The benefits of a union at Eastern Fine Paper, Brewer, 2006
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Maine Folklife Center, Univ. of Maine
By the beginning on the twentieth century the workers of the mill began to form trade unions.
In 1902 the Paper Makers Union, No. 82 of South Brewer was organized. By the following year the union had 20 members.
To join the union, workers needed one year of experience. Union employees worked 65 hours a week and received a minimum wage of no less than $1.05 a day.
The union continued to grow and by 1905 it became the International Brotherhood of Papermakers and had 62 members.
Phyllis Beaulieu recalled the union at Eastern and her opinions are mostly favorable.
She also mentions how the union changed after Eastern closed and reopened in 1968. Listen to what Phyllis had to say.
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