The Railroad Labor Dispute: A Marathon of Maneuver and Improvisation

Emergency Strikes Revisited

“…The history of experience with Presidential Emergency Boards has been controversial, at least insofar as their contribution to dispute settlement is concerned (Kaufman 1958;Northrup 1971;Rehmus 1971). In briefest summary, the recommendations of emergency boards ordinarily were accepted by the parties or led to renewed negotiations that culminated in peaceful settlements in the 1920s and 1930s, and again during the later 1950s; for complex reasons, board recommendations far less often led to settlements during the 1940s and 1960s; and developments again looked encouraging during the 1970s (Cullen 1976a).…”

“…Those who framed the RLA believed that the need to resort to emergency boards would be infrequent (Kaufman 1958). Beginning in the 1940s and for the next several decades, however, the use of emergency boards became common.…”

“…Alternatively, rail union leaders may have been reluctant to allow emergency boards to make recommendations with regard to carrier demands for changes in what were called "featherbed" crew size rules (Kaufman 1958). In any event, there were no major rail emergencies during the 1950s.…”