Evening star., 1934-06-17
COUNCIL TO OFFER
STRIKE PROPOSAL
Carpenters Will Meet To.
morrow Night to Con-
slider Situation.

Efforts to settle the carpenters
strike which since May has serious
ly hampered building construction in
the National Capital, will be resumed
tomorrow.
The strike was weakened last week
by the informal agreement between
local and of-town contractors to
put carpenters to work at S1.10 an
hour, while the Carpenters Union
picketed all jobs throughout the city.
The District Building Trades Coun-
Gil, of which the carpenters are mem
bers, has put forward the proposal Of
arbitration and will meet tomorrow
morning to prepare some kind of a
communication to the carpenters, who
Thursday night fatty rejected arbi-
tration. The nature of this forthcom-
ing communication could not be
learned last night
Council to Meet.
The carpenters District council will
meet tomorrow night in Carpenters
william L. Hutcheson, international
president of the carpenters, conferred
at length yesterday with District Com
missioner George E. Allen at the Dis
trict Building and afterward Allen
said things look brighter" It was
understood Hutcheson had declined to
consider, however, a compromise offer
put forward by Allen.
The Central Labor Union will meet
tomorrow night, with Richard A.
Dickson, president, presiding. To this
central body the carpenters have
elected three new delegates.
Dickson has taken an active part
in the negotiations on the strike and
was prominent in the recent meeting
at Commissioner Aliens Office when
the contractors presented their last
counter offer, which is now before the
carpenters.
Arbitration Suggested.
The contractors told the carpenters
that ''if and when the carpenters local
council appoints a committee to act
for their membership, who will be
bound by their acts, and, who will re-
port to Commissioner Allen with the
proper credentials, we will have our
committee with the same authority
meet them and Commissioner Allen"
Up to the present time the carpen-
ters' Wage Committee has not had this
authority. Every question submitted
to them has been submitted back to
the carpenters themselves for a refer
endum vote. All offers in compromise
have been rejected by the carpenters
votes.
Unconf1rmed reports persisted last
night that there might be reopening
of negotiations in some form and that
the carpenters might consider the
field of negotiations bounded by the
last offer of the contractors at SIPS
an hour and the carpenters demands
of $1.37la an hour. The question of
the length of the work week also is
the center of controversy, the carpen-
ters want 30-hour week and the
contractors have offered a 40-hour
week.
Offer Is Withdrawn.
The contractors, however, withdrew
their SIPS offer after it was rejected
by the carpenters, SO it is not known
what basis the contractors would con-
slider in resumption of negotiations.
Carpenters last night still were stand
ing on $1.37h an hour, it was re-
ported in some quarters.
Arbitration would involve the neces-
sity of both sides agreeing to submit
the dispute to one man, whose decision
would be final. Neither side appears
to have reached the stage of agreeing
to arbitration as yet, although this Is
strongly recommended by the Wash
ington Building Trades Council.
The way still appeared open last
night, however, for further nego-
tiations.
The case of the operative plasterers
against the brick masons in connec-
ton with laying acoustical stone in
the Government auditorium comes up
tomorrow In District Supreme Court.