Evening star., 1937-01-18
"Stay-Ins" Remain.
G.. NJ. C.. Refusal
Indicated.
CONFEREES MEET
ONLY 5 MINUTES
i. A. W. A. Head Saws
Men to Continue to
Hold Flint Plants.

BACKGROUND
The United Automobile Workers
OF America, affiliated with John L.
LetDis' Committee for Industrial
Organization, presented Uorkers'
grievances and demands to Gen.
eral Motors Corp. last month.
Recognition of U. A. w. as sole
bargaining agency for the ,0orkers
major demand. Others ,Dere for
higher wages, shorter hours. Gen.
erGl Motors refused to see union
representatives as sole bargaining
agents for ,Dorkers and impasse
developed. Sit-doUn strikes began,
closing many G. M. C. plants and
putting more than $4,000 out OF
uork. Coz. Frank Murphy OF
Michigan brought opposing sides
together for talk Thursday and
agreement ,Das reached to begin
settlement negotiations today.
Workers agreed to leaUe plants;
G. NJ. C. agreeing not to reopen
them. Evacuation OF plants halted
yesterday ,Dhen union charged
G. NJ. c. uith bad faith in promis-
ing to negotiate ,Uith Flint Alliance.
sy the Associated Press.
DETROIT, January 1S.-Homel
Martin, President of the United Auto.
mobile Workers of America, announced
today after a brief meeting with higt
General Motors officials, that "tht
conference is off"
Martin made his statement as hi
and five associates left the conference
room IN the General Motors building
where negotiations to end widespread
strikes were to have opened at II am
The General Motors executives des.
ignated as conferees in the negotia.
tions, headed by William S. Knudsen
executive vice president, were in the
room only five minutes. Knudsen ano
his associates, John Thomas Smith
general counsel, and Donaldson Brown
chairman of the Finance Committee
refused to comment when they
emerged from the room.
Martins terse statement indicated
that General Motors had refused tc
open negotiations because strikers
continued to occupy two Fisher Body
plants in Flint.
All Negotiations Of.
The U. A. w. A. president said that
"at the present moment all confer
ences and negotiations are off; there
are no further conferences scheduled
with General Motors"
He said he planned no further
meeting with Gov. Frank Murphy
whose efforts to bring the union and
the corporation into an accord ap-
parently were set at naught by de-
velopments over the week end.
Martin said the union would stand
firm on it's refusal to order stay-in
strikers to leave the General Motors
plants at Flint. He added that nc
attempt would be made to return
strikers to three plants which were
vacated Saturday in accordance with
the truce arranged by the Governor
Despite charges that the strike
truce had been violated. the union
conferees, Martin, Wyndham Morti-
mer, first vice president of the union
and John Brophy, director of the
Committee for Industrial Organiza-
ton, arrived at the General Motors
Building shortly after the scheduled
hour for the conference today.
Murphy Postpones Departure.
Gov. Murphy. postponing his de-
parture for Washington to attend the
Roosevelt ceremonies, talked with
both sides by telephone today but re-
manned in his hotel here.
When the union representatives
arrived at General Motors offices
they were escorted to the conference
room where c. E. Wilson, genera
assistant to Knudsen, talked with
them for half an hour before the
corporation conferees made theil
brief appearance.
Fate of the settlement negotiations
which under the truce were to have
(See STRIKE, Page A-4.)