The Birmingham age-herald., 1920-04-20
BOARD TO BEGIN ITS FORMAL HEARINGS ON
 WAGE DISPUTE TODAY
Decline to Receive, Entertain or Consider Complaints of Insurgent Railway Strikers Yester- day
By Assco,as.d Prss.

Washington. April l9.-Undeterrsd bJ the refusal of the railroad labor board to hear them today, representatives of the railroad strikers announced that they would present written complaints, together with demands for 8 living wage.'' to the board, which tomorrow will begin formal hearings on the big wage controversy.
 The board flatly declined to ''receive, entertain or consider complaints from strikers, declaring it would only hear those who were adopting every reason able means of avoiding interruption of railroad service.
 The board will proceed with the wage dispute involving claims of nearly two million men which failed of adjustment
 when the bipartisan board ceased to function April 1. Heads of the four brotherhoods and the chairman of tho Association of Railway Executives. all of whom were present today, will attend- Timothy Shea, president of the Brother hood of Railway Bremen and Enginemen,
 said tonight speedy settlement would be urged.
 Refusal of the board to hear strikers
 Shea said, would have the effect of sending all of the strikers back to work. many of whom had been led astray. he thought. in the belief that the board might recognize them.
 MANY DELEG ATIONS APPEAR Delegations claiming to represent rail-
 road men of all crafts in various cities who have quit work" appeared at the offices of the board today demanding assurances of substantial guarantee of increased wages which they said
 would send strikers back to work They composed an unorganized asso- citation, they said, known as the Rail- road Workers of America, insisting that they still retained their membership in
 the recognized unions, since they had not struck but had only gone on q vacation.'
 After adopting rules of procedure far hearing disputes, the board admitted ssv- eral delegations Immediate protest was entered by w. N. Doak, vice president of the Brother-
 hood of Railroad Trainmen, who COO tended that the officers of the fs raA- road organizations present represented in which case they were no longer erfa- ployes of the railroads, or members or
 the recognized unions.
 | General dissatisfaction with the boarfs s
 action was expressed by tho railroad
 workers Edward McHugh, representing strikers in New York and New .terssys declared he would continue his efforts Ito obtain some assurance of an incrsasa from the board. adding that 5000 men in the New York district would not go
 back to work until such assurance was received
 I DEMAND ASSURANCES
 The railroad workers envcys declared that they would not return until they
 had '.iron-clad~ assurances of an a<1ust-
 ment of their grievances They would
 present their formal demands. they ss1d- and then go to their men and await q decision granting increased wages l Vigorous objection was expressed py these representatives to the term l''striker'' They claim that they hEve not struck, as there has been no order l from the officials of their unions adopted by referendum vote, but that they nere- liv laid down their tools until they get
 more pay.
 | Yardmen from St Loanfs claim, they ara not sufficiently represented by the board by the recognized unions and demand that they be allowed to legisfate for themselves