Imperial Valley press., 1941-04-09

WASHINGTON. April 9 - Be-
hind the latest labor disturbances
at the Ford River Rouge works is a
record of nearly four years Wrangl-
ing with the National Labor Re-
latiOnS board-cOyering nine princi-
pal cases at Kansas City, Chicago,
Somerville. Mass, St. Louis, Rich
mond, Va. Long Beach, Calf, Buff
falO. Dallas and Dearborn plants
costing no one knows how much
in lawyers fees. court costs and
time for NLRB hearings. One
case went to the Supreme Court.
The Labor Board IS only a little
over five years old and all but one
year OF its stormy young life has
been marked by Ford grief. Its
Ford files are vOluminOus, the eX-
ceptions made by the company in
the ST. Louis case alone filling a
box as big as an old-fashioned
cloak and suit salesman's trunk.
The problem is how anyone could
write that much, let alone read it.
NEW TROUBLE
SPRINGS FROM OLD
The present trouble at Dearborn
Is. in q va, q direct fOllOW-up on
the first Ford case, the one that
got to the Supreme Court. That
case began May %, 1887, when the
company was charged with inter-
ference and coercion against the
employees right to organize and
bargain, and with discrimination
against individual employees by fir
ing them for organization activ-
tiles.
Hearings began in July and went
through the rest of 1887, a decision
ard order finally being handed
down Just before Christmas. Then
following nearly two years of
Wrangllng, ending in a new decision
il August, 1899, and the NLR.B.
petition to sixth Circuit Court of
Appeals, a month later, to enforce
the order.
The court handed down its de-
c!sion in October, uphOlding the
Labor Board Whereupon the COM
panv took the case to the Supreme
Court, It was only on Feb, 10 this
year that the Supreme Court de-
nied the writ of Ccrtiorari, in effect
confirming The lower courts dc
clsiOn
The Ford company, in compli-
ance with court order, began to
work out back pay for rehiring Of
men discharged for union activity.
but that BY no means settled the
problem. On Feb. 13 the Clio
United Automobile Workers filed a
rev petition with the board,
charging the Ford company with
new violations Of the National La
Dor Relations act at Lincoln, River
Rouge and Highland Park plants.
Speeding up its slow motion pro-
cedure as a defense measure, the
Labor Board held hearings March
24-26. Oral arguments were moved
up TO April ), and if they can be
concluded and the board decision
handed down IN reasonable time,
MIR 3. viii have demonstrated
Wlat il cal do TO speed up TIE
defense effort by handling a major
industry case within two months
Or 50 That is, unless the lawyers
pct 10 work on tae case and stretch
il ont INTO another four years mara
thOn argument.
For one thing, the strike may
20 mcrrily On anG every govern
,uent agency dealing with labor
vii find itself increasingly on the
pot because they are all limited in
oCWerS. While it says IN the United
States Government Manual that
NLRB. is an IntegraI cog in the
lauon's program Of preventing
strife and promoting industrial har-
llony IN this period of mObilizing
working forces III behalf Of ma
ional defense you will look pretty
lard and not find a satisfactory
answer to the question of how It ,
an stop a strike like this one.
AWAIT
ORD ACTION
NL.RB is limited by law to
Procedure best illustrated by what !
t has done and what it has not I
cen able 10 do in the nine-noW
0-Ford cases. Three of these
ases are Still in the courts, two '
wit new decision. three have &
cen decided but await compliance 1