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ee Medlation Lavs in Many States Merdintion apd arbltralion of dis-| putes and diffcrences hetween labor an’ rianacement are nal new in) Atmeniowe Jegisialion. Provistons re-: Jali to these subjects nie found in! Boverad Strata Ceestitutions, and me- dintien and arbttration siatutes-are } no. «ffactive in Iriy-lwo States, asocell az in Alaaka, Purito Rieo and ite Padippine isiavas Same of: three inwe hinie been in existence for a Jeng while, and the fact that, ciners have hoen enacted recently: testifies (hat their history has rec- oni mended them as approprista and desiahic-jnstr iments to aid in the settloment of labor difficulties of Thdav The most recent of (hese statutes, Bpparenily, was enacted by the State of Pennsylvenic, This was Act li? of the Acte of 1937, Senate WH S490 ef the peqular session, and Be approved en May 3h, p97. Wohils many of the States hav ade excellent progiess with re Sect ta pieviding methovs for xolv the theli Labor piobleins, it is quit obvious thal the Biaties Jack juris dicen and pewer to provide fo arbitr itor ostdomediaticn of the labur difficulties prising between emplorers and empluy s engaged im inter cute ame farcign commerce. Section 47 af ©&. 8.078 bas been thease nce fiver tener! of dep tae Intion v6 Ohi ale is headed in order vhat the Jahor diffieultins in marine intersta’e and foreign com- meice may he desl with in the Bat monner which has proved go effielomt and setirfactory in the sev- Ctal States, ard dn intestate rall- May tresanot tation, Kinds of 2273 Ia Recalled A brief sutec, of the progress which beg bern made with respect flonu: r-ilvords is enlightening. As eaiis as JAT2 the Congress began to study methods of handling disputes prising &e'ween the railroads and their cuploves, and the first media- thon Jew was enacted by the Con- gresa in 1688, This Jaw provided two methods for handling diaprtes which mognl arise between eniploy- ers and eraploves. They were, first, volunfar, artttration, and, second, investigation. Upon tha request of either tunnagement or labor, agreed to by both pattics, a dispute waa te be suhmitted for decision to a board of artitraterc, one appointed by the cacplover, one by the employes, eed ia chaliminn fo he golected by ih fe apated pimping s, “Merce Commission with respect to! | It will, be noted that sho sssag e@ created only 'v the con- sent of both parties and that there was no provision for {ha entoree- Tent of the arbitration board's de- ciaion. This act also authorized the President to appoint a temporary commission to investigate the causes |. of any railway labor-dispute and provided that the services of such » commission might be tendered by the President to settle a coniro- versy, and that the services of such a commission might be requested by employer or employs or by the hief Executive of any Sate. Although this law was in effect | for ten years, the arbitration pro- visions were never ‘utilized, notwith- standing the fact that arbitration s considered the moat important fqature of the Jaw‘and was tha su o | iJfct of prolonged Congressional ‘bate. The provisions for investion- _tion came into play oniy once, and ithat occasion was the Pullman ‘strike of 1894, The commission Investigating the Puliman strike had no power to settle it, but it did recommend the appointment of a permanant com- | Mission of three members which: should possess authority {in the! field of railway labor similar to! the authority of the Interstate Com- railway rates and whoac authority | would be hindlog upon both partion, | Act of 1888 Proved Futile The fuiility of the act af 1888 wag! generally recognized, and for a pe-. riod of ten years bills were intre- duced in Congress providing for’ |More efficient means of dealing with the problem. This culminated | with the Passage of the Erdman. Act, which was approved by the President on June 1, 1208 This act contained the firat policy with respect to government media- tion and concitiation of labor dis. putes in the transportation Indus- try, It also prohibited the so-called “yellow-dog'' contracts and Pto- vided that it should be a misde- Mmeanor for any carrier in require S a condition of employment thet ny employe or person serking emp- loyment should enter into n greement not to hecame or rema member of any labor organizp- ion. Unfortunately, .his section $f the Jaw wan held unconstitutional in 1908 by the Supreme Court of the United States in the ease of Adair v. United States, 208 U.S 161, Experiones with the Erdman Act proved (hat the stronrest raliance for seitlement of dahor dlapuies should he placed upon mi dilation rather than arhilratian, and im 1912 Congress extallished a permanent Board of Mediation and Coneilia- thon, Experieaca under the new act revealed further problems. and jt became clear ihat arbitration, af though useful when m-diation failed, had inherent weaknesses. | The chief difficulties sroze ont of | the imperfect machinery which the law provided for the jnterp? ctation 0, eligiton agreementays nolapetit. tration ewards The brotherhoods of rallway em-; Tey ES ne labor unions SIvOrveny | claimed that management had as-j; sumed the prerogative of interpre-! tating all agreements as it saw fit. In 1916 the train services brother-: hoods began a general movement for a basic eight-hour day with time-and-a-half for overtime, and | when the carriers desired to arbi- trate the employes refused to enter ' into any arbitratton agreement. <A! threatened nation-wide strike of! railway employes brought about en- agtnient of the Adamson law, which | Whs approved Sept. 3, 1916, | Both Sides Backed 1696 Act | he Transportation Act of 1 ; vm@ade provision for the settlemept’ of disputes between carriers by rail | and all classes of employes, The, provisions of this act reverted In| part to the act of 1888, which had. been discarded for over twenty years. Dissatisfaction with the act. of 1920 increased with experience, and by the end of 1925 carriers and employes alike desired to have tha act repeated. A joint committee ap- | pointed by management and labor worked out @ bill which, supported by both elements, was enacted as the Ratlway Labor Act of 1926, After more than a third of # cen- tury of ineffective legislation, em- Ployers and amptoyer in the rgil- |rony indusiry thus united a brepght about the enactment offa lavd covering the adjustment of Ghe- putts in the industry by arbitration and mediation. The act of 1926 waa; amended in 1934 and, as amended, now constitutes the Railway Labor | Act. Its provisions were subse- quently extended to cover the la- bor problems of common carriers by air in interstate and foreign commerce, and the law so broad-' ening the scope of the Railway La-- bor Act was approved by Presi-- dent Roosevelt on April 10, 1936. = | It is significant that over a long | period of Years, and with the bene-: ifit of experience and the conpera-. tion of both management and labor, : each enliphtened and informed as to their own best interests, Con-: greas has developed, step by step, a comprehensive policy and method for dealing with labor relations in’ the railway field with the result that the Secretary of Labor testl-! fies today that the present Railway Mediation Law ia “* * * the fullest iand most completa development of mediation, coneliiation, voluntary lagreement and voluntary arbitra- jtion that ia to be found in any jaw | governing Jahor relations." This is the act which the mie 4 tims Comniiasion, basing tts opinion on a careful and comprehensive udy of labor conditions In tie’ ipning industry, has rete . ended be made applicable te. 4 merican merchant marine, &'