Peace between Capitalists

Said C.I.O. President Phil Murray: "That isn't a labor dispute. It's a row between capitalists."

The row was between the gold-plated Air Line Pilots' Association, whose high-priced members were getting as much as $10,000 a year and wanted up to $19,800, and 13 of the nation's airlines. Unlike most unions, the pilots' association wanted to bargain with each airline individually. Unlike most employers, the airlines wanted to bargain as a group. Nub of the dispute was the speed, weight and payload of new planes, notably the Constellation. The pilots wanted more pay for flying the faster four-engine planes.

Last week a presidential fact-finding board, appointed only a few hours before a pilots' strike deadline at Transcontinental & Western Air, Inc. last May, released its recommendations. There was comfort for both sides. The board, which hoped that its recommendations would form a pattern for the airline industry, upheld the pilots' plea to bargain individually with lines. The board also granted 1) an increase in base pay of international route pilots of $750 a year, 2) an increase which could be as much as 30% for copilots, 3) revision of the twelve-year-old overall hour & mileage pay formula. The board also boosted hourly pay according to the speed of planes, in effect set up differentials based on the speed of four-engine planes. In general, the recommendations would bring the pay of pilots on international routes up to about $12,000 a year, co-pilots up to around $6,000.

Neither pilots nor airlines made up their minds right away whether they would accept the recommendations. Chances were that both would. Chances were also that the airlines would end up by bargaining on an industry-wide basis. They had already designated a committee of airline executives as bargainers. And the board saw no reason why the same committee could not bargain for all airlines, one at a time.

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