Evening star., 1950-11-14
Phone Service
Normal, Pickets
Shift Activity
Lockout Charges Filed
With NLRB as Talks
Fail to Reach Accord

Washington telephone service
remained normal today as striking
Western Electric workers shifted
their picketing activities to the
Dupont exchange, Fourteenth and
r streets NV.
The sixth day of the coast-to-
coast strike was punctuated by
union lockout charges filed with
the National Labor Relations
Board.
After meeting unsuccessfully for
71a hours yesterday, strike nego-
tiating committees were scheduled
to try again in New York this
afternoon for wage agreement.
A union leader told New York
meeting that a new offer was ex-
pected today or tomorrow from
Western Electric, but he did not
indicate what it would be. Pre-
viously. the unions demand for a
15-cent hourly wage increase has
been answered by a 11A-cent
company offer.
18 Pickets Sent to Richmond.
In addition to the Dupont ex-
change picketing today, Washing
ton strikers reported sending Is
men to Richmond for the purpose
OF picketing the telephone Office
there.
Last Friday pickets appeared at
Norfolk in a test of the States
strict public utility anti-strike
law. After picketing most of the
day, they retired without interfer-
ence. Subsequently State officials
Said they would study legality of
the picketing.
The pickets from Washington
Joined others at Richmond at the
building of the Chesapeake g. Po-
tomac Telephone Co. of Virginia.
Company officials said about IS
per cent OF the employees on the
early shifts honored the picket
lines.
The pickets are members of
Local Sc of Division 6, Communi-
cations Workers of America, and
are Western Electric equipment
installation men. The local covers
Virginia and West Virginia as well
as the District.
Lockout Charged Again.
Today as yesterday. about / 400
long lines operators entered the
New York Office this morning, but
left in a short time, charging they
had been refused work when they
said they wuld not cross picket
lines.
The lockout charges were filed
by CWA officials in New York
and Philadelphia. complaining
that $4,000 leng-distance opera
tors were turned away from work
when they would not agree to
cross picket lines.
The operators are not striking,
but also are affiliated with the
CWA.
Bell System officials called the
charge absurd" said they were
not seeking the operators to sign
such a pledge. and insisted they
were only trying to line up re-
liable working force in face of
the emergency.
yellow Dog" Attempt Charged.
NLRB officials said it would take
at least two weeks to settle the
matter, with at least 10 days more
to get a court injunction If the
union charges are upheld.
CWA President Joseph A. Beirne
accused the company of inviting
the operators to sign a yellow
dog" contract, illegal under the
Federal labor code in that it
pledges a worker not to take part
in a labor movement.
About $4,000 of CWA's 300, 900
members actually are on strike.
representing Western Electric in
stallers, warehousemen and sales
men, and 1900 employees of the
Michigan Bell Telephone Co. The
strike has been partly effective in
"A States, but service has been
reported essentially normal except
for some telephones in localities
not dial-equipped.