Evening star., 1938-05-17
HINTS VICTORIES
|NB0ARD'S CASES
Supreme Courts Decision
Hailed as Strengthening
MIR. B. Procedure.
By JOHN H. CLINE.


The National Labor Relations Board
won significant victory in the Su-
preme Court yesterday when that
tribunal approved its procedure in the
Mackay Radio & Telegraph Co. case
in language widely construed as in
dicating the court will side with the
board in its current controversies with
Republic Steel Corp. and the Ford
Motor Co.
In finding the company guilty OF
unfair labor practice for refusing to
re-employ five workers who had been
on strike, the board did not follow
its usual procedure of submitting an
intermediate report based on hear
ings held by a trial examiner. Had
such report been filed the company
would have had opportunity to note
exceptions to it, but the court said
the omission was not fatal defect
since the company was sufficiently
we'll acquainted with the nature Of the
charge it was facing.
Differs From Stockyards Case.
The case in that respect differed
from the recent Kansas City stock
yards case, in which the justices said
the Department of Agriculture never
gave the defendants reasonable OPP
portunity to know the nature Of the
Governments claims.
In addition to approving the pro-
cedure, the decision in the Mackay
case also held the board was within
its rights in ordering the company to
reinstate the striking workers. al
though the opinion indicated the COM
pany might have been upheld in its
refusal to re-employ the men had the
court not been convinced that the re-
fusal was based on desire to dis
criminate against them because OF
their union activities.
The Labor Board has sought to
reopen its cases against Ford and
Republic Steel, presumably to prepare
and submit the omitted intermediate
report. 1t was believed after the
stockyards decision that such action
would place the board on safer ground,
but the ruling in the Mackav case has
been interpreted as indicating the
board was within its rights in not
submitting the report
Withdrawal Refused.
The Third Circuit Court at Phila-
delphia has refused to permit the
board to withdraw the Republic case,
however, and similar action was taken
l,1-tt t,a ivt1 Circ,1if TN,1rt a C0yi,,n-
ton, Ky, in the Ford case.
Contending the refusals were in
violation Of the express provisions of
the Wagner Act. Solicitor General
Robert H. Jackson has asked the
Supreme Court to compel the Third
Circuit to withdraw its order The
court yesterday issued rule requiring
the lower tribunal to show cause Mon
day why the Governments request
should not be granted.
Tax Principle Upheld.
In another case yesterday the court
upheld the principle of the undis-
tributed profits tax The case con-
cerned an assessment of some S477.000
against the National Grocery Co. for
allegedly accumulating excessive prof.
its in 1881. While the present undis-
tributed profits tax was not involved,
the court upheld somewhat similar
provision in the 1928 Revenue Act
The justices also indicated they will
review the constitutionality of the
Tennessee Valley Authority legislation
when they meet next fall. The court
upheld limited phase of the act in
1886. and yesterday noted probable
jurisdiction" in a suit by 18 private
power companies attacking the entire
T. V. A. program. A three-judge Dis
trict Court at Knoxville. Tenn, re-
Gently ruled in favor of the power
agency and the complainants appealed.