Henderson daily dispatch., 1939-08-03
lICC Studies
Condition OF
Mill Strike
Daily Dispatch Bureau,
I'm th@ Sir Walter Hotel

.;ah AUG. 3.-The Unemploy-
ampansatiOn Commission was
,..7.rs,iav asked to rule that stop
. work at High Points High
Wills. complete since its en-
.- omit on June S. is not the re-
5, a Labor dispute" within the
aeanme of the unemployment COM
.,-.t,nn act. Answer to the QueS-
a vas deferred. pending study of
ii. r,cord. probably for at least
week.
tI.tsI', ornate red and gold Virginia
lqgra ball room, some thirty employees
~ mill listened with Wide-eyed
,otere,t as their attorney, Keith
T.r;son. contended that the laws
,,Irnose is broader than any Web
.t.4an dispute" over definition of
vhat constitutes a Labor dispute"
m rebuttal. Major l.. P. McLendon,
attorney for the mills, declared it
perfectly plain" that there is, in
fact. labor dispute at the Highland
Qllls. a dispute which directly
braught about the cessation of work
more than nine weeks ago.
Commissioner of Labor Forest
Shuford. eN-Officio a member of the
l.. [. C.. presided, with Mrs. j. Is
SnHman, associate u. c. {. member.
4 sting Chairman Charles e
Powell was absent on account of III
nsss. Hearing was moved to the ball
room when 1t became OU> to-
ta5 commissions small office in thc
euner-heated u. c. c. quarters ovcl
ii garage would be completely in
adequate to accommodate the crowd
IL eager witnesses.
Nr Harrison, who was closely ad-
rised thrOugl.-ut the hearing by G.
W Dannenburg. representative of
the c. l. O.-sponsored Textile Work
cr> Organizing Committee, sent ten
witnesses to the stand all Of them
to.tifying that they quit work be-
cause the company had instituted
q 'strctch-0ut'' system under which
they could not keep up with the
work Witness after witness declar--
CI il was just too much for human
endurance.
Several women testified that in the |
spinning room, under the stretchout |
system. they did not have time to go
10 the restroom, often for periods |
as long as six hours at time Sam |
FCrett a carding room employee, |
testified that when his wife. who
worked as spinner. started for the |
rest room or for a drink of water,
bosses" would blow police-like |
whistle at her and motion her back !
- work.
Miss Myrtle Buchanan, for a.
years a spinning room worker said:
Il quit because l could not hold |
down the job they gave me- E. We
wanted to work. We tried to get them |
10 give us more help so we could do
II. but they wouldn't and SO l quit"
There were several witnesses who
said that J. +. Mills, president of the
mill remarked during negotiations
following the StOppage that the mill
had 100000 pounds of yarn on hand,
that it was cheaper to buy it than
To- make it and that he didn't care
whether the mill reOpened or not.
Sam Upton, second <reman,"
wore an OVerSeer named Dennis
said that the management would get
Is way in the stretch out dispute or
1T the damned thing rot down."
Other witnesses, most of whom had
been Highland employees for more
than half score years, were w. w.
anderson, WOfford Kearns, Walter
Upton. Wade Bean, Ernest Boyle and
Mrs Eula Gourley.
Mr.. Harrison admitted the statute
prevents payment Of unemployment
compensation where stoppage OF
work is caused by a labor dispute,
but argued vigorously that the inten-
ton Of the law is to protect and pay
those employees who quit through:
no fault Of their own. Major Nc
Lendon contended that the stoppage
plainly was so-caused and pointed
out that the employees remedy, if
any. would be through the Natonai
Labor Relations Board.