Evening star., 1945-10-05
Labor
Continued From First Page.)

settle a dispute over supervisor
which already has kept nearly $50,
600 bituminous miners from work
The strike still was spreading ant
the operators twice have refused t,
discuss unionization Of foremen will
Mr.. Lewis.
Mr.. Lewis accepted the invitation
wiring the Secretary that the Min,
Workers will have adequate repre-
sentation at your Office at 10 am
tomorrow" He did not state wheth
er he would be present, as requested
by Mr.. Schwellenbach.
Will Review Labor Situation.
g. Mr.. Schwellenbach promised s
statement during the day reviewing
the whole labor picture.
3. A meeting will be held this aft.
ernoon by Mr.. Schwellenbach to fl,
final plans for the labor-manage.
ment conference to convene here
November 5 when it is hoped thai
better machinery for settling in.
dustrial disputes will be worked out
The conference Planning Commit.
tee, headed by Marine Mai. Pau
Douglas, will report to the Secre.
tary and top industry and labor
leaders.
The strike moved into the Penn
sylvania grade crude area. shutting
down three refineries and makini
645 workers idle in the Northwest
ern Pennsylvania fields.
Closed after a strike vote by rep
resentatives of the CIO Oil Workers
Union were the Pennzoil Renfinin,
Co. plants in Venango County ane
the J. B. Berry Sons, Inc, refiner,
in Oil City with 10 workers. Thu
third refinery closed was the Wolf
Head Co.'S. at Reno, employing 125
william T. Gormley, secretary O
local 38l OF the CIO union said 60'
striking employees of five Boston oi
plants would return to work afte
they received official notice the Gov
eminent had taken over. He com
mented that the workers meal
business" and "only the Intervention
of the Government or a strike set
tlement can stop US"
! Shortages Called Serious.
In ordering seizures of the OF
properties, Mr.. Truman said tn
strike of Al, 900 workers which begal
September Is had caused "seriou
shortages" in fuel supplies of tn
armed services, besides endangerini
essential production and all form
of transportation"
! The job of running the oil plant
was given to Vice Admiral Ben Mo
reell, chief of the Nays Bureau o
Yards and Docks. He message,
plant managers to act for the Gov
ternment.
1t was held unlikely there woul,
be any increase in oil wages for tn,
present.
Acting Secretary of the Navy H
Struve Hensel said the Navy woult
not try to deal with union demand
for a 80 per cent wage increas'
without an order from the War La
Dor Board. WLB, so far, has no
entered the case.
The strike grew out of the union
pay demand and the companies re-
fusal to go beyond Is per cent In.
crease. Mr.. Schwellenbach pro
posed that the strike end with tn,
Is per cent increase placed in effec
temporarily with an arbitrator +,
settle the difference between tha
and the 80 per cent the union want
ed. However, all but one of tn,
companies wanted the arbitration t,
start from scratch at the presen
wage rates and the negotiations col
lapsed.
In statement announcing seiz
ure of the struck plants, Mr.. Tru
man said the idle facilities represen
daily capacity of 1,675 ,000 barrels
or a third of the national total.
oil is so vital to the continuing
military operation, and so essentia
to production for the armed service
and national security at home," tn,
Presidents statement said, that W,
must move without further della,
to protect our petroleum suppl.
positions.
"The public interest, In an emer