Grand Forks herald. [volume] (Grand Forks, N.D.) 1916-1955, 1922-09-13

NS AASAA SANN wa SAS
coal strike is heard on every hand
now hat the controversy which par
alyzed the great fuel industry for five
months is at an end, temporarily
speaking. 1t ;.,n!. not be important,
Inc it may be difficult to give an an
swer that will stand unchallenged, but
there is a general and altogether .rea-
sonable desire to know whether the
big fight was a draw or whether the
miners or the operators can claim the
victory. -. r==, .
AS matters stand there was no de-
cision. In fact, there was no referee,
unless President Harding may be said
to ave occupied that unenviable po-
%sition, and if the president was the
referee he has not seen fit to tell the
public what he thought as to the re-
suit.
1t is possible, however, to review
the causes Of the strike, to state what
happened during the conflict and to
approximate the situation 10Y that it
is all over That may shed some
light on the mooted question.
The miners through their union
which expired March 81 last. The
bituminous operators declined to meet
with the representatives of the min
ers in national conference to negotiate
a new agreement. The miners claim
ed that this vas in and of itself a. vio-
lation of the contract between the OPP
orators and them. The latter claimed
that inasmuch as such an agreement
might be held to be a conspiracy in
violation of the antitrust law they
could not be expected to enter into
a conference.
In the anthracite field the opera
tors met with the miners to work
out a new contract covering wages
and working conditions. but nj agree
ment was reached up to and including
March 81. Thereupon the miners in
both fields declined to go to work on
April /. Inc the strike was on. 1t
was not called a strike by the miners,
but just as the rose would smell as
if called by any other name,
what happened in the Goa industry
had all the effect Of a strike, whatever
anybody decided to call it.
What Was at Issue. !
The bituminous miners had not pre-
sented any demands az to the new
wage contract, so it can lot be said
that they struck against a wage re-
duction. 1t was we'll known, however,
that the operators were determined
that there should be a wagereduction,
and that the miners were insistent
upon q continuance of the old wage
scale. The union was also determined
that the check-off system should be
perpetuated, while the operators were
equally set upon it's abolition. The
check-on. be it remembered, is the
arrangement whereby the union dues
and fees are withheld from the min
ers' pay by the operators and turned
over to the treasurer of the union.
in the anthracite branch of the coal
industry he miners demanded q wage
increase and asked for the establish
ment of the check-oH system which
has never prevailed in those fields.
tended that there should be a wage
reduction. There were other issues.
but o n of sufficient Importance to
have caused q strike or lockout.
Now az to what transpired during
the strike it may be said that in the
bituminous mines production ceased
wherever the miners belonged to the
union and in some Independent fields
the workers went out as evidence Of
their complete sympathy with the
strikers. The union miners held
their forces intact throughout the pc
Rod of the strike, and the only soft
coal that vas produced came from
the n0n-uniOn mines. This amounted
to from 100000 to 1000. 900 tons
weekly ~ against q normal produc-
ton or demand Of 100000 to 10,-
100000 tons . week.
In the anthracite fields production
came to an, absolute stop. Not all
the miners there belong to the union,
but the operators are closely organ
lied, they have alwayy conducted
their business on the basis Of the
agreement with the union and none
OF them would und ertakN to MINE
coal with independent miners or
strike breakers. There was no at
tempt to break tho strike and there
was no independent. or non-union
production to meet OF partially to
meet the demand from consumers.
Only One 6esious Oufbreak.
For the most part there was little
|lAwlessness during the strike. The
one black blot va the Herrin MAJ
sacre, which u not 70 be discussed
now that the AFFAIR - bsfore the
srand Jury. There we're s0yne 81
seenrly deIronstretions I'M .PsnnayIva-
~ but nothing happ1sSd thst va
EaffIfs1EWVt sranffsGE ~ 80