COALSTRIKE ENDED

Southland Times, Issue 24600, 24 November 1941, Page 5

COALSTRIKE ENDED

U.S. MINERS AT WORK ARBITRATION BOARD DESIGNATED (Rec. 11.45 p.m.) WASHINGTON, November 22. The Policy Committee of the United Mine Workers’ Association dramatically called off the coal strike and voted unanimously accepting Mr Roosevelt’s suggestion for arbitration of the closed shop issue in the captive mines. Mr John L. Lewis, leader of the United Mine Workers, in concurrence reversed his stand of Wednesday. “We accept public interest,” Mr Lewis wrote to the President. Mr Lewis told the Press that the Mine Workers’ Association accepted the President’s suggestion fully and without qualification. The decision of the Arbitration Board which Mr Roosevelt designated will be bind-

ing on both owners and miners. The board will comprise the president of the United States Steel, Mr Benjamin Fairlees, Mr John L. Lewis and the director of the United States Conciliation Service, Dr John Steelman. Within minutes after the arbitration agreement was announced “back to work” telegrams and telephone calls flashed from the Mine Workers’ Association’s headquarters. Within an hour, the pickets left some mineheads. In Pittsburgh the miners started down into the mines on the night shift and virtually full operation appeared probable on Sunday, with full-blast mining assured on Mon-

day. Mr Lewis said, “With the miners returning to work and the controversy well on the road to a just settlement the coal supply is assured until April 1, 1943 when the present Appalachian contract terminates.”

Congressional leaders cheered at the news, but a number emphasized that the end of the strike did not deter the enactment of legislative labour controls.

NEGOTIATIONS TO BE RESUMED

Following a plea from Mr Roosevelt that a strike be averted the railway executives and union representatives have agreed to resume the negotiations which broke down last night. A message from Detroit says that Mr Phillip Murray offered Mr Roosevelt the “full resources” of the 5,000,000 members of the Congress of Industrial Organization, in exchange for greater labour participation in the defence programme. The convention earlier urged employers to accept a closed shop in the interests of industrial harmony. It approved a resolution alleging that the Federal Bureau investigation was a potential gestapo and protesting about the use of G-men to “oppress and harass labour elements.” An earlier message from New York stated that the new 60,000,000 dollar Irvin works of the Carnegie-Illinois Steel Corporation will be closed within 48 hours as a result of a shortage of fuel caused by the coal strike. The plant is one of the largest producers of sheet tinplate and employs 4400 persons. “JUICY CONTRACTS” Speaking at the Congress of Industrial Organizations convention in Detroit the president, Mr Philip Murray, alleged that the Federal defence agencies were virtually infested with corporation executives acting on the inside of the Government to get fat, juicy and profitable contracts for their own companies, thus sabotaging the national defence efforts. Mr Murray called on Mr Roosevelt to give labour a better and more wholesome chance to join him in the conduct of the great defence enterprises. A message from Pittsburgh states that the fear of additional gun battles on the coal-strike front prompted the Sheriff of Pennsylvania to ask the state governor for state police to maintain order. A total of 130,000 commercial miners are on strike in Pennsylvania, West Virginia, Maryland, Kentucky and Ohio, as well as 53.000 captive miners.