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July 22, 1948
AN INTER-ASSOCIATION LETTER
TO ALL ALPA MEMBERS
(ABOUT THE NATIONAL STRIKE)

Dear Member:

The Presidential Emergency Board on July 9 handed down its recommendations for the settlement of the National strike. These recommendations are brief and to the point. They contain the following:

"a) The Board, therefore recommends that the striking pilots be reinstated as working employees.

"b) The Board further recommends that paragraph (m), page 23, of the agreement between National Airlines, Inc. and the Air Line Pilots in the service of the National Airlines, Inc., effective December 9, 1941, be amended and supplemented to the end that in case the said System Board of Adjustment becomes deadlocked and unable to reach a decision on any matter properly coming before it, either party may thereupon petition the National Mediation Board for the appointment of a neutral referee to sit with the System Board of Adjustment, as a member thereof. Such System Board of Adjustment as then constituted shall hear the parties with reference to the dispute pending before it, de novo, and a majority vote of the Board shall be final and conclusive between the parties.

"c) The Board also recommends that the O'Neal dispute be finally determined pursuant to the agreement of the parties dated May 14, 1947, by the System Board of Adjustment augmented by a neutral member to be appointed by the National Mediation Board."

In the finding of fact part of the Presidential Emergency Board's recommendations, the following highlight parts appear:

"Section 2, First, of the railway Labor Act imposes on the Carrier the duty 'To exert every reasonable effort *** to settle all disputes *** in order to avoid any interruption to commerce or to the operation of any carrier growing out of any dispute between the carrier and the employees thereof.' The evidence establishes that this statutory duty has not been performed by the Carrier. Over the entire period from the date of O'Neal's discharge, (the pilot around whose grievance the dispute resolves) September 27, 1945, to the date of the strike, February 3, 1948, every one of the many efforts to dispose of the dispute was initiated by the Association; in no instance did the Carrier take the initiative and it was induced to act only when confronted by the threat of a strike. What was sought by the Association was reasonable. It did not seek reinstatement of O'Neal. It sought only an impartial determination of the propriety of his discharge."

"Such a determination has not been had to this date. Failure to afford it caused the strike, and responsibility for the strike rests with the Carrier."

"The story revealed by the evidence is one of disregard for statutory and contractual obligations on the part of the Carrier. It indicates an immaturity and lack of responsi-