New-York tribune., 1921-12-16
Meat Strikers
Here Demand
u. S. Intervene
Federal Government Asked
to Force Arbitration ON
big Five Packers and
Also to Start Investigation
Plea of Davis Has Failed
Employers Turned Down La
Dor Secretary at Chicago
Conference, Unions Say

Demand for immediate governmental
intervention to force the "Big Five''
packers to arbitrate in the national
packing plant employees strike, and
for both Federal and state investiga-
tons here into "every evidence Of il
legal activity on the part of the pack
ing interests" was made last night by
leaders of the striking meat workers
of New York.
Coupled with this demand, it was an
nounced by the Labor Bureau, which
represents the New York strikers, that
Secretary of Labor Davis met with rep
resentatives of both the packers and
the union in Chicago on Wednesday
and urged both sides to accept arbi-
tration to settle the strike"
"The union accepted without reser-
vatlon, but the employers refused"
reads statement by the Labor Bureau.
The union had already placed in the
hands of the Federal mediator, Oscar
f. Nelson, q signed statement to rest
the entire case in the hands of the
government for arbitration if the en-
ployers would agree"
This statement also termed as "pack
ing house propaganda reports sent
from Chicago to the effect that the
strike had so "petered out" here that
police protection had been withdrawn
from Packingtown. Long distance
telephone advices to the bureau, the
statement continued, were that the
Chicago plants arc operating at less
than % per cent of normal, that there
has been no decrease in police pro-
lection at the plants and that "the
spirit of the strikers remains un-
broken
Profteering in the wholesale selling
Of meat and preventing independent
concerns from increasing their busi-
ness during the strike" by not per
hitting these firms to kill more than
a pre-strike quota Of livestock in New
York were charges made by both the
strikers and the labor bureau as show
ing the need for Federal and state in
In demanding the Investigations, the
statement says:
THE public interests demand: %
Immediate intervention by the United
States government to settle the entire
strike on the basis of peaceful arbi-
tration and negotiation, and CD I'M
mediate investigation by Federal and
state officers of every evidence of IL
legal activity on the part of the pack
ing interests and rigid enforcement
of the law"
Retailers continued to dcnouncc the
action of the packers in increasing
wholesale prices. Some said they were
of the opinion that 'the packers really
wanted the strike"
Spokesmen for the packers were in
formed of all these charges, both OF
the union representatives and the re-
tailers, and were asked for replies to
all of them The following statement
received last night from the Institute
of American Meat Packers was all that
was authorized for publications:
Operations in the plants affected
by the strike we're materially increased
to-day over yesterday. Over 1900
head of stock were dressed to-day in
the houses affected by the strike. Al
most normal deliveries of meats were
made A continuation Of this improve
ment Will bring about normal condi-
tions within a short time.
AS to the statements made that the
packers desired strike it is suficien.
to say that no later than Saturday last
the packers gave positive assurance to
the unions that neither wages nor
working conditions would be disturbed
before May is, 1922, which was the
period of the yearly working agree
ment entered into May IS, 1921"
One report which reached New York
was that $4,000 head of livestock had
been held up EN- route to this city
from Western packing centers because