The producers news. [volume] (Plentywood, Mont.) 1918-1937, 1923-08-03
OPER-
ATORS FIGHT UNION


ATLANTIC CITY-An aggressive
fight against complete recognition OF
the miners union is being made by
the anthracite operators industrial
union. At the conference here the OPP
orators have voted "n9" or the follow,
ing resolution offered by the miners
committee:
RESOLVED. That the principle Of
complete recognition and the check-off
as expressed in demand No. be
adopted"
Demand No. reads: "We demand
/ that the next contract be for period
lof two years. with complete recogni-
ton of the U. NJ. w. A. districts l, y
and g."
This is the workers reply to the
/ open-shop campaign which aims grad.
ually to undermine independent organ
ization in all industries. The miners
attitude is expressed by President
Lewis as follows:
! ''The making Of a new anthracite
workers agreement is contingent upon
the anthracite operators giving full
recognition to the U. NJ. w. A. Tie
relations between operators and mlE'
ers in the industry require such recog-
milton. Such relationship has existed
for a quarter of a century In the BIZ
luminous coal fields and the miners
are within their rights in asking for
recognition from the anthracite opera
tors.
'The demand for recognition will
not add a single penny to the cost of
anthracite production and the sconces-
sion on this point is essential to carry
out the recommendation of the coal
commission in the matter of penalties
for breach of contract"
The operators admit that they have
always recognized the u. M. w. A. as
contractual body with which dis
putes in the industry were to be set
tied, but they bubble over the right
of certain hypothetical nonunion an
thracite miners to maintain that free
!. nonuniOn status. In this attitude they
feel themselves supported by the open
shop declaration of the coal commits
sion and by recent court decisions.
This attitude shows a determination
to prevent the miners from building vi
: their strength by the same methods a:
We're used by the owners in forming
their combine in the industry.
: The anthracite combine is an indus
4 trail union of operators built up by tn,
3. use of the check-off. Control of tn,
seven railroads which served all mine
. enabled this union to maintain
& check-off on every ton of hard Goa
x which reached consumers. These rail
4. road companies own outright over 9
per cent of the unmined coal and con
:" troll at least 90 per cent.
< This rail-coal combine applied tn
x check-off to Independent mines thr
!. freight rates which they made S
: high that no independent produce
. could operate at profit. This force
the Independent operators to come in
= to the union, for while they were out
!. side they were in fact paying regula
dues in the form of charges added t
. fair freight rates. By a similar de
= vice Standard Oil built up its monoI
= oily.
4. These z railroads with absolute con
> troll of anthracite production and dis
: tribution are united by close inter
< locking direetorates with the Ney
!. York bank combine, which center
:. around the House of Morgan and tn
National City bank. Men like LOree
OlOIeSDuIy ana, ulIll Ills uedCH, Ouyle
+ are dominant figures in the combine
= The miners are faced with this soli
j. industrial organization, which com
j, pletely controls jobs. They are force
. to recognize it and to deal with il
!; They have no choice but to enforc
< their right to form similar organiza
= ton to control the price which is pai
;. for their services and the condition
: under which those services are giver