Imperial Valley press., 1943-08-13

How to force a labor union or
an employer to accept and abide by
finding of the National War
Labor Board is now the hottest
potato which the administration
has to juggle and tumble,
If means to enforce VILE find
ings cannot be found the board is
as good as dead For at this writ
ing the board is being defied by the
United Mine Workers and by the
management of the u S. Gypsum
Company And a way must be
found to save the honorable board S
honorable face.
There is nothing in the new
Smith -Connally bill which COM
pels a union or an employer to
accept a WLB finding, though the
bill does give the board greater
power.
And it is worth noting that the
WLB finding on the United Mine
Workers case contains no pro-
vision ordering that John l.. Lewis
must sign a contract incorpart-
ing the terms of boards recon-
mendations. Members of the board
did pay an official call on War
Mobilization Director James F.
ByrneS demanding that the miners
be forced to sign. But since the
board has no police powers to en-
force its own decisions, that Job
had to be passed tG the White
House.
Thus far. the matter has just
been kicked around.
On June %, the mine operators
wrote the President about this, and
on June 80 they got an answer
signed by Byrnes saying, The gov
eminent is giving full consideration
to the steps which may be taken to
obtain full compliance with the
June 18 directive Of the National
War Labor Board without increas-
ing the rick of interruption of
mining relations"
NO NOTE TO LEWIS
Secretary of the Interior Harold
| L. Ickes, as head of the Oftlre of
Mine Operations and government
boss of the seized coal mines has
challenged the statement that the
government Is poWerless to force
acceptance of the WLB findings By
the miners. Yet Ickes has not
specified how this can be done
In the face of the Byrnes and
Ickes statements and the WLB
recommendations, the President
has stated that he has no intention
of writing a note on pink paper
asking John L. Lewis to sign a new
agreement with the coal operators
He might say no. So where are VIZ
now? The mine operators woulc
like to know.
The President has refused to aC.
cept the Oct. 81 deadline which
John L. Lewis placed on his willing
ness to have the mines continue
work under government operst ton
# that is any indication that tht
administration hopes it can con.
tinue to drift along under the term
of the present armistice, that's bad
The only party TO this dispute
who has anything to gain by sittinl
tight and letting Father Time taxi
his own sweet old way is JOIN
Lewis. Time can play into hi
hands beautifully Congress ha
gone home till mid September s'
there's nothing more to fear from
that quarter. ANY increase in tb
cost of living during the summe
works to Lewis advantage in hi
demands for higher pay than tha
awarded his union under the VIII
directive of June 18
ANOTHER STRIKE?
The Smith Connally bill pro
vides that union must give 3
days advance notice of intent Il
strike in a war industry under gov
ernment operation, so on Oct
Lewis can announce intent to cal
another strike whether the govern
ment recognizes his Oct. 81 dead
line or not.
A coal strike at the beginning o
winter would be brutal thing, th
worst sabotaging Of the war effor
TO be imagined. Lewis has marched
his miners up the hill on strik,
three times since May l, AM
marched them down again withou
victory except for the small gain
handed him in the WLB decision
Agreement to continue to dig Goa
under government operations of the