Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1945-02-28
Contract Retroactivity
Major Issue Before
Miners Wage Farley

Two Issues bearing Importantly on
future labor peace in coal mines, it
was learned today, will be the dura-
ton of the new contract and the
question of retroactivity of the
agreement between the mine work.
ers and operators should the pres
ent contract be extended beyond the
March 81 deadIine. e
John L. Lewis United Mine Work
ers, it was understood, will not
agree to extension of the old con-
tract If the wage conference with OPP
orators beginning tomorrow reaches
an impasse unless any concessions
obtained later are made retroactive
to March 81. The miners feel they
lost more than SIS, 600, 900 when
portal-to-portal pay was not made
retroactive in the stormy 1913
negotiations.
Mine operators, it was said, will
seek a duration contract" in the
wage conference at the Shoreham
Hotel. Bituminous operators feel
there should be guarantee of no
further work stoppage during the
war with Germany and Japan and
that it would be unfair to them to
project conditions of wartime con-
tract into the postwar period. The
present mine contract was for two
years.
Policy Group Meets Today.
UMW's Policy Committee will
meet late today to complete a draft
of demands to be presented to the
operators. They will receive the re-
port of their Scale Committee, COM
posed of MIR. Lewis, Vice President
John OLeary and Secretary-Treas-
urer Thomas Kennedy.
Mr.. Lewis has maintained strict
silence since he served notice on the
Government Monday that the min
ers wanted a strike vote under the
Smith Connally Act, but it was said
his case for q new contract will be
made public tomorrow when 1t is
presented to the operators.
A representative of the operators
said he understood Mr.. Lewis would
ask for stable increase in base
pay which, if granted; would breach
the Little Steel formula as well as
such fringe" wage adjustments as
full portal-to-portal pay and diff
ferentials for second and third
shifts. Full travel time would rep
resent about so cents day more.
Hangover From Last Farley.
The miners insistence on retro
activity if it is necessary to extend
the present contract past March 81
results from strike-torn negotiations
two years ago. Because of Govern
ment operation Of the mines the
UNIV waived the retroactive feature
from June 20 to the time agreement
finally was reached in early Novem-
Der They feel they were forced to
take huge loss since pay conces-
sions of more than dollar day
were given them.
Edward R. Burke, president of the
Southern Coal Producers ASSocia-
ton, indicated he favored extension
of a new contract only until We
day because afterward they would
be dealing with a different economic
period. Another large bloc of op-
orators, however, sought limitation
of the agreement until the end Of
war with Japan.
Whether the miners would fight
the proposed departure from their
traditional two-year agreement was
not certain.
Meanwhile there was no comment
from Government labor agencies rs
to what procedure viii be followed
on Mr.. Lewis demand for q strike
vote. The action was taken so the
miners will be free" to act should
negotiations break down.
A labor official expressed hope
that the War Labor Board would
grant the miners at least the wage
concessions given recently to other
labor groups. He pointed out that
steel workers recently received I
cents an hour more in s'fringe'
adjustments and he feared the
miners would strike II they were
not given like treatment. He said
WLB's attempt to put the miner,
in wage "straitjacket" led to the
1898 strikes.