Daily Kennebec journal. [microfilm reel] (Augusta, Me.) 1870-1975, 1922-06-21
Chairman Of Rail
Labor Board Gives
Friendly Advice
Proposed Walkout will
Prove Disastrous to
Union Organiza-
tons, His Belief

Chicago, June 20.-(By A. P.)-Dis-
aster for the striking railway unions
and unfortunate results for their
membership was predicted to follow
the threatened walkout, on which
strike vote is now being taken by nine
railroad labor organizations, in a let
ter from Ben. w. Hooper, chairman Of
the Railroad Labor Board. to the
Union leaders today.
Answering a letter from the union
chiefs, which declared the executives
ployeS demanded it, Chairman Hooper
made categorical reply to the fierce
assaults" on that board, for which he
declared there was no ground.
with the degree of friendly inter-
est that J feel in these organizations
and with the recognition l accord to
their great service to the membership,
am hopeful that they will not adopt
course that will surely prove disas-
trous to the organizations and unfor-
tunate to the men composing them,"
wrote Mr.. Hooper.
at is regrettable that such a step is
contemplated, at a time when the
country is just entering upon a year
/ of more stable industrial conditions
and, that gives promise of an enlarged
degree of prosperity to railway en-
ployes.
Although Chairman Hooper said in
the letter, which was addressed to b.
NJ. Jewell, president of the Railway
| Employees department of the Amer
lean Federation of Labor, that he felt
| no reply was required to the unions
strike avowal. he expressed "a will
| ingness to go beyond the strict limits
of my official authority in the inter
est Parkway peace" He said he felt
! it his dut.' to reply because the
! threatened strike contains such pos
sibilitics of loss and detriment" to
| the strikers. The chairman added that
a strike vote should not be taken on
! any misunderstanding of the action
| or attitude of the board. but declared
the union chiefs letter manifested "a
strikingly distorted conception OF
what the BOARD has done and why it
| did it,
Several statements were pointed
| out as distortions"
Your statement that the Boards
| last decision states openly that pres
| sure of circumstances was such that
! the Board was unable to determine
| just and reasonable wages. is not
| correct" the letter said. 1.-The de-
! cisiOn contains no such statement
and none that can be fairly so con-
| strued"
Mr.. Hooper attacked "the con-
| tinual isolation and accumulation" Of
| the minimum % cent rate for COM
mon labor. which he declared was
| made misleading by the union men.
He pointed out that section men will
| receive a rate of from % to 35 cents
| an hour, the majority considerably
| higher than the minimum as shown
| by the average rate of 1927 cents. as
compiled by the Board.
Wages for other employees, also, he
| added, were Every considerably larg-
er" than in 1917 or in 1915.
| Surely the leaders of the railway
labor organizations cannot expect to
win the approval of the people OF the
| United States by a rigid unyielding
| resistance to the inevitable process
| of readiustment which has been in
progress for the past year." the let
ter stated.
"The fact cannot be overlooked that
the policy of the leaders of the en-
| ployees seems to be to accept no re-
duction, however slight"