Evening star., 1937-05-21

OF l.. ideal OF craft or horizontal
organization. By coincidence, it
1Das Jones & Ldughlin Steel Co.
that challenged Legality of the
Wagner act dn6 lost before the
Supreme Court. The act sets up
machinery to force collective bar
milton elections.
By the Associated Press.
PITTSBURGH, May 21.-The Steel
Workers Organizing Committee, VIC
torious in the Nations first major en-
ploye election under the supervision Of
the Government, presented collec-
tive bargaining contract today to the
Jones g. Laughlin Steel Corp.
The contract was received by Chair
man H. E. Lewis of the corporation
at Commute conference with Chair
man Phillip Murray of the steel union,
spearhead of John L. Lewis indus
trial unionization drive.
Emerging from the conference room,
Murray said:
THE meeting was very amiable. Mr..
Lewis accepted the result of the cleo
ton in good spirit"
The two leaders will meet again to-
morrow when the contract possibly
may be signed. 1t is expected to be
considered first by counsel for the
corporation.
Vote Over az to 1.
More than $4,000 of Jones &, Laugh
Inns mill $4,000 employees voted yes
terday by 2l2 to l margin in favor
OF having the union represent them
exclusively in bargaining with the
management. The result was an
nounced at dawn today by the Ma
tional Labor Board. After the last
ballot had been counted in the quiet
Of post Office room.
It was an historic election because
1t was the biggest ever conducted un-
der the Federal Governments super
vision. It was q decision Of mo-
mentous significance to the forces of
John L. Lewis, whose Committee for
Industrial Organization already was
reaching out toward other steel COM
panies where yet it has been unrecog-
nized.
At 5:38 am. eastern standard
time) Ernest G. Dunbar, regional di-
rector of the National Labor Rela-
tions Board, emerged from the count
ing place with slip of paper giving
these figures:
Total ballots, 24,412: for the Steel
Workers Organizing Committee-the
C. I. O.. unit involved-17,028; not in
favor OF the S. w. o. c., 1907; blank
ballots, 81; void ballots, Sc; chal-
lenged votes, 80.
The men voted in two plants, the
larger at Aliquippa, 18 miles down the
Ohio River from Pittsburgh; the other
at the South Side mills in the city
proper.
Breakdown Not Available.
No official breakdown of the ballots
was available Immediately. Figures
issued unofhcially by Joseph Timko,
subregional director for the S. w.
o. c.. before the tabulation had been
completed indicated under partial re-
turns that in Aliquippa the C. l. o.
vote was about to l, or less, against
about to / in the South side plant.
The vote in the Pittsburgh works
was unofficially reported as 9,073 for
the union and 4,031 opposed.
At Aliquippa, the unofficial tally
was 1910 for and 3,191 against the
union. These figures were at slight
variation with the official totals.
1t was at Aliquippa that most of the
unrest occurred in the recent 36-hour
strike which brought about the cleo
ton.
Al. & L." spokesman, commenting
or the fact that about 81 per cent
Of all eligible men voted, remarked:
This shows the intense interest
of the men. The men have spoken.
This shows what they want"
Corporation Chairman Lewis issued
this statement:
THE Jones g. Laughlin Steel Corp.
Is gratified that such an important
issue has been so amicably settled by
peaceful and democratic methods un-
der the provisions of the Wagner act.
Now that the election is over and
our employees have made their decision.
let us forget the tension of the past
few weeks and cheerfully apply our
selves to our duties, as there is much
for all of us to do with our order
books better filled than for some time
past"
Policemen Aid Tabulators.
The voting had ended officially at
l am. Eastern daylight time). The
ballots, dropped by workers in the
ballot boxes at the great mills as they
began or ended their shifts, were
rushed to Dunbars headquarters by
representatives of both\sides, and, in
some instances, by uniformed police
men. They were gathered from 46
polling boxes.
At the counting machines were Lee
Pressman, attorney for the c. I. O.;
w. H. Dupka, controller of the COM
pany, and Dunbar. They all appeared
in amiable spirits and as soon as the
result was announced Dunbar felici-
tated all concerned.
Through 1t all, he had said earlier,
not single serious" complaint as
to irregularity was made by either
side.
The first batch of ballots-from the
south side steel district of Pittsburgh
did not arrive for tabulation until
3:29 am They were seized eagerly
from the red-faced, earnest union men
who carried them. Other patches ar