Industrial conciliation; report of the proceedings of the conference, held under the auspices of the National civic federation, at the rooms of the Board of trade and transportation in New York, December 16 and 17, 1901.

Preface

THE National Conference on Industrial Conciliation held in New York, December i6 and 17, 1901, followed naturally upon two preceding conferences held respectively under the auspices of the Civic Federation of Chicago, and its outgrowth, the National Civic Federation. The first conference was held at Chicago, November 13 and 14, 1894, succeeding the strike of the American Railway Union, usually known as the ** Pullman Strike." The characteristic features of that conference were academic and philanthropic. Emphasis was laid upon the importance of arbitration and conciliation and the service to the country which could be expected from the adoption of peaceful methods in settling labor disputes. The proceedings were published in a pamphlet of ninety-six pages.

The second conference was held in Chicago, December 17 and 18, 1900, under the auspices of the National Civic Federation. This conference marked a step in advance, in that it brought clearly to the front the idea of conciliation as distinct from arbitration, and the plan of the joint agreement as the basis of conciliation. At this conference, also, much interest was taken in the discussion of iv PREFACE,

compulsory arbitration, and the conference resulted in practically deciding that, for the United States at least, the proper line of progress should be in the direction, not of compulsory arbitration, but of voluntary conciliation. The proceedings of the conference were reported at length in the daily papers, but were not published in a separate volume. The more important papers are reproduced in Part II. of this volume. A Committee of twelve members, representing labor, capital, and the general public, was appointed at the conference. This Committee issued an ** Appeal to the American People *' recommending the adoption of annual or semi-annual joint agreements and the creation of joint boards of conciliation. This appeal will be found in Appendix I. of this volume. The Committee of Twelve met and organized in January, 1901, enlarged its membership to forty and called a meeting to be held at New York in May. Meanwhile the Committee was able to avert the threatened anthracite coal strike by securing a conference of representatives of the operators and mine workers. At the meeting in New York, two public sessions were held, one in the rooms of the Chamber of Commerce and one in Cooper Union. At that time the Committee issued a statement known as **The Plan and Scope '' (see Appendix II.), providing for an educational campaign and practical work, and for the appointment of an Executive Committee.

Pending the appointment of the Executive Committee, a sub-committee was called into active par-

PREFACE. V

ticipation in the Albany Street Car Strike, the controversy between the National Metal Trades Association and the International Association of Machinists, and what is known as the United States Steel Strike, this latter practically requiring the continuous effort of the sub-committee from the ist of July until the 15th of September.

It was the success of the Committee in this work that demonstrated to the public the practical character of the organization, and enabled it to command the attention and support of the representative men who accepted appointment upon the Executive Committee at the Conference in December following.

The conference at New York in December, 1901, was held at the rooms of the New York Board of Trade and Transportation. Those who took part in the proceedings were leading men in commerce, industry, and in labor organizations. A complete stenographic report of their discussions is given in Part I. of this volume. The Industrial Committee, appointed after the adjournment of the conference, was organized as **the Industrial Department of the National Civic Federation " and includes the following named members and officers:

OFFICERS AND EXECUTIVE COMMITTEE

MARCUS A. HANNA, Chairman SAMUEL GOMPERS, ist Vice-Chairman OSCAR S. STRAUS, 2d Vice-Chairman CHARLES A. MOORE, Treasurer RALPH M. EASLEY, Secretary

VI PREFACE,

ON THE PART OF THE PUBLIC

Grover Cleveland (Ex-President of the United States), Princeton,

N. J.

Cornelius N. Bliss (Ex-Secretary of the Interior), New York City. Oscar S. Straus (Member of the Permanent Court of Arbitration

at The Hague), New York City.

Charles Francis Adams (former President of the Union Pacific

Railroad), Boston.

Archbishop John Ireland (of the Roman Catholic Church),

St. Paul.

Bishop Henry C. Potter (of the Protestant Episcopal Church),

New York City.

Charles W. Eliot (President Harvard University), Cambridge,

Mass.

Franklin MacVeagh (Merchant), Chicago. James H. Eckels (former Comptroller of Currency of the United

States), Chicago.

John J. McCook (Lawyer), New York City. John G. Milburn (Lawyer), Buffalo.

Charles J. Bonaparte (Lawyer), Baltimore. Ralph M. Easley, Ex-officio, New York City.

ON THE PART OF EMPLOYERS

Marcus A. Hanna (Coal Mines, Iron, Shipping, and Street Railways), Cleveland.

Charles M. Schwab (President of the U. S. Steel Corporation), New York City.

S. R. Callaway (President of the American Locomotive Works), New York City.

Charles A. Moore (Manning, Maxwell & Moore), New York City.

J. Kruttschnitt (Vice-President Southern Pacific Railroad Company), San Francisco.

H. H. Vreeland (President of the National Street Railway Association), New York City.

PREFACE, Vli

Lewis Nixon (Proprietor Crescent Shipyard), New York City.

Marcus M. Marks (President National Association of Clothing Manufacturers), New York City.

James A. Chambers (President American Window Glass Company), Pittsburg.

William H. Pfahler (former President National Founders' Association), Philadelphia.

ON THE PART OF WAGE-EARNERS

Samuel Gompers (President American Federation of Labor), Washington.

John Mitchell (President of the United Mine Workers of America), Indianapolis.

Frank P. Sargent (Grand Master, Brotherhood of Locomotive Firemen), Peoria, 111.

Theodore J. Shaffer (President Amalgamated Association of Iron, Steel, and Tin Workers), Pittsburg.

James Duncan (General Secretary Granite Cutters' National Union), Boston.

Daniel J. Keefe (President International Longshoremen's Association), Detroit.

James O'Connell (President International Association of Machinists), Washington.

Martin Fox (President Iron Moulders' Union of North America), Cincinnati.

James M. Lynch (President International Typographical Union), Indianapolis.

Edgar E. Clark (Grand Chief Conductor, Order of Railway Conductors), Cedar Rapids, Iowa.

Henry White (General Secretary United Garment Workers of America), New York.

Upon its organization, the Committee adopted the following ** Statement of Purpose *' :

viil PREFACE,

STATEMENT OF PURPOSE

The scope and province of this Department shall be to do what may seem best to promote industrial peace and prosperity; to be helpful in establishing rightful relations between employers and workers; by its good offices to endeavor to obviate and prevent strikes and lockouts, to aid in renewing industrial relations where a rupture has occurred.

That at all times representatives of employers and workers, organized or unorganized, should confer for the adjustment of differences or disputes before an acute stage is reached, and thus avoid or minimize the number of strikes or lockouts.

That mutual agreements as to conditions under which labor shall be performed should be encouraged, and that when agreements are made, the terms thereof should be faithfully adhered to, both in letter and spirit, by both parties.

This Department, either as a whole or sub-committee by it appointed, shall, when requested by both parties to a dispute, act as a forum to adjust and decide upon questions at issue between workers and their employers, provided in its opinion the subject is one of sufficient importance.

This Department will not consider abstract industrial problems.

This Department assumes no powers of arbitration unless such powers be conferred by both parties to a dispute.

The Committee also adopted by-laws, of which the following articles bear upon the organization

PREFACE, IX

and the methods to be employed in case of labor disputes:

ARTICLE VII

CONCILIATION COMMITTEE

The Chairman shall appoint a Committee on Conciliation to consist of nine members, three of whom shall be selected from each group, whose duty it shall be, upon notice from the Chairman of threatened strike or lockout of more than local magnitude, to use its good offices in restoring harmonious relations, reporting its action to the Executive Committee.

ARTICLE VIII ARBITRATION

Should the efforts of the Conciliation Committee prove ineffective, and should both parties to the dispute desire the services of the Executive Committee of this Department, they may be invited to select two employers and two wage-earners from said Executive Committee, to serve as an Arbitration Board. Should the four find it necessary to appoint an umpire to finally decide the dispute, they may select a fifth member from the group representing the public. Nothing in this Article shall be construed to prevent the Conciliation Committee from securing, when desirable, arbitrators outside of the Executive Committee.

ARTICLE IX

EMERGENCIES

Should a controversy seem of such magnitude as to justify such action, the officers shall be authorized to

PREFACE, call a meeting of the entire Executive Committee to consider the situation, and take such action as may, in their judgment, be required.

ARTICLE X

AUXILIARY COMMITTEES

The Executive Committee may appoint Auxiliary Committees to deal with local disturbances, the rules governing the same to be in harmony with the general purpose of the Industrial Department.

National Civic Federation, New York, April, 1902.

Contents

PARTI.

PACK

Report of the New York Conference, December 16-17, 1901 I