jC *
mj
Bom Fide
AFL
N
North Carolina
CHARLOTTE LABOR JOURNAL
Giro
Loyal Support
to
Your i
Publications
VOL. XIX; NO. 20
CHARLOTTE, N. C„ THURSDAY, SEPTEMBER 22, 1949
Subscription Price $2.00 Year
IHJ Local Ratifies
$10 Raise Contract
LATE BULLETIN
CHICAGO.—Members of Local 16 of the AFL’s Inter
national Typographical Union prepared to return to work
in the composing rooms of the major daily newspapers
here following settlement! of a 22-month-old strike.
Union members voted 1,287 to 279 in favor of new
contract granting them a 810 boost in wages and binding
the pablishers to abandon the substitute varitype pro
cess which they used while the printers were on strike.
John J. Pilch, president of Local 16, said that the new
.pact, which was reported on in the September 16 edition
of the AFL Weekly News Service, was the best obtain
able at this time.
CHICAGO LOCAL NO. 16 MUST RATIFY AGREEMENT
COVERING 810 RAISE
Chicago. — A tentative agreement to end the historic,
nearly two-year-old strike of 1,500 AFL union printers
against the major Chicago daily papers was reached Sep-i
tember 14 between negotiating committees of the Chicago
Typographical Union, Local 16, and the Chicago Newspaper
Publishers Association.
The new contract was subject to ratification by the rank
and file at a membership meeting scheduled for September
18. Ratification was considered likely. The agreement al
ready has been sanctioned by the executive council of the
parent International Typographical Union.
It provide# for • #10 weekly
wage increase, and union aecuri
ecutive council believes are the
best that can be bad within the
restrictions of tbs Taft-Hartl.
Act
With tbs wage
i
print-.
ers would receive $95.60 for a
06 1-4
shift, ■
on the day
I $101 for a 00-hoar
the third shift, which
includes the early morning hours.
Some of the major provisions
of the new contract provide for j
the following:
The publishers entinue to roe-'
ognize Local 16 as tne exclusive
bargaining agent for their com
posing room employes, but exper
ienced non-union employes may,
be hired. This section states that,
“membership or non-membership
in a labor organisation shall not
be a factor in such hiring or in
the tenure of employment.”
A "journeyman" under this
section is defined as a person who
previously worked for Chicago’s
newspapers; a person who has
completed his apprentice train
ing, or any person who has had
a minimum of 6 years experi
ence at the trade.
The "priority on shifts” clause
provides that the “senior" man
has first choice to a vacated job. I
or, if he refuses it, the top man
on the "extra” list has the choice.
The contract runs to July 15,
1951, but has a wage reopener
as of July 15, 1950, when either J
side may reopen the matter of
wages only.
A new section in the contract
provides for the use of teletype
setters, which are to be manned
by members of the union if they J
attain the degree of competency,
required; if not, the employer hM
n&uirs&ftt
retinc machine oa which storiee
end advertising metier U set. The
tape is then fed to the linotype
machines and operates them auto*,
matically. Local Id, however, is
granted jurisdiction of the tele*
type machine operations.
The contract provides that Lo-,
cal 16 members need not process,
aay work “received from or des-j
tined exclusively for” a job shop
or newspaper shop that has been,
legally struck by an ITU local
or where members of the ITU
have been locked out.
The strike has been one of the
longest and toughest in labor his
tory. The printers left the com
posing rooms of the Tribune, the
Sun, the Times, the Herald-1
American, the Daily News and
the Journal of Commerce on No
vember 24, 1947. During the
strike the Sun and Times were
merged into a single paper, the
Sun-Times.
While the printers were on the
picket line, the newspaper con
tinued to publish, using a vari
type and photo-engraving process.
News stories were typewritten,
the stories were pasted up on a
dummy page and photographed,
and the photograph was printed
as a complete page.
On March 10, 1049, the pub
lishers made a “final” offer,
which contained the |10 weekly
wage increase. The offer was
made at the 134th negotiation
session between the bargaining
committees. It was rejected by
the union after the ITU found
some of the clauses failed to con
form with the international's
laws.
Output Rises
First Time
Since Oct '48
Washington. — Industrial pro
duction rose in August for ths
first time since October, 1948. the
President’s Council of Economic
Advisers reported in its monthly
summary of economic conditions.
On the less optimistic side, the
council said that the buying pow
er of per capita income dropped
one percent during the second
quarter of the year, and that the
rate of savings slowed down by
nearly $1,000,000,000.
While the decline in purchasing
power was slight, it snould serve
as a reminder of the warnings
voiced by AFL leaders that a per
sistent trend toward lower mass
buying power will hasten de
pressed economic conditions and
prevent the realization of the na
tion’s goal of full productoin and
full employment.
The following are highlights of
the council’s report:
Consumers’ prices continued to
decline in July, according to the
report, hnd stood at the lowest
tees April, 1948—a point
r cent below tre postwar
peak- Wholesale prices, however;
declined only slightly in August,
and most of the drop was caused
by _lpwer farm prices, other
is prices showing little
country’s labor force in
creased by 400,000 in August, the
i split said. In non-agricultural
iadiltries the gain was nearly
I^MfeOOO but a decline in gain to
SOOyfOO. Prices received by farm
ers, and the parity ratio, con
tinued the decline which started
last April.
The average weekly hours of
work were about one hour below
the level of July.
Production o f manufacture 1
durable goods tended to decline
in July. Iron and steel fell off
sharply, but recovered somewhat
in August. Nonferrous metals
continued at the same rate as in
June. Lumber and machinery
were produced in slightly less
volume.
The nondurable goods field
showed about the same tendency,
with textiles and chemicals drop
ping in July. Food processing
and petroleum remained at the
June level.
Automobile; ana trucks, on tne
other hand were turned out dur
ing August at the highest rate
sine* April* 1929, and electric
power waa produced at rates
higher than a year ago.
Now construction increased in
August over July, and waa lees
than two per cent lower than
the peak in August, 1948. Hous
ing during the first seven months
of 1949, reported as 549,000 new
units, was four per cent lower
(Continued On Page 4)
Continue To Protest
of Local 1129 of Ik Intornotiooal Brotherhood of Elec
ye^ootuudo, to gkn ^
m wm wm wmsiiii wfiT w>niir§fv
S following I loaf period of negotiation* in efforts to
out n now iffMoeat with the station.
An Editorial
SUPPORT THE RADIO TECHNICIANS
Charlotte Labor should give its wholehearted support
to the International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers Lo
cal 1229 in its trouble with Radio Station WBT, whose
management on September 3 discharged 10 of its members.
This local union has for a long period endeavored to ne
gotiate a new agreement with WBT which would set up a
clause in a new agreement providing for settling disputes
which may arise over discharges cases, but the technicians
claim that WBT management has steadfastly refused to
recognize such an agreement, although this kind of clause
is stipulated in the expiring contract.
C la uses providing for settling discharge disputes and
also any and all other disputes that may arise in labor
management contractss are not uncommon in this day and
time. In fact, without clauses of this nature in labor
management contracts are not uncommon in thb day and
at aM is provided for men and women who came under
their provisions. Clauses that protect the workers in their
jobs, making it impossible for unscrupulous employers to
fire their employes at will without an opportunity to pre
sent their cases are just about as unpopular these days
as are no contracts at all. Wherever they have been in
corporated in labor-management agreements and lived up
to for what* they are devised to do disputes have almost
always been ironed out satisfactorily to both parties in
the dispute.
The case of WBT and the local radio technicians is none
too far dUtaunt from thousands of such agreements in
r.lfect throughout the country.
SENATE UNIT OK’S BILL
FOR RURAL PHONE AID
Washington.—The Senate Agri
culture Committee approved a bill
intended to piteride better tele
phone service for farmer*.
The bill, already pasted by the
House, would authorise the Ru
ral Electrifleaition Administration
to make loads to co-operatives
and private companies to improye
rural telephone service.
The Senate committee wrote in
a restriction against loans to
duplicate existing lines and facil
ities unless it proved the present
system was unwilling or unable to
provide “reasonable" service.
1st critie: But you said she
sang beautifaBy.
2nd critic: No, I didn’t.
1st critie: What did you say?
2nd critie: I said she was a
beautiful singer.
IBEW Calls Upon All
Organized Labor To
Aid Charlotte Union
Members of Local 1229 of the International Brotherhood
of Electrical Workers, which is composed of Radio Tech
nicians, continue to picket Radio Station WBt’s facilities
in Charlotte. Ten of WBT’s engineers were discharged
September 3 following an eight weeks period of picketing
by the local IBEW union in protest of the refusal of the
Jefferson Standard Broadcasting Company management to
recognize in a new contract provisions for settling dis
charge cases. The men had been peacefully walking oil
picket duty hoping thereby to gain this security recogni
tion in their, new agreement with the broadcasting station.
Officer John Says:
A lunatic behind the wheel
is no more dangerous than the
driver who has been drinking.
The man who is “dead drunk”
is not as big a highway threat,
however, as the man who has
“had a few." This is the driver
who speeds, who Is careless and
reckless, prone to lose his tem
per, and whose reactions hare
been slowed. These are drieers
whose actions are as criminal
as blindly firing a revolver in
a crowded theater. IF YOU
HAVE BEEN DRINKING.
TAKE A TAXI HOME —
DON'T DRIVE.
_:
U. S. POPULATION RISES;
TO HIT ISO MILLION BY ’50
Washington. — The Census Bu
reau estimated that the United
States population was 149,452,000
on August 1.
This was an increase of 237,000
over the July 1 estimate. At that
rate of increase the population
will pass the 150,000,000 mark
before January 1.
The August 1 figure represents
an increase of 17,782,000 or 13JS
per cent over the 131,669,275 per
sons actually counted on April I,
1940, the date of the last census.
BLOODSHED BOXSCORE
On N. C. Highways
Killed September 17 tnrough
. September 19 3
Injured September 17 through
September 19 -. 6*
Killed through September 19
this year 548
Killed through September 19.
1948 484
Injured through September
19 this year. 4,455
Injured through September
19. 1948 . 5,133
AFL President Willis* Gma pots a Mat across la aa infernal
conference with Waal Canal AFL leaden. Shown fraa left to right
are: Dan Flanagan, AFL regional director; C. J. Haggerty, aeere
tary•treasurer of the CaUfernia State Federation of Labor; Mr.
Green, and Jack Shelley, president of the CaUfernia federation. The
picture was taken daring Mr. Groan’s riait to the ceoveatiee of the
state affiliate.
Charges of unfair labor prac
tices against the Jefferson Standard
Broadcasting Company were filed
by the local IBEW union shortly
after the technicians were dis
charged and it is understood that
NLRB representatives have begun
an investigation of the affair.
John A. Thompson, interna
tional representative of the I. B.
E. W., last week submitted a pro
posal to the management of WBT
which would restore all those men
discharged to their former posi
tions and which would submit
the question of whether or nut
tne discharges were warranted to
an impartial arbitrator, end
that upon settlement of the dis
charge dispute all parties con
cerned would enter into collective
bargaining conferneces in good
faith, in efforts to roach an un
derstanding on all points in dis
pute. The WBT management re
fused Mr. Thompson’s proposal
to reinstate the discharged men
and to submit the matter to arbi
tration. This culminated in the
filing of unfair labor practices
against the radio station’s own
ers.
Members and representatives
I of the International Brotherhood
j of Electrical Workers are calling
upon all members of organised
labor in this area to rally to their
cause and a series of meetings
with the unions in this area has
been begun. Charlotte Central
Labor Union is meeting tonight
and will receive a report from
the delegates of the electrical
workers. This meeting will no
doubt result in a 100 per cent
co-operation of American Fed
eration of Labor Unions in Char
lotte and vicinity.
,H% 'YES’ VOTE WINS POLL
FOR APL TEXTILE WORKERS
Atlanta. — The AFL’s United
[ Textile Worker* of America wa*
| selected as the collective bargain*
[ ing agent by 100 per cent of the
| employes of the Beaunit Mills,
| Inc., at Childers burg, Ala., in an
election held by the National La
bor Relations Board.
The tally of ballots made by
NLRB Field Examiner R. T.
Gardner revealed that every one
of the 110 employes voted for the
UTWA-AFL. There were no
challenged or void ballots.
CARSON NOMINATION
APPROVED BY SENATE
Washington.—The Senate con
firmed by 45 to 25 President Tru
man's nomination of John Carson,
of Michigan, to be a member of
the Federal Trade Commission.
Republicans bucked the nomina
tion because of Mr. Carson’s
sympathetic views toward co
operatives and public power proj
ects. He was backed by the
American Federation of Labor
ind other labor groups. ,.