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manifestly true with respect to the Saint John inasmuch as that incident had been reviewed by the Boston office of the National Labor Relations Board and approved. His attention was further invited to the fact that the National Labor Relations Act specifically provided courses to be followed with respect to complaints of discrimination, that the company must follow the law and the opinions of the National Labor Relations Board, and it was suggested that if he still desired to make complaint with respect to any case he present the matter to the National Labor Relations Board for formal ruling upon the rights of his union and the other parties involved.

Nothing further was heard from National Maritime Union about the Evangeline, Saint John or any other cases, but on December 21 a sit-down strike order was issued to its members on our ships. This resulted in part of the crew on 9 vessels sitting down and caused the fleet to miss 12 scheduled sailings and have 5 other sailings delayed, with serious inconvenience to passengers, shippers, and consignees and serious financial loss to the company.

The company, having conformed to the law and the opinions of National Labor Relations Board, had followed the only course open to it, and thereupon proceeded to fill the places of National Maritime Union sit-down strikers with personnel obtained from American Federation of Labor Seamen's Union, from which the company is required to obtain all replacements and new employees in accordance with its agreement with that union.

The labor situation has affected this company so seriously that I think a brief summary of outstanding incidents from November 1, 1936, through the recent strike in December 1937, is appropriate. During that period there has not been one strike or other interruption to service as a result of a dispute between the company and its employees involving wages or working conditions, but there have been strikes and interruptions causing the loss of 46 scheduled sailings and 13 delayed sailings, all as a direct result of quarrels between the two unions. In every case the company was helpless, as the conflicting demands of the two groups could not be reconciled.

The serious effect of these unprecedented conditions upon the company's passenger and freight traffic, and therefore upon its ability to continue employment of its ships and employees, is manifest.

Very truly yours,

A. B. SHARP, President.

AMENDING THE MERCHANT MARINE ACT OF 1936

TUESDAY, JANUARY 25, 1938

UNITED STATES SENATE,

COMMITTEE ON COMMERCE, AND

COMMITTEE ON EDUCATION AND LABOR,

Washington, D. C.

The committees met, pursuant to adjournment, at 10 a. m. in the Commerce Committee room, the Capitol, Senator Royal S. Copeland (chairman of the Commerce Committee) presiding.

Present: Senators Copeland (chairman of the Commerce Committee), Thomas of Utah (chairman of the Committee on Education and Labor), Clark, Guffey, Maloney, Radcliffe, Johnson of California, Gibson, and Ellender.

Also present: Rear Admiral Russell R. Waesche, United States Coast Guard; Rev. Edmund A. Walsh, S. J., vice president, Georgetown University, regent of the School of Foreign Service; Mr. Raymond F. Crist, representing Filipino Seamen's Association, New Orleans, La.; John W. Mann, adviser to the committee; and Mr. J. H. McVay, representing veterans' organizations.

The CHAIRMAN. The committees will be in order.

A number of the other members of the committees, who were detained by the filibuster last night, will be here later.

It was agreed, when Harry Lundeberg was on the stand, that he should submit for the record a copy of the agreement which was made with the west coast companies. We now have that, and it will be received for the record.

(The document referred to is as follows:)

Senator ROYAL S. COPELAND.

SAILORS' UNION OF THE PACIFIC, Washington, D. C., January 20, 1938.

United States Senate, Washington, D. C.

DEAR SENATOR: On behalf of the Sailors' Union of the Pacific, I would like, with your permission, to introduce for the record in the hearings on bill S. 3078 the labor-relations clause in our agreement with the Pacific coast shipowners. All disputes arising on all vessels on the Pacific coast, outside of a few oil tankers, are handled by this method. This clause has also been adopted by the shipowners in their relations with all other seafaring unions on the Pacific coast, and have worked effectively and satisfactorily for the past

year.

Respectfully,

HARRY LUNDEBERG,

Secretary-Treasurer,

Sailors' Union of the Pacific.

CONDITIONS OF EMPLOYMENT

Rule 1. The members of the Sailors' Union of the Pacific shall be given preference of employment, and the parties agree that the Sailors' Union of the Pacific shall furnish unlicensed deck personnel as required by the companies parties to this agreement.

Rule 2. There shall be no discrimination against any man for union activity. Rule 3. Authorized representatives of the union shall be allowed to visit members of the union aboard ship at any time.

Rule 4. No man shall be required to work under unsafe conditions.

Rule 5. There shall be no strikes or stoppages of work as long as the covenants of this agreement are performed.

Rule 6. When ships are laid up: Any man discharged by the shipowners on account of lay up who has been employed less than 15 days shall be given immediate first-class transportation and subsistence back to the port of engagement.

Rule 7. In case of shipwreck or disaster necessitating the abandonment of ship, the crew shall be paid all wages due as well as subsistence and transportation back to the port of engagement.

PORT COMMITTEES AND LABOR RELATIONS

A port committee shall be set up in each of the following ports: San Francisco, Seattle, Portland, and San Pedro.

Each port committee shall be composed of an equal number of members appointed by and representing each party to this agreement, but shall not exceed three members from either party. Each party shall have an equal number of votes.

The duty of each port committee shall be to hear and adjudicate any dispute relative to the interpretation or performance of this agreement which may arise between the parties to this agreement at that committee's particular port. After written notice by either party, the port committee shall convene within 24 hours to take action on the dispute.

If any port committee becomes deadlocked, that port committee shall imme diately refer the matter to the San Francisco port committee for decision.

If the San Francisco port committee becomes deadlocked upon the decision of any matter, a referee shall be selected by the San Francisco port committee to hear and adjudicate that particular matter.

If a referee cannot be agreed upon, the San Francisco port committee shall request the Secretary of Labor to appoint a referee to hear and adjudicate the particular dispute involved; such hearing shall be held in San Francisco.

The decision of any port committee shall be in writing and shall be binding upon both parties until such decision is revoked or changed by the port committee of San Francisco.

All decisions must be referred promptly to the San Francisco port committee for ratification, nullification, or change.

All decisions of the San Francisco port committee shall be in writing, signed by all members of that committee, and shall be final and binding upon both parties to this agreement.

All decisions of a referee shall be signed by that referee and shall be final and binding upon both parties to this agreement.

This agreement entered into this 4th day of February 1937 by the Sailors' Union of the Pacific, party of the first part, hereafter known as the union, and the Shipowners' Association of the Pacific Coast (on behalf of its members here listed, covering their vessels operating in the steam-schooner trade), party of the second part, hereafter known as the shipowners, shall be effective as of February 4, 1937, and shall be binding on the parties for the period to and including September 30, 1937, and shall be renewed from year to year thereafter unless either party shall give written notice to the other, at least 45 days prior to such expiration date, of a desire to amend this agreement. If during the 45-day period the parties shall fail to agree with reference to such amendments, this agreement shall terminate at the expiration date; provided, however, that the parties may, by mutual written agreement, extend this agreement for a specified period beyond such expiration date for the continuance of negotiations. P. S. This agreement was renewed September 30, 1937, for 1 year.

The CHAIRMAN. We also have now the new agreement made by the National Maritime Union with the Standard Oil Co., and it will be received for the record.

(The agreement referred to is as follows:)

[From the Pilot, January 22, 1928]

A PROGRAM FOR ALL SEAMEN SAILING ON ALL VESSELS OPERATED BY THE OIL COMPANIES

(By Jack Lawrenson, member, negotiations committee; member, district

'committee)

The district committee and the negotiations committee extend to you warmest fraternal greetings.

This week the National Maritime Union made the greatest advance in its history. On January 13 the agreement for the tanker companies was compléted and on January 14 the Standard Oil Co. of New Jersey signed this agreement 'at their offices, 30 Rockefeller Plaza, New York. Moe Byne, of the engine division; Gethyn Lyons, of the stewards division; and Joe Curran, of the deck division, signed for the union.

The agreement is designed to cover the whole oil industry operating tankers on the Atlantic and Gulf coasts. This supplement in which the agreement is presented in full will be printed in tens of thousands of copies and will be distributed on all the tankers in all ports during this coming week. There will be allowed a 3-week period in order to enable the tanker crews to review the "agreement. Following the 3-week period, a secret referendum ballot will then be conducted as to whether you accept or reject the agreement.

At the close of the negotiations with the tanker companies, the negotiations committee pledged to do all in its power to prevent untoward actions on the part of tanker crews during the period of balloting on the agreement. The negotiations committee now asks ou to help us carry out this pledge. We ask that all your disputes, prior to the agreement going into effect, be taken up with your shore officials and an attempt be made to settle them amicably without drastic action.

As to the agreement itself: The agreement marks, in many ways, definite advances for the seamen. These advances are as follows:

1. Three weeks annual vacation with full pay for the unlicensed personnel, with the option of 10 days every 6 months.

2. $5 increase in monthly wages, representing a total increase for the industry of nearly $1,000,000 in cash in the pockets of the seamen.

3. Improved living conditions and vastly improved working conditions on all the companies signatory to the agreement.

4. Preferential employment for members of the National Maritime Union at all times.

5. Seventy-five cents per hour for overtime.

6. An arbitration provision which provides for the peaceful, just, and speedy 'settlement of all disputes that may arise in connection with the agreement.

7. Agreement goes into effect April 1, 1938, and expires April 1, 1939, thús bringing a large section of our agreements up close to the summer months. Some of the weaknesses of the agreement are: The fact that we did not procure the 100 percent closed shop and possibly a greater monthly increase in pay. But it must be pointed out here that, given a year under this agreement, these additional benefits will surely come.

We feel that this is a frank and honest presentation of the vital factors in the agreement. We wish to point out that this agreement was secured when in other industries tens of thousands of men are being laid off and wages are being cut. A year of peaceful relations with the oil industry will do much to help our union consolidate and strengthen its position in the maritime industry. Herewith, then, is the agreement submitted for your approval.

This agreement, made this 14th day of January 1938, by and between the Standard Oil Co. of New Jersey, a corporation organized under the laws of the State of Delaware, hereinafter referred to as the company, and the unlicensed personnel employed on the American flag seagoing vessels manned by the com

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