Evening star., 1943-03-23

TeTt OF White House state
menf, issued yesterday, on the
soft coal 1Udge dispute tolloWS,
The President today addressed
Identical kilograms to John L. Lewis,
president of United Mine Workers of
America; Charles O'Neill, chair of
the Operators Negotiating Com
mittee, Appalachian Joint Confer
ence, and Edward r. Burke, Nego-
tiating Committee, South Appa-
lachian Wage Conference, all in New
York, the text of which follows:
The dispute between the United
Mine Workers and the bituminous
operators must be settled like any
other labor dispute under the ma
tional no-strike agreement of De-
cember 26, l94l, by the peaceful
means set forth in the executive
order No. 90l7 of January 10. 1912;
that is. by collective bargaining, con-
Citation and final determination. If
necessary, by the National War
Labor Board.
From kilograms I have received
from the committees representing
the operators and from the press
reports of various proposals made
at the conference, it is evident that
the time remaining before the ex-
piration of the contract on March
81 is too short.
Procedure Suggested.
Il therefore request the mine
workers and the operators to follow
the plan adopted at my suggestions
in 1941; that is, to continue the
uninterrupted production of coal
under the terms and conditions of
existing contracts until the differ
ences that now separate the parties
are peacefully and finally resolved
with the understanding that if the
new agreement includes any wage
adjustments such adjustments shall
be computed and applied retroac-
lively from April l, 1943. If any
wage adjustments are made they
must, of course, be made in accord
ance with the act of October 2,
1912. and executive Order No. $3.50.
1T would be unfair to the mine
workers and to the operators unduly
to prolong this period of uncertainty,
and I am therefore asking every
one concerned to proceed with all
speed consistent with the complete
and fair minded settlement of the
dispute. If it is referred to agencies
of the Government shall make the
same request of those in charge of
such agencies.
IF there is a wage adjustment
within the standards set forth in the
act of october 2, 1912, and executive
order No $3.50, the question of undue
hardship to individual operators re-
sulting from the agreement to make
such adjustments retroactive to April
l. 1943, will be given due considera-
ton by the agencies of Government
concerned with costs and prices"
Telegram From Operators.
The President last Saturday re-
ceived a telegram from Charles
O'Neill, r. E. Jamison, R. L. Ireland
Jr.; William Findlay, Harry M.
Moses, E. R. Price, Operators Nego-
tiating Committee, Appalachian
Joint Conference, from New York,
the text of which follows:
The negotiations between the
United Mine Workers of America
and the coal operators of the Appa-
lachian Joint Conference have made
no progress toward a settlement of
the myriad of issues presented by
the exorbitant demands of the mine
workers. 1t is our opinion that the
time is too short to complete an
agreement during the remaining
days for negotiating. The public
declaration of the United Mine
Workers of America is that If no
contract is made between now and
April operations in all mines in the
Appalachian area will cease.
s"ThoSa mines rro<},,ro about m