New-York tribune., 1921-03-20
Union Official Says work.
ers Are Fighting to Up.
hold Rail Law as Inter.
preted by Federal Board
Question Of Wages
Not Involved Nov
Reductions Should n
Taken Up Individually
Before Appeal Is Made.
Says Machinists Ofic;.l
BY ]. F. Anderson
Vace-P Preside7st International A.e...
alton of Machinists

Dy j. r. Anderson
Vace-f'Tesadesst international Associ-
alton Of M1chinists
I" he railroad situation. as Il .to.Ss
when Msssrs. Atterbury, Cuyl.r
Gray and Brinkerd, of the l.bn,
committee Of the Association os Rail.
way Executives, appeared Friday =.
fore the Railroad Labor Board a. III.
ncsses called by the railroad work.,s
was this: When the Railroad Ishor
Board made its wage decision last Jnl,
1t ordered that the rules and nations,
agreements established by the Federzl
Railroad Administration should he con-
tinued in effect until September last
The case now pending before the board
IS controversy over those rules ana
nationai agreements. And contrary to
rne general public impression there il
no question Of wages involved.
Attempts on the part of rsiIvnsd
nanagements to inject the wacr issus
into the dispute and to bring wscs
reduction cases directly before tss
board have: been met by the hoard
with the ruling that differences as Il
wages must first be taken up ia con-
ference between the carriers ana fhe
workers, and that only after the failars
OF such conferences to reach an ac,ree.
ment shall there be an appeal to the
board. sAs
Several roads undertook to enforca
wage reductions in violation Of H.
law, and .one, the Atlantic, Birmineharr
g Atlantic, by resorting to'a receiver
ship and securing court order. has
endeavored to make wage cut effective
IN spite Of the decision of the Rail-
road Labor Board. Many other roads
have served notices Of wage redue-
tions. and it is assumed that there
cases eventually will reach the beard
in the orderly course Of procedure.
Meanwhile, as to the controversy
over rules and national agreements
the developments have been these: A
early as March, 1920, the represents
raveS OF the railroad labor orRauisa-
tlons asked the railroad managements
Tor conference on the issue, and fof
The establishment of national bosrds
of adjustment, bipartisan in character.
to take up such phases of the con-
troversy as might not be settled Il
conference, with the ultimate step Of
an appeal to the Railroad Labor Board
ON differences not recorciled Through
the adjustment boards.
Railroad Officials Refuse
To Confer With Employees
These three steps are in strict COM
pliance with the law, and any other
procedure is in direct violation of beth
the letter and the spirit Of the law
Nevertheless, the railroad executives
have steadfastly refused to meet us in
conference, have declined to join as
IN the establishment of the national
adjustment boards and have had the
audacity to ask the Railrosd Labor
Board to abrogate all rules and national
agreements.
The managements of all the railroads
OF the country are compactly organ
lied nationally, and obviously they have
. labor policy behind which they have
thrown their united power.
The railroad workers are organized
nationally, and they have labor pol
icy which they would like to support
by their united strength.
We have asked the executives, or
ganized as they are nationally, to bsr
gain collectively with US as we are
organized nationally.
They decline. They say they viii
bargain only as individual roads with
the employees Of each road, and Mr.
Atterbury goes so far as to declare
that his road will not even bargain
with its employees as q whole, but will
bargain with each craft or group OF
separately.
II the policy Of the railroad exetu-
tlves is carried out, the Railroad Labor
Board will have more cases in ten
weeks than it can dispose OF in ten
years.
Our policy is constructive, conform
ing to the trend in modern industrial
and to the spirit of the
times. Theirs is destructive and re
dictionary, barking back to the days |
when labor was treated as commody
ity and employer and employee were
in state of constant warfars, actual
or potential, instead Of pulling TO,
gether for their mutual interests and
to the public welfare.
Fighting for National M
Agreements ~ They Stand
We Are fighting for the rules and
national agreements IS they nov
stand, until they have been shown y
be unjust and unreasonable and heve
been modified in the manner providee
by law. We are for the wage sched-
ules as they have been established uns
til they have been found unjust sne
and have been modihed
in the manner provided by law.
But, above everything else, we ass
lighting for principle, the principle o
collective bargaining on the basis o.
union recognition. Mind you, tnst does
not mean the closed union shop.
means simply genuine collective psls
gaining, As contemplated and pfonoSe
for in the transportation act OF lszv'
as the fundamental basis Of the reia
lions between employers and employees 5
in the railroad industry.
Mr.. Atterbury and his fellow 49, 80
lives say they are for collective paf
but it is collective bargaining
On their own terms, with the maxlmeAz
power on their side agsinss
the minimum bargaining. power g
OURS. They say they are not opposeo =
unions, but that they are for the hgn
shop. But they seek to deccnszsetpiss. eps.
md disintefrete the unions - mucg, ,,s =
and their open shop ponaSs
means Ia fact the closed ansi-us1sD
Wa ara fighting to uphold tho ~ Y
h Knx written and as il has bcen n
.efpreted by the Railroad haber 1eaanus sns
they are lighting to ternascuiane ~ 3 4.
aw aa IL WAS written and apply e ii
IS interpreted by their own e9ssse.s e .;
vho hAye been thoroughly schoeaee "a e &
% how beet 70 pexvert . law 1eF =
,0ration purposes. ,..s-,%s
Wa@re glad to have the pubic }e a
he Casa between us, bat We AK spnt sS Is