New-York tribune., 1901-07-14
BIG STEEL STRIKE ON.
EGOIIAIIONS FOR SETTLE
MENT BROKEN OFF.
COMPANIES REFUSE TO GRANT DE-
MANDS OF AMALGAMATED
ASSOCIATION.

ton. and the general executive board OF the
Amalgamated Association OF Iron Steel and Tin
Workers, adjourned finally at 6 o'clock this
evening. without reaching an agreement. In
less than an hour later President Shaffer OF the
Amalgamated association had telegraphed the
| following order to all the Amalgamated lodges
IN the tin plate. steel hoop and sheet steel mills
/ of the country:
Notify your men that the mill Is on a strike
| and will not work on Monday. July 10.
For the present. President ShafTer says. only
| the three companies named will be affected.
| but later all the union men in the Federal Steel
| Company. the National Steel Company and the
| National Tube Company may be called out il
| 1t shall be found necessary TO resort 10 extreme
| measures to win the fight. At the start. II is
asserted that forty-ive thousand skilled work
! men, thirty thousand unskilled men and indi-
| rectly many thousands more will be affected.
STATEMENT BY COMPANIES.
After the adjournment of the conference the
| following statement was given out by the Of
| ficials of the three companies interested:
| The conferences between the Amalgamated
| Association and the sheet. hoop and tinplate
| companies failed TO come to agreement. be-
| cause the Amalgamated Association did not
| cede from its original position, which was that
! the three companies interested should sign for
| all the mills. without regard to whether these
mills had in the Fast belonged TO the Amalga-
mated Association or not. The manufacturers
| did not refuse their right organize.
| but. having many men in the mills not in
| the Amalgamated Association. who do not wish
to become association men. claimed they must
respect these men in their wishes as we'll as
| those who are members of the association. In
! order to effect compromise. the manufacturers
| offered to sign for several mills which have
| always in the past been out of the association
| No compromise offered by the Amalgamat-
| ed Association. The American Tin Plate COM
| pany have only nOn-uniOn mill. They re-
| qUred the privilege TO make special scale for
! this mill and sign the same This was refused,
ova IN arGra
men in all the tinplate mills would be called
| out. even though the scale has been signed for
| all other tin mills. The privilege requested
| above would settle all differences between the
| tinplate company and the Amalgamated Asso-
| ciation
| 1t after o'clock when the members OF
| the executive committee of the Amalgamated
Association filed out from the conference ROOM
The members looked unconcerned and when
questioned as to the result of the days work.
| declined to say anything They referred the in
quirers TO President Shaffer. whom they said
was still in the conference room. A wait OF
nearly an hour developed the fact that Presi-
dent Shaffer had euded the newspaper men
and had taker a private exit Warner Arrnes.
vice-president of the American Tin Plate Com
pany. and VreyI Preston. on behalf Of the
American Steel Hoop Company. shortly an
nounced that they had only one statement to
make regarding the conference This was in
cluded in the sbove communication.
| PRESIDENT sHAFFER'S STATEMENT
None Of the officials OF the manufacturing
companies would consent 10 interview to
the probable result of the strike They would
not estimate the number of men whom they ex-
pected to go out the order Of President
Shaffer and said that the facts in the statement
submitted was all they had to say. So soon
the workers left the hotel and repaired to the
headquarters of the Amalgamated Association
a statement prepared for the association
side of the case. and late this evening President
Shaffer made this public. as follows:
On Friday afternoon the manufacturers made
their first proposition for a settlement OF this
| strike in which thev SAID I'VE agree 10 untOnlZe
the Old Meadow Mill in ScOttdale, and In Salts
burg. by leaving 1t To the opinion or the men
tanned" This proposition generally dis
cussed and this morning before the conference
, | adjourned for luncheon we. the general execu-
tive board of the Amalgamated Association.
submitted the following:
we hereby repeat our request that scale
| be signed for all mills owned and controlled by
! the American Sheet Steel, the American Steel
| Hoop and the American Tin Plate Company.
and believe that this should be conceded because
il IS in our opinion reasonable and just We agree
that if our scales are signed stated above. 10
classify the Monessen plant of the American Tin
: | Plate Company a special mill and arrange
a scale in accordance Herewith. Also that there
| shall be a reconstruction of the scale for the
/ mills working hoop and cotton ties exclusively.
and we also agree that II our work or organizing
mills outside of the possessions OF the above
! | companies should cause the shutting down OF
plants or the calling out of men, there shall be
, no interference with the operation OF the mills
5 | belonging to or operated by the American Sheet
Steel Company the American Steel Hoop Com
pany or the American Tin Plate Company dur
| ing the scale year
| This agreement is TO abrOgate all contracts
signed by the men of these companies, in which
they agree not to join or be connected with the
AmaIgamated Association any other labor
organization.
AFTER luncheon" continued Mr.. shafrer. I'VE
were met with the following counter proposition
from the manufacturers:
We agree to sign the scale for the following
sheet mills: The Old Meadow Rolling Mill Scott
| dale: the Salisbury Mills, the Wood Mills, In
!; | NICK eespOrt and the Wellsville Mills
| sOf course. this proposition was rejected, as X
| was considered no proposition at all. tnasmuch
as the Wellsville plant is oTsanlzeu 20 man.
, | "The conference adjourned soon after this.
with regret expressed both sides for the fall
ure TO reach an agreement
To CALL OUT MORE MILLS
In giving general details OF the effect OF the
strike that is now ordered President Shaner
said that the first ovder went only to the mills
of the three companies that have been carrying
on negotiations IL was thought best that TINS
should be the case The order for the others
that are to be called out is 70 follow IN Gu,
cular letter sent to every lodge OF the Anal-
camated Association in the country where there
are mills of the United States Steel Corporation
in operation. 1t would include the mills or the
Federal Steel Company, the mills OF the Ma
tional Steel Company, the National Iube COM
pany and wherever there organized men
employed in non-union plants Of the first men
toned companies He could not give the total
number of men that would De thus rendered
idle but estimated them from the reports OF
the other general officers of the organization at