AMERICAN COAL STRIKE

Otago Daily Times, Issue 27297, 25 January 1950, Page 7

AMERICAN COAL STRIKE

Union Leader’s Suggestion Rejected

NO RETURN TO WORK Rec 9 p.m. NEW YORK, Jan. 23.

District officials of the United Mine Workers’ Union failed today to induce nearly 60,000 of the 90,000 striking soft coal miners in seven States to accept a suggestion by their president, Mr John Lewis, to return to work. Spokesmen for the miners declared that although many were depending on charitable organisations to avoid starvation they would not return to work until they had a contract to replace the contract which expired in June last year. Some said they had been starving on the three-day work week ordered by Mr Lewis and they might as well starve without working. The revolt today was the greatest against Mr Lewis since May, 1946, when 85,000 Pennsylvania miners ignored a call by Mr Lewis for a twoweek truce in another contract strike. Mr Lewis has maintained silence during the present friction. He has been accused by some revolting miners of actually wanting a complete shutdown, but they said he refrained from ordering a general strike because of the injunction proceedings pending against him and the United Mine Workers' Union under the Taft-Hartley Labour Relations Act. The Federal Court in Washington today postponed until February 1 the hearing of the injunction, which seeks to put the miners back on a five-day week.