To the Bitter End

The longest and nastiest major U.S. industrial dispute in two decades came to an end last week. From both the 44,000 International Electrical Workers and Westinghouse, who had battled for 156 days, came boasts of triumph. Actually, both had lost. The union dropped its insistence on a one-year contract and gave Westinghouse the five-year agreement it demanded to make itself competitive with General Electric, which has a similar contract. But the union can reopen the contract and strike for wage increases after one year.

On wages, Westinghouse's original offer of five months ago was upped only slightly, from a minimum increase of 23 1/2-c- spread over the next five years to a round 25-c-. The give-and-take process reduced the time-study issue--biggest stumbling block in the negotiations--to hash. The I.U.E. conceded management's right to make time studies on nonproduction workers in principle, while Westinghouse agreed to restrict them in practice. Westinghouse also agreed to submit any disputes resulting from the studies to arbitrators, a concession it formerly flatly refused.

The status of 36 workers fired for picketing violence was also compromised. The company agreed to reinstate the men on the payroll, but suspended them from work until their fate is decided by union-management negotiations at local plants. In case of deadlock, arbitrators will make the final decision.

Staying Power. From its start, the strike was marked by hatred and intransi gence between the negotiators; each side underestimated the staying power of the other. Inside the conference room, government mediators headed by Federal Media tion Chief Joseph F. Finnegan listened in dismay as the negotiators battled not to ward settlement but farther from it. Once, a union spokesman looked across at a Westinghouse official and bellowed: "You are a goddam tramp." On another occasion, I.U.E. President James Carey strode out of the room after calling Westinghouse "the dirtiest, filthiest, lousiest company on the globe" Management dropped such remarks as "I'm sitting here enjoy ing the strike." At the end it was the Westinghouse team led by Vice President Robert D.

Blasier that first showed good sense -and agreed to the suggestions of a special, three-man fact-finding panel (TIME, Mar. 19). At this sign of apparent willingness to deal, the union held out another two weeks and got some further concessions on time studies and rehiring of fired strikers.

"Awful Long Wait." Both sides will take a long time recovering from the effects. The company lost $290 million in direct production and an immeasurable sum in disruption of its relations with its customers. Some 12,000 of its supervisory workers, put on half pay during the strike, lost $20 million more.

The strikers lost $75 million in pay, more than twice the $33 million they will gain in wage and benefit increases during the next five-year contract. At this rate, it will take them more than ten years to make up in wage increases what they lost in 156 days of striking. Said a Sharon, Pa. worker: "It was an awful long wait. I lost track of the days, nothing but bad, all running together. You couldn't plan or look forward to anything. You didn't dare buy or owe. I hope we don't go out again for a long time."

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