descent and ascent, 8% hours of actual work.
On the 18th November 1918, the first agreement was
entered into between the trade unions and the Oberschlesisscher Berghüttenmannischer Verein. By this agreement the
Upper Silesian employers undertook to introduce in all the
mines at the latest by the 1st December 1918, the shift of
8 hours reckoned from the commencement of the descent to
the commencement of the ascent, or about 7 hours of effective
work.
At the end of April 1918, 33.6 per cent of the miners were
ah'eady working not more than 8 hours; 59.7 per cent worked
10 hours and 0.7 per cent even 11 hours.
On the 31st January 1920, the first collective agreement
was concluded between the miners union and the employers
association "Arbeitgeberverband der Oberschlesischen Bergwerks und Ilüttenbetriebe". It fixed the working day at
7 y2 hours, or, deducting the time necessary for descending,
0 hours of actual work.
The morning shift was from 6 a. m. to 1.30 p. m.; the
evening shift from 2.0. to 9.30.
At the same time, the Employers Association proposed
to the miners that the question of the adoption in Upper

— 10 —
Silesia of the 7 hour shift should be submitted to the 'Eeiehsarbeitsgemeinschaft" (').
The latter appointed a Joint Commission composed of Workers and Employers' representatives from the mines of the
Euhr, Saxony and Lower Silesia, which made a visit of enquiry to the mining area on the 14th July 1920. The Commission on its return prepared a report which it submitted to
the Eeichsarbeitsgemeinschaft. In this report the Commission
expressed the opinion :
"...that it was possible by an improvement n methods of
working to reduce the difference which existed between the
hours of productive work and the hours of unproductive work,
and by these means to introduce into Upper Silesia the same
working hours as in the other mining areas."
The work of the Commission has so far had no other result.
Wages
The wages of the miners of Upper Silesia have remained
up to recent times appreciably lower than those of the Euhr.
The difference diminished a little during the years immediately
preceding the war, because the cost of living rose considerably
more in Upper Silesia than in, the Euhr during that period,
and wages had to be incrased in proportion, but the difference
was still considerable in July 1914, as the following table
shows :
The average earnings per chift less insurance contributions
and sums paid to assistant labourers, of all miners properly so
called (class A in the official statistics, hewers, fillers and
putters), as established by official figures over a period of
three months.
Ruhr
Upper Silesia
JIarks
Maries
Second quarter, 1914
6.19
4.87
Second quarter, 1918
12.61
10.11
Second quarter, 1919
19.53
18.34
During the year 1920 the wages of miners have risen considerably in Upper Silesia as in the Euhr, but the increase has
not followed the same course in the two areas. We will take
as an example, for the purpose of studying the changes in
wages in Upper Silesia, the wages of hewers per shift.
In 1913 hewers in Upper Silesia earned from 6 marks to
6.50 marks.
(') The Reichsarbeitsgemeinschaft is a vast joint economic organisation, formed since the revolution of Xovember 1918, which extends to
all branches of economic life and to the wholte of Germanj' It includes
representatives of trade unions and of industrial undertakings and has
its headquarters at Berlin.

— 11 —
As a result of strikes provoked by the constant increase
n the cost of living the minimum wage of the hewer was
fixed at :
10 marks on the 9th July 1917 (decision of the Arbitration
Commission),
16 marks by the agreement of the 18th November 1918.
Since the beginning of 1920 wages have increased in the
following proportions :
Basic wage Average piece-rate Average total
per shift
earnings fer shift
wage per shift
Date
Maries
Marks
Maries
14.—
19.40
33.40,/si February 1920.
15.60
19.40
35.— 1st March 1920.
30.60
19.40
50.— 1st April 1920.
It may be seen that the increase in the wages of hewers
made a considerable jump at the beginning of April. Wages
in Upper Silesia exceeded those of the Euhr district (basic
wage 22.50 marks; average total wage 45.50 marks, 1st April
1920).
The representatives of the Trade Unions, however, were
not satisfied. They demanded an increase of 2.40 marks per
hour, or 18 marks per shift, for the month of May. The
Arbitration Court of Gleiwitz on the 27th May 1920 awarded
them an increase of 7.50 marks per shift, or 1 mark per hour.
The employers did not agree to the award, on the pretext
that the German exchange had improved, and that this would
result in a general fall in prices making an increase
of wages unnecessary.
After long negotiations lasting
throughout the month of June, they consented on the 27th
June to sign an agreement by which the miners received
a bonus of 8 marks per shift for one month. This bonus
was to be paid in a lump sum on the 15th July for the average
number of shifts per month worked by the miner during the
months of May and June; for example, for 24 shifts in May
and 20 shifts in June, a bonus of 8 marks for 22 shifts would
be paid. This bonus having been paid, the wages fixed in
April would remain in force.
The employers of Upper Silesia, however, thought it
desirable to modify the April scales, as the basic wage under
these scales was much too high in proportion to the piece rate.
The wages of hewers were thenceforth fixed as follows :Basic wage Average piece
per shift
rate earnings
per shift
JIarks
Marks
21.40
28.60

Average total
wage per shift
Marks
50.—

Date

Agreement of 26th
July 1920.

Under this new provision hewers in Upper Silesia now
earn on an average 52 marks, and even 56 marks, per shift,
a figure closely approximating to that of the wages of the
hewers in the Buhr fixed by the agreements of the 21st May
and 19th August 1920, namely about 57.50 marks.
Rationing of the Miners.
The industrial area of Upper Silesia is situated in the midst
of fertile agricultural regions. The miners should therefore
be able to obtain on advantageous terms the food supplies
which they require. But even before the war the agricultural
regions to the west sent the greater part of their products
to Berlin and Breslau. The agricultural regions to the east
were prevented by customs tariffs from sending their cattle,
vegetables and cereals to the industrial area. The result was
at that time a considerable increase in the cost of living.
Since the revolution of NoA*emher 1918 the situation has not
appreciably changed. The importation of agricultural products from Czecho-Slovakia, Poland and Hungary continues
to be impeded by new obstacles of an economic or political
character.
The favourite food of the Upper Silesian consists of pork,
sauerkraut, bread and potatoes, but he has an equal liking
for bacon and smoked herrings.
The miners of Upper Silesia are entitled at present to the.
following ration, being the normal weekly ration per head
for all inhabitants of Upper Silesia :1800 grammes of flour.
2000 " ).
» bread.
5000
»
» potatoes.
200
»
» fat (butter, bacon, pork fat).
150
»
» special food products, (nahrmittel).
1 tin of condensed milk.
He receives in addition 750 grammes of sugar per month
and a certain quantity of meat.
The inhabitants of Upper Silesia undoubtedly do not receive all these rations regularly. Any deficiency, however,
is compensated.
The weekly supplementary ration per head for persons en-,
gaged in hard manual work is :1050 grammes of flour.
1500
»
» bread.
1 tin of condensed milk.
The employers association of the metal and mining industry has for more than a year past obtained for the miners
certain extra, food at prices fixed by a Joint Commission
(Lebensmittelkommission) namely :

— 13 —
21 grammes of flour per head per Aveek.
353
)>
» fat.
136
••
» dry vegetables.
A certain q u a n t i t y of herrings.
Finally t h e miners will receive in v i r t u e of t h e agreement
relating to t h e supplementary shift (details of which are
given below) per head per week at reduced prices :500 grammes of flour.
1500
.»
» fat.
500
»
» sugar.
If we add together all these different rations, the normal
r a t i o n , t h e ration for h a r d m a n u a l work, t h e ration of t h e
Employers Association, and the supplementary ration, it
will be seen t h a t the food situation of the Upper Silesian
miners has notably improved since November 1918, and is
appreciably b e t t e r t h a n t h a t of the R u h r miner«.
The miner m a y add to his rations by t h e purchase of food sold
on t h e m a r k e t and in t h e shops. Since t h e revolution of
N o v e m b e r 1918, in fact, the system of " compulsory economy"
(Zwangswirtschaft) no longer operates with the same rigour
in Germany. I t is destined to disappear completely in t h e
very near future.
Unfortunately these increased food facilities
granted
t o t h e miners h a v e not been accompanied by a general fall in
t h e cost of living. The suppression of t h e system of compulsory economy is even likely to produce a new wave of high
prices. The price of potatoes will u n d o u b t e d l y fall considerably, since potatoes are plentiful in Silesia and before the war
t h e mining area of U p p e r Silesia was t h e industrial area in
which this vegetable was cheapest; b u t all other foodstuffs
will appreciably increase in price.
Accordingly, in a certain n u m b e r of industrial districts,
n o t a b l y those of K a t t o w i t z , Zabrze, and Tarnowitz, a Commission for fixing prices has been formed, for t h e pui'pose
of establishing a scale of prices for small traders. The
scale is to be posted u p in all shops a n d m a r k e t s and
observed by traders under penalty of severe fines.
The
Commission is composed of representatives of the communes,
of traders, and of t h e t r a d e union organisations. I t met for
t h e first time at K a t t o w i t z on the 16th August 1920, and it
fixes a new tariff every fortnight.

— 14 —
The following table shows the prices of certain articles of
food in Upper Silesia :
Price under

Prices of

Prices of

P r i c e s of agreement
the cothe
the Lebens
relating
operative I canteen
mittel
Prices for
to supple- Society of
of the
KommisRations
mentary
Sehwient- Emmanuelsion
September
shifts
1920}
( O c t o b e r (September Sflilowitz
segen
lìtìO)
CentralMines
19-20)

Price per
livre ')
Marks

Beef
American
smoked
bacon
Lard
Butter
Vegetable fat . . . .
Margarine, good
quality
F l a k e d Oats
Wheat-flour
Oatmeal .
Ground rice
Green peas
W h i t e beans
Sauerkraut
Onions
Norwegian
smoked
herrin s
Scotch smoked herrings
Jam
Sugar
Coffee

Price per
livre l )
Marks

1

re\*ier(Sep- of Pless
19-20) (Sept. 19*211?
Price per temi).
Price per Price per
livre ')
livre 4)
livre ')
Marks
Marks
Marks

10.40
13.10.40 13 —
1180-1150 !
: 9 —
i
10 —
1.40 ; i . —
0.85 •
0.70
1.2 20
1.50
2.—
1 30 | 1.50

17.

16.
1.—

13.—
2.50
4.—
3.50

2 50
2 40
0.30-1.1 —

2 —
030-0.60
1.—

0.80-1.20

3.80-120

4 —

4.—

32 —

28 —

"Each

0 80
1.20
191-195

The labour a n d economic conditions of the miners of Upper
Silesia h a v e therefore considerably improved since t h e revolution of November, 1918, a n d more particularly since t h e
beginning of the year 1920. The miners earn more and are
b e t t e r fed.
I t is quite evident, particularly lately with only a few m o n t h s
to go before the plebiscite is held, t h a t the i m p r o v e m e n t j u s t
l h e livre = 1.1 His.

— 15 —
noted has not been entirely free from motives of propaganda.
It is also quite evident that there is still much to be done to
ensure appropriate food to the miners, and that the constant
increase in the cost of living will affect the value of the
measures and agreements adopted.
The Agreement relating to the Supplementary

Shift.

A new step forward in the direction of improvements will
also be taken by the approaching agreement relating to the
supplementary shift.
The system of supplementary shifts is not new in Upper
Silesia. Up to recent times a certain number of mines (Deutschlandsgrube, Konigsgrube, Schlesiengrube, Castellengogrube,
Mathildegrube) worked a supplementary shift on Saturdays
for the purpose of ensuring deliveries of coal to the town of
Munich. This supplementary shift was called the Bavarian
Shift (Bayernschicht). The workers employed on it received at a low price a parcel containing food to the value
of 60 Mk. The Bavarian Shift was abolished during the
month of August.
Workers' and employers' organisations, however, entered
into negotiations at the beginning of the same month for the
purpose of introducing in the whole of the mining area the
system of supplementary shifts, which has been in operation
in the Buhr since the agreement of the 15th March 1920.
These negotiations, which were interrupted during the
disturbances, were resumed during the month of September.
The scheme which has been established resembles that of the
Buhr. It differs from it, however, in two points :
First of all in the majority of the mines in Upper Silesia
is it not possible to establish two half-shifts as in the Ruhr.
The miners live at a distance from the mines, and have to
travel to their work by railway. It is necessary, therefore,
to conform as far as possible to the times of trains. It is for
this reason that the employers' organisations proposed to
the trade unions that the supplementary shift should be
worked all at once, on Saturdays. I t is for this reason also
that the scheme established leaves the mine managements
free to choose, in agreement with Works Councils, between
three systems :
1. A single supplementary shift;
2. Two half-shifts per week;
3. A shift distributed equally over all the days
of the week.
But the scheme established in Upper Silesia differs from
that of the Ruhr in a still more important point. The system
of the supplementary shift is considered in Upper Silesia
less as a measure for increasing production than as a means
for furnishing coal which may be exchanged for food at
a low price (fat, flour, sugar). It is for this reason that the

— 16 —
regulation of the agreement raises serious difficulties. With
whom will the exchange of coal and food be made.' With
Germany, or with Poland, Czecho-Slovakia and Hungary.'
German and Polish trade unions have neither the same
opinions nor the same wishes on this point. The system of
supplementary shifts cannot be defin tively established until
this question of exchange has been solved. We have seen
that the scheme contemplates the distribution among the
miners of 2 lbs of fat, 1 lb of flour and 1 lb of sugar.
The social improvements above enumerated would be of
a nature to appease the passions and prejudices cherished
by the miners of Upper Silesia before the war and during
hostilities, and to allow the labour movement to develop
peacefully in the sphere of trade union action, if the agitation
which has inevitably arisen and developed since the beginning
of 1920 in regard to the plebiscite did not threaten at every
moment, by producing opposition between the German and
Polish working classes, to destroy everything and to provoke
new disturbances.
It is necessary for the appeasement of the working classes
that the popular vote contemplated by Article 88 of the Treaty
of Versailles should take place quickly, and that the future
of Upper .Silesia should be definitively settled.
IV.

CONDITIONS OF DEVELOPMENT OF MINING.

The transitional state in which Upper Silesia is placed at the
present time is disadvantageous and injurious from more than
one point of A'iew. For the purpose of increasing the production of coal in the mining area it is necessary not only that the
mining population should work, but that the mines should be
further developed and extended. I t appears, however, very
difficult in the present circumstances to increase the labour
supply, to remedy effectually the housing crisis, and to find
the capital necessary for the renewal of mining-plant and the
perfecting of processes of extraction.
Increase of Labour Supply.
As in the Ruhr, so in Upper Silesia, there are numerous
obstacles to the increase of the labour supply.
Upper Silesia, by reason of its geographical situation, has
difficulty in recruiting workers in the neighbouring countries.
The Prussian Government before the war prevented the introduction of foreign workers by all sorts of measures. There
were never at that time more than from 15,000 to 20,000
foreign workers in the whole of the industrial establishments
i.e., only 10 % of the whole working population. These
foreigners were Ruthenians (49 %) or Poles from Galicia.
The supply of labour, on the other hand, which the province
of Silesia, particularly the region of Lower Silesia, could offer,
was very limited.

— 17 —
In all their reports before the war, the employers of Upper
Silesia complained that the production of coal was constantly
impeded by the lack of workers. Dearth of labour is a chronic
phenomenon in the industrial area of Upper Silesia.
Since the revolution of Xovember, 1918, the situation
has not changed. As a result of the campaign which is being
carried on in favour of the plebiscite, the introduction of
foreign workers in Upper Silesia has become more difficult than
ever. Poles and Germans are equally afraid that the arrival
of foreigners will influence the results of the plebiscite. There
are today barely 4.000 workers of foreign nationality in the
mines (coal, iron, zinc) out of a total of more than 170,000
workers.
The Sousing Crisis.
The housing crisis, moreover, would alone be sufficient
to prevent the engagement of numerous additional workers.
Both in the villages and in the magnificent settlements built
by the employers round the mines (colonies of Gieschewald, Emmanuelsegen, Knurow, Eokitnitz, Emmagrube, etc.),
there is insufficient room even for the normal staff of the
mines. The mine managements, who house 40 % of the
married miners in houses owned by themselves, are under
the necessity of building new dwellings. 2,000 houses for'
miners are under construction. The necessary means for
carrying out this important work will be partly supplied by
the retention of 6 Mk per ton of coal, a provision which has
been in force since the 15th January, 1920, by virtue of the
decision of the Kohlenconvention. The sums so furnished will
only coverà very small part of the expense. The erection of
a miner's house, which before the war cost 4,500 Mk., costs
to-day 80,000 Mk. I t will, therefore, be impossible at present to
carry out work on a large scale.
Moreover, the proprietors of mines, uncertain as they
are of the future, and not knowing what will be the economic and political situation of the industrial areas after the
plebiscite, wish to proceed with prudence. They are putting
off till a later period the realisation of the important schemes
projected before the war.
Employment Offices.
The increase of the labour supply is difficult from another
point of view also. There does not exist in Upper Silesia
any system of employment exchanges. The mines recruit
their workers directly.
Upper Silesia is,' however, proposing to create an organisation analogous to the Employment Office for the Mining
Industry established at Bochum in September, 1919, by
the Association of Employment Offices of Westphalia — an
office which has already rendered valuable service in the
•

— 18 —
minino- area of the lUihr. A scheme has been recently prepared for the establishment of a special branch of the Silesian
E m p l o y m e n t Office (Schlesisches Landesarbeitsamt, Breslau) for t h e metal-working industry a n d mines. The employers'
and workers' organisations are at present negotiating in regard to this scheme.
The branch will be
established at Konigshütte. I t
will comprise 5 représentatives of workers and 5 representatives of employers, and will be presided over by an official
appointed b y t h e municipal administration of K o n i g s h ü t t e ,
in agreement with the workers' a n d employers' members.
The negotiations h a v e not y e t reached any conclusion
because one provision of the scheme arouses t h e opposition
of t h e employers. Under Article 6 of the Constitution no engagement m a y be made except with t h e consent or through
t h e agency of t h e employment office. Workers and employers are still discussing this particular point.
Although no considerable increase in t h e labour supply
can be anticipated at present in t h e area of U p p e r Silesia, t h e
n u m b e r of workers employed in the coal-mines at the end
of t h e year 1919, appreciably exceeded the pre-war figure :
1913 123.349 workers
1918 150,110
»
Dec. 1919 161,718
»
April 1920 170,099
»
This increase is due to intensified recruiting in the country
itself, and also to increased employment of women in the
mines, particularly as p u t t e r s :
1913
5,347 w o m e n workers
1919
13,408
»
Improvement

in Technical

Methods

The recruiting of labour is difficult. There are serious
technical obstacles to t h e increase of working hours.
The
one remaining means, therefore, for increasing production
is t h e improvement of technical methods of working.
The mine-owners in* Upper Silesia, even before the war,
h a d recourse in a very large measure to machinery to m a k e
u p for the lack of workers. The distribution and thickness
of t h e coal-seams made this possible. Certain coal-seams
in t h e 31yslo"\\itzergrube, for example, h a v e a thickness of
12 metres. . I n all the mines of Upper Silesia, before 1914,
extensive use was made of explosives and special machines
(drills, cutting-machines, etc.).
In m a n y cases t h e mineowners could not obtain t h e minimum" of skilled workers
necessary for working these machines and employing these
explosives.
The effort p u t forth in this direction before the war was
considerable. I t was desired to produce quickly and to

— 19 —
produce cheaply. It was necessary to assist the newlycreated metal working industry of Upper Silesia, and ito
fight with success in the German home market the competition of English coal and Central German lignite. The
production of coal increased from six million tons in 1871
to forty-three millions in 1913.
The development of mechanical methods of workingwas hurried. At the present time it is capable of being
usefully improved and regulated. I t was with this object
that in July 1920 both workers' and employers' members of
the Conimission of Enquiry on the Seven Hours Day passed
unanimously a resolution calling for better organisation
of the work of production. I t was with this object, also, that
on the 26th September, 1920, the Workers' Councils affiliated to the German Miners' ITnion of Bochum passed the
following resolution :—
« The Workers' Councils recognise the necessity of increas« ing the production of coal. This increase in production
« must be obtained, in the first place, by the improvement
« of the technical processes of extraction, and not by supple« mentar y shifts. »
The improvement of the technical methods of extraction
is the principal problem in the development of coal production in Upper Silesia.
But how is the improvement thus demanded to be obtained at the present time ! All the plant employed in the
mines is now, after four years of intensive working, worn
out or deteriorated. The renewal of this plant is imperative.
I t will require a large amount of capital. How will Upper
Silesia obtain the necessary sums Í
The Price of Coal
Can the capital referred to in the last paragraph be obtained from the profits realised on the sale of coal ? The
price of coal is at present strictly regulated. It is feared
that a continued raising of this price would produce an excessive increase in the cost of manufactured articles of prime
necessity.
• The following table shows the changes in the price of
coal in Upper Silesia since 1914 :
April
1914 . . . Mks. 13.90 per ton (Grobkohle)
September 1918 . . .
»
29.50 » »
January
April
December
1st J a n u a r y
5th
»
February
April

1919
1919
1919
1920
1920
1920
1920

.
.
.
.
.
.
.

.
.
.
.
.
.
.

.
,
,
,

r

»
»
»
»
»
»
»

44.—
58.50
93.90
95.40
114.40
157.80
182.50

— 20 —
Thus, like the wages of the miners, the price of coai has
increased greatly especially since the beginning of 1920, and
has not changed since April of the same year.
The wages of miners and the price of coal m a y be compared as follows :
2nd Quarter
1st Quarter
1914
1920
Average wages of the miner properly so-called (Categorv « A »
of the Official Statistics) . .
Mks. 4.87
Mks. 31.64
April 1914
April 1920
Price of coal per ton (Grobkohle)
Mks. 13.90
Mks. 182.50
Since 1914 the wages of miners have increased sixfold
a n d the price of coal thirteenfold.
The price of coal in Upper Silesia is appreciably below
t h e price in t h e Kuhr.
Ruhr
1st May, 1920; 194.70 — 238
Mks.
Upper Silesia 1st Api.
» 166
— 182.50 »
H o w is this difference to be explained ! By the fact
t h a t t o d a y difficulties of transport m a k e each mining area
a sort of close market, a n d t h a t area is, therefore,i n a
position to fix t h e price of its coal quite independently.
The price of coal in Upper Silesia is at present fixed by
t h e Inter-Allied Commission on t h e ' r e c o m m e n d a t i o n of the
Oberschlesische Kohlenconvention.

V.

T H K NECESSITY OF A SP15KDY DETERMINATION OF THE FUTURE
OF U P P E R SILESIA BY A PLEBISCITE.

Upper Silesia will n o t be able to find the necessary means
for improving its mechanical processes of extraction until
the plebiscite has definitively settled the future of the mining
area.
The area of -Upper Silesia possesses considerable Avealth
in coal. I t possesses a patient and diligent working population. I t Avili not be able to make use of its labour supply
or to employ its wealth to the fullest a d v a n t a g e until Upper
Silesia is in possession of its definitive economic and political organisation. At the present time t h e effects of t h e
p r o p a g a n d a carried on in connection with t h e plebiscite
t h r e a t e n to provoke fresh risings a n d fresh disturbances in
the country.

— 21 —
STUDIES AND REPORTS
already issued.
Where the English or French text of a Report has not yet been published it
will he issued at a later date.

Series A.
N° I.

T H E AGREEMENT

BETWEEN

T H E SPANISH W O R K E R S ' ORGANI-

SATIONS, issued on September 25th 1920. In English
French.
"

2.

T H E D I S P U T E I N T H E METAL INDUSTRY IN ITALY.
TRADE
UNION CONTROL OP I N D U S T R Y , issued on September 25th

1920.
'

3.

and in

ANNUAL

In English
MEETING

and in French.

OF

THE TRADES

UNION

CONGRESS

1920,

issued on October 4th 1920. In English and in French.
"

4.

INTERNATIONAL CONGRESS OF W O R K E R S ' IN T H E FOOD AND
DRINK T R A D E S , issued on October 11th 1920. In English and

"

5.

T H E B R I T I S H GOVERNMENT AND T H E M I N E R S ' FEDERATION OF
GREAT BRITAIN. CONFERENCE B E T W E E N SIR ROBERT HORNE
AND THE M I N E R S ' F E D E R A T I O N , issued on October
11th

in

French.

1920.

In English

and in French.

"

6.

T H E CONGRESS OF THE LABOUR AND SOCIALIST INTERNATIONAL,

"

7.

T H E M I N E R S ' INTERNATIONAL CONGRESS, issued on October 19th

"

8.

T H E INTERNATIONAL LABOUR ORGANISATION.

issued on October 14th 1920. In English
1920.

In English

and in French.

and in French.
A COMPARISON,

issued on October 21st 1920. In English and in French.
"

9.

T H E INTERNATIONAL CONGRESS OF METAL WORKERS,

October 22nd 1920. In English
" 10.

issued on

and in French.

T H E B R I T I S H GOVERNMENT AND T H E M I N E R S ' F E D E R A T I O N OF
GREAT

BRITAIN.

CONFERENCE

MENT ANT THE TRIPLE

BETWEEN

INDUSTRIAL

October 26th 1920. In English

THE

ALLIANCE,

GOVERN-

issued Oil

and in French.

" 1 1 . THE DISPUTE IN THE METAL INDUSTRY IN ITALY. TRADE UNION
CONTROL O P INDUSTRY. (Second part) issued on Novem-

ber 4th 1920. In English and in French.
" 12.

T H E FOURTH INTERNATIONAL CONGRESS OF BOOKBINDERS, issued

on November 26th 1920. In English and in French.
Series B.
N° 1. COAL PRODUCTION IN T H E RUHU

DISTRICT.

Enquiry

by the

International Labour Office, end of May 1920, issued on September 1st 1920. In English and in French.
"

2. P A P E R S RELATING TO SCHEMES ot' INTERNATIONAL ORGANISATION FOR T H E DISTRIBUTION OF RAW MATERIALS AND FOOD

STUFFS, issued on October 5 t h 1920. In English
French.

and in

— 22 —
Series C.
X o 1.

BRITISH

LEGISLATION

ON UNEMPLOYMENT

on October 26th 1920.

In English

INSURANCE, issued

and in French.

:!

2.

GOVERNMENT ACTION IN DEATING WITH UNEMPLOYMENT IN ITALY,

"

3.

T H E BULGARIAN LAW ON COMPULSORY LABOUR, issued on No-

"

4.

T H E ACTION

issued on October 27th 1920. In English
vember 4th 1920.

In English

OF THE SWISS

and in French.

and in French.

GOVERNMENT

IN DEALING

UNEMPLOYMENT, issued on November 13th 1920. In
and in French.

WITH

English

Series D.
N° 1.

S T A F F REGULATIONS ON T H E FRENCH RAILWAYS, issued on Sep-

tember 4th 1920. In English

and in French.

Series H.
X o 1.

(CONSUMERS' CO-OPERATIVE SOCIETIES IN 1919 (Denmark

Sweden), issued on September 8th 1920. In English
in French.
"

2.

S E V E N T H CONGRESS OF T H E BELGIAN

issued on September 25th 1920.
"

:i.

CO-OPERATIVE

In English

and

and

OFFICE,

and in French.

T H E NATIONAL CONGRESS OF FRENCH CONSUMERS' CO-OPERATIVE

SOCIETIES, issued on November 24th 1920.
in French.

In English and

Series K.
X

o

1.

F I R S T INTERNATIONAL CONGRESS OF LANDWORKERS' UNIONS
AFFILIATED TO THE INTERNATIONAL FEDERATION OF TRADE

UNION, issued on XTovember, 1920. In English and in French.

"

2.

AGRARIAN CONDITIONS IN S P A I N , issued on November 10th 1920.

In English
"

3.

and in French.

SMALL HOLDINGS IN SCOTLAND, issued on November 12th 1920.

In English

and in French.

i

This study was originally published by the International Labour
Office in June last. We think it advisable however to re-issue it, as the
first edition which was very small in number was not sufficient to meet
the demands that we have received for the document.
It may also be pointed out that the problem of coal production in
the Ruhr is as urgent as ever, and that the situation in the mining district
is very much the same in September 1920 as it was in May last.
There is, therefore, no change or addition necessary to the information contained in the document beyond that given in the final- note in
which we indicate briefly the effects upon the production of coal in the
Ruhr and the conditions of the miners, of the négociations at Spa (July
15th 1920) and the recent International Miners Congress at Geneva (August
2nd 1920).