Evening star., 1938-10-15
NEW YORK TUGS
IDLE IN STRIKE
Wa|kout of Workers Is
Ordered After Wage
ParIey CoI|apses.
BY the Associated Press.


NEW YORK, Oct l5.-Capt. Will
liam " Bradley of the United Marine
Division, Local 333, part Of the In
ternational Longshoremen's Associa-
ton GA. F. L), claimed today the
tugboat strike in New York Harbor
was 100 per cent effective, less than
II hours after it was called.
The prospect of speedy settlement,
however, was held out by James G.
Conway, president of the New York
Tugboat Exchange, Inc, employers
organization, when he announced
that union representatives had agreed
to meet with the operators about noon.
Despite the strike, tive Of three ar
irving transatlantic passenger ships
managed to dock in slack water. A
third lay outside the harbor awaiting
favorable tides to dock without aid of
tugs.
Capt. Bradley said 1000 men of the
unions total membership Of $500 were
on strike. tying up 225 tugs. The other
$500 union men were not called out.
The only tugboats moving in the
harbor, Mr.. Bradley said, were rail-
road tugs and those serving coastwise
vessels, self-propelling oil tankers
whose TOO union members were not
called out and Erie canal boats, whose
800 workers we're likewise not on strike.
The New York Towboat Exchange,
Inc. declined comment on the unions
claim Of the effectiveness of the strike
Seasonal Contract.
Capt. Bradley said the Erie Canal
boatmen have seasonal contract for
summer and fall. Their boats were
allowed to come down the Hudson
only as far as Newburgh, N. Y, to-
day, but those in the harbor and out
bound were being permitted to move.
The men on the self-propelling oil
tankers have a contract with the In
land Water Petroleum Carriers Asso-
citation which expires next July !,
Capt. Bradley said.
The strike call, issued by President
Joseph P. Ryan of the International
Longshoremen's Association GA. F. of
L., affected 1000 workers and followed
the collapse of negotiations among the
union, operators and Nathan Frankel,
labor advisor to Mayor La Guardia
OF the rs tugs tied up. Is are used
regularly to haul garbage scows for
the Department of Sanitation and
eight are engaged in towing coal barges
for a power company. Union officials
said others were engaged in servicing
transatlantic liners and freight boats.
The Hamburg american liner New
York and the Excambion of the Amer
ican- Export line reached port and
docked after considerable maneuver-
ing, without use of tugs
Awaits Slack Water.
A third transatlantic liner, the
Nieuw Amsterdam of the Holland
America line, anchored outside the
bay to await slack water-the interval
between flood and ebb tides-due late
this afternoon before attempting to
tie up. at her Hoboken pier.
Five liners were due to sail today.
The tugboatmen are members of
the United Marine Division. Local 80,
a part of the longshoremen's union.
Mr.. Frankel, baked last night in
an effort to stave off the strike for 48
hours pending new conferences, asked
the labor and operators committees
to meet again today. He also asked
Mr., Ryan to exempt transatlantic
ships from the tie-up.
Coastwise ships were not affected by
the strike order, and If transatlantic
ships were excluded the brunt would
be borne by oil, coal and other freight
barges. Mr.. Ryan declared utilities
serving the metropolitan area would
face q shortage of fuel. but Mr..
Frankel said they could be served by
the railroads.
Wage Increases Sought.
Prior to the final conference last
night, negotiations had been under
way for several weeks, with the union
demanding a $10-a-nnonth increase for
captains and engineers, now receiving
5000 q month, and an increase OF SIS
for firemen, deckhands and cooks, now
receiving sos to 500 month.
Mr.. Ryan said the increases asked
had been scaled down from an orig
inal demand of 81 more . day, and
charged the operators with using the
union as Q cats paw" to obtain
lighter rate increases from the Inter-
state Commerce Commission.
Operators said they had offered to
submit their records to . fact-nndins
commission In an effort to show the
industry could not increase wages.
Approximately 800 tugs operate in
New York haxboe.