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Show oo THOUSANDS OF MEN MADE IDLE Failure to Reach New Wage Agreement May Close Mines Indefinitely. Mine-run Law Aggravates Situation Sit-uation in Ohio Only One Demand in Pennsylvania. Chicago , April 1. Nearly 50,000 Ohio bituminous coal miners were forced into indefinite idleness today and 38,000 Pennsylvania miners may be thrown out of employment Friday because of the failure of the recent Chicago conference between operators opera-tors and officiate of the United Mine Workers of America to reach a now wage agreement to take place of the one which expired last midnight. ! Pending negotiations for a new agreement, thousands of union coal miners in Indiana, Illinois and Iowa will continue at work? Most of tho mines In the Ohio district dis-trict suspended operations last raid-night raid-night in accordance with orders Issued Is-sued Monday by the operators. The operators In the Central Pennsylvania district announced last night unless the old agreement is renewed before Friday all of the mines in that district dis-trict will be closed and work suspend-ed suspend-ed Indefinitely. The agreement which expired yesterday yes-terday was made at a joint confer ence of miners and operators at Cleveland In 1812. Sevoral weeks ago another joint conference was held at Philadelphia to make a new agreement agree-ment to take effect today. The operators opera-tors refused to grant a wage increase and other concessions demanded by the miners and the conference was adjourned to Chicago. The miners modified their demands at the Chicago Chi-cago conference but the negotiations were concluded when an agreement could not be reached. The policy commlttoo of the United Mine Workers of America then decided that the men should remain re-main at work under tho old agreement agree-ment and that now agreements should be adjusted by local district conferences, confer-ences, the plan to be ratified by a referendum ref-erendum vote of tjie minors In tho affected districts. Indiana, Illinois and Iowa operators opera-tors decided not to close their mines and negotiations have been begun with the stato district 'unions for tho formation of new agreements. The situation In Ohio, however, Is aggravated by a mine-run 'law, passed by tho last Ohio legislature, which will go into effect May 15, Enact-nient Enact-nient of the law was strongly opposed by the operators. Negotiations for a new agreement have been In progress between the miners and operators in the central Pennsylvania district since March 3. Tho Pennsylvania miners have abandoned all their demands de-mands except one providing for a change In the system of pushing cars In and out of the mineu. Miners Observe Holiday. Terro Haute, Ind., April 1. Nearly 20,000 minors in the eleventh district, bituminous coal field, observed a holiday today In celebration of the anniversary an-niversary of tho enactment of - the eight-hour day law. Tomorrow a committee of the operators op-erators will meet with the miners ot the district here to take up the mat tor of arranging a scale and adjusting adjust-ing other working conditions. It Is not expected that any trouble will be encountered In reaching an agreement. agree-ment. In the meantime there will be no formal suspension of work In the district. Miners Remain at Work. Denver, Colo., April 1. Contracts between the United Mine Workers ot America and unionized coal mines In northern Colorado employing approximately approxi-mately 650 men expired last night. Pending negotiations for renewals, the miners remained at work. No Increased In-creased pay on the tonnage basis Is asked, but an increase of from 10 to 30 cents In the day wage rate is demanded. It "is the plan of the mine workers to signed contracts with the northern unionized operators to expire next September, when a general conference confer-ence between the union and all operators op-erators of unionized mines In Colorado Colo-rado is planned, to agree upon uniform uni-form contracts for all the unionized mines In the state. |
