The Wilmington morning star., 1945-11-22
STRIKE CLOSES
75AUT0 PLANTS
Continued from Page One)

asserted the union had
'1o oOo 900 strike fund and othel
A'ouV'o Officials minated additional
unlo. would be forthcoming from
f h national CLIO if needed.
'l'u 1rAW-CIO struck the scores
ll GM plants with unexpected
Of ,s nrm after weeks of nego'
s stda The strike order Went
tla'Io of+er General Motors informed
out sIIfAW-CIO yesterday that il
me MID reply ION or before Friday
Wo.uq Irion proposal for arbitration
70 shs dispute. The union had de-
on o. nd reply by 4 P. M.' Tues
'S rho union proposal had included
emulation that any wage In
.rssse resulting from arbitration
e lo,ld he made within the corpora
w.. present price structure.
nocouse Walter P. Reuther
rAW.CIO vice president, heading
"a VA" negotiations with General
, ,ae has insisted the union
'.ntod no wage : :rease that in
m aIrsd higher product prices, that
wiz had come to Re regarded as
Utmost as much of an issue as the
w.ge increase demand.
Tho Corporation. with equal in
,;stence has maintained that prod
'c+ nrices we're not properly sub
;oct for discussion in the wage
negotiations.
According to union estimates the
,yeraqe General Motors produc-
finn worker has been earning from
srl2 10 sl.15 an hour; the 30 per
ccnt rate increase, the union as
serts, would raise the figure from
r12 up to S1.46 an hour. General
Motors figures place the average
wage at Sl.18 an hour, which would
he boosted to $153 by the in
crease.
State and local police made
MANS in advance for dealing with
.rv violence. but authorities in
cicated there would be no inter-
vention unless serious trouble de-
veloped. JAW President R. j.
Thomas said orders had gone to
the strikers throughout the coun-
trv TO avoid disorder and to main
tain peace.
In Michigan Gov. Harry F. Kel-
" informed State Police Commits
sioner Oscar G. Olander the right
ot the strikers to picket must be
respected, as long as they do so
peacefully.
Picket lines appeared at many of
the plants Immediately after the
strike began. Generally they were
orderly with strikers laughing and
Joking. Not few of the strikers
had come to work clad in hunting
caps and coats prepared to leave
Immediately for Michigan's deer
areas.
Among the first of the plants to
be affected by the strike was the
&C spark plug factory at Flint.
Thousands of workers poured from
The plant about IS minutes ahead
of the II o'clock zero hour. A
picket line quickly formed with
signs reading: Join, Now, Support
the Picket Line; $50 Per Cent or
Fight and mo More Buck Pass
ing-This Is It."
Similar scenes were enacted at
numerous other plants.
Also affected by the strike was
the General Motors research labo-
ratory, occupying building next to
UAW-C1O headquarters and across
the street from the GIN admins
tration building in Detroit. A
picket line marched in front of the
laboratory.
Building service employees of the
General Motors administration
building, whom the UAW-CIO
claims as members, were urged by
the union to remain on their jobs
Of running elevators and other
work.
We're putting pressure on Gen
eral Motors and not on the public"
sad sac JAW vice president Reuther.
"Our idea is to inconvenience the
public as little as possible
Reuther said the strike will not
De a blockade-just an old-fashion-
ed strike
When the 30 per cent wage rate
increase demand was first an
hounced, Reuther explained that if
Stflke action was taken in the
wage fight, union strategy would
De to blockade" one of the car in
ouSrrys Big Three while giving
oil possible aid to it's competitors.
asked today if a General Motors
aeply on Friday to the arbitration
p ~ might result in calling off
u.e strike, a union spokesman
o,v We would be willing to study
dMs reply"