The Clarksburg telegram. [volume] (Clarksburg, W. Va.) 1874-1926, 1908-12-24
PEAQ |B||OARD
ISSUES REPORT
Covering its Work During the
Three Years to Close
April Next.

The Board Of Concillation, estab-
lished by the Anthracite Strike Com
/ mission to settle disputes between
ithe mine workers and the operators,
has issued report covering the first
three years Of its work. The volume
contains sS5 pages and gives full
account of the Boards activities in
the way of mediation.
In the forthcoming discussion be-
4 tween the operators and the mine
workers this record of the Concilia.
ftion Board will take an important
part; the tribunal will cease TO exist
| after April If the miners win their
point. One OF the demands recently
submitted to the union conference al
Scranton calls for the abolition of
4 the Board.
AT the end OF the report is a SUM
mary showing the disposition of the
cases that came up for decision. One
hundred and fifty complaints were
submitted In the three years. OF
these IA were pending at the end
of the third year, leaving one humid
red and thlrty-slx disposed of within
the period covered by the report.
seventy-four were mot sustained or
I"withdrawn.' eleven were "sustain-
led eight were PARTIALLY sustain
ed or compromised and fourteen
were settled through the influence OF
the Board. Nine grievances, snb-
United by men who thought employ
ment had been unjustly refused
them. were not sustained, but the
Board recommended that employ
ment he given to them. OF the TWEEN
ty grievances passed upon by an UNI
pire. four we're sustained.
In the time that has passed since
the figures were gathered for this Of
ficia report, the complaints have
bseh much less frequent than they
were before. This is taken as an in
dlcation that the feeling between the
mine workers and the operators has
improved. The records of the Board
from the time of its formation up to
date, show a total OF 172 cases, SO
that only % complaints have been
received since March 81, 1906,
against $50 before then.
The Cancellation Board is COM
posed of three Representatives of the
miners and three Representatives of
operators. The scope of its work
was broadly defined by the Anthra.
cite Strike Commission, and the
Board itself adopted a set of rules
to govern its procedure. ANY mine
worker in the entire region. il he
thinks he has grievance. and has
failed to obtain satisfaction from the
official directly over him, may lay
his grievance before the Board. Wit
nesses are called, evidence is taken,
and opportunity is given to each side
TO present arguments. A majority
vote of the Board is sufficient for a
verdict. If there is an even split"
of the six members, tue case is re-
ferred to an umpire appointed by
Judge of the Third Federal circuit.
The umpire's decision is final
Recently the Board announced u
clean docket, having disposed Of all
the cases laid before it.
In the spring of 1906, when the
award of the Strike Commission ex-
pired, the miners committee de-
manded that the Cancellation Board
be done away with. They proposed
another scheme, by which the region
would be divided into districts and a
series of minor arbitration tribunals
created To this the operators re-
piled by reviewing the work Of the
Board, calling attention to the dis
patch with which 1t had disposed Of
grievances and to the peaceful con-
litions which 1t had brought about.
The result was that the award of the
Strike Commission was extended for
another three years. until April !,
1909. still leaving the Cancellation
Board as preventive of trouble I'M
the anthracite region.