The Waterbury Democrat., 1938-05-19
TROUBLE
 IN BULGE FELT
 OVER MICHIGAN
Plants Affected Total 37 During SixWeek
 Period
BY ROBERT LA BLONDE United Press Staff Correspondent

Detroit, May 19.-(UP)-Labol trouble affected at least 37 Michi- gan plants during the past si, weeks, a survey shows, causing hardship for thousands of person, and threatening privation to addi- tional thousands.
 The number of workers directly involved in the various controver. sies was small in comparison to the number of persons indirectly affect ed. For example, 2,700 street car op- orators and platform men in De- troit staged a 33-hour trolley strike forcing 500,000 factory and office bound workers to thumb" rides ol drive their own automobiles into congested areas to their jobs.
 List of Plants Affected
 A survey by United Press revealed the following plants have been in- volved in labor trouble during the past six weeks:
 Consumers Power Company, Sag inaw.
 Detroit Street Railway.
 Bohn Aluminium and Brass Com pany, (eight plants), Detroit.
 River Raisin Paper Company, Monroe.
 Michigan Steel Casting, Detroit.
 Detroit Molding Corporation.
 Gar Wood Industries, (two plants) Detroit.
 Briggs Manufacturing Company.
 Moving Van strike, Detorit.
 Federal Screw Corporation, De- troit.
 Saginaw, Michigan, Furniture Company.
 Ann Arbor Press, An Arbor.
 General Motors Corporation, (three plants), Flint.
 Swedish Crucible Steel Company, Detroit.
 American Brass Company, De- troit.
 Hulet Top and Body Company, Detroit.
 Chrysler Corporation, Plymouth division, Detroit.
 Kelsey Hayes Wheel Company, Detroit.
 Budd Manufacturing Company, (tWo plants), Detroit.
 A. G. Redmond Company, Flint.
 Most serious of the difficulties were the Consumers Power Con- pany and the Detroit Street Railway strikes. The power strike was called April l by the Utility Workers Or ganizing committee, 8 c. I. O. unit. Employees seized power plants and sub-stations in the Saginaw Valley. It was the third time within a year such strike had been started.
 Murphy Rushed Home
 With the power supply for two- third of lower Michigan threatened, Governor Frank Murphy cut short a Florida vacation to return to Michigan and start peace negotia- tions. There were no power failures during the strike but 300 cities and towns were at the mercy of the strikers. The trouble was attributed through Murphy's intercession. Two thousand workers were affected by the seizure.
 The street car strike in Detroit started over seniority issue be- tween street car and bus unions. for nearly two days not a street car left car barn. Thousands of De- troit workers unable to find accom- modations on busses not affected by the strike were forced to hitch-hike to offices and plants. The strike tn- volved 2,700 members of the street car union.
 Workers Become Stockholders
 One of the most unusual strike settlements was completed between Gar Wood Industries, Inc, and the united Automobile Workers Union. The company announced 1t would pay 20 per cent annual dividend to Its employees, making them stock holders in the firm.
 A new type of labor trouble oc- cured at Flint when the Buick and two Fisher Body plants were closed after the U. A. w. started a "dues drive" attempting to picket the Fisher plants and collect back union dues as unpaid members passed through the gates. The Buick plant was forcedto close through lack of bodies when General Motors Corp oration stopped operations at its two Fisher plants. Union officials agreed to stop the "dues drives" and after two days the plants were re-opened.
 A majority of the labor contro- versies, ranging from sit-down and slow down" strikes to lockouts, in- volved only small number of work CTS. Many were settled within a day or two.