Jurisdictional disputes in the motion-picture Industry : hearings before a special subcommittee of the Committee on Education and Labor, House of Representatives, Eightieth Congress, first-session, pursuant to H. Res. 111 (1948)

1082 MOTION-PICTURE JURISDICTIONAL DISPUTES At our urging, Mr. Green promised he would tell Mr. Hutchason of our stand. Mr. Green also informed us at that time that he considered the matter of such a serious nature that he would consider calling a special meeting of the executive council immediately following the convention. Now, if I may, Mr. Chairman and Mr. McCann, I would like to read a letter that I directed to President Green, of the American Federation of Labor, following the convention. Mr. McCann. Do you want to read that letter first, Mr. Dullzell, before telling us of your efforts before the American Federation of Labor to secure arbitration ? Mr. Dullzell. Well, it is contained in this letter, Mr. McCann. Mr. McCann. That is fine. Mr. Dullzell. I might say that during the convention, at the insti- gation of the Screen Actors' Guild, we did draft a resolution which was brought out on the floor of the convention asking that the A. F. of L. set up machinery to eliminate the jurisdictional wars and that resolution was unanimously adopted by the convention and the •delegates present. That was in October. Mr. McCann. And nothing has ever been done about it since ? Mr. Dullzell. On January 16, 1947, Mr. McCann, I addressed Mr. IVilliam Green as follows: Dear Brother Green : Our international board has instructed us to send this letter on belialf of all its branches of the Associated Actors and Artistes of America to remind you and the executive council that we deem it highly im- portant that the executive council at its forthcoming meeting give special con- sideration to an action upon the Four A's resolution adopted at the American Federation of Labor convention relative to the setting up of arbitration ma- chinery to settle jurisdictional disputes. You will recall that this resolution was suggested by the Screen Actors Guild which sent a delegation from Cali- fornia to the A. F. of L. convention in the hope that some way could be found to stop tiie jurisdictional strife going on in the motion picture situation. Three members of the executive counsel, Brothers Birthright, Doherty, and Knight as a committee representing the A. F. of L., went to California and surveyed the situation over a year ago, but this jurisdictional war still continues with the result that millions of dollars have been lost in wages by the more than 30,000 wage earners involved, to say nothing of the millions lost by the picture producers who have been the innocent bystanders throughout. The Associated Actors and Artistes of America plead particularly for the Screen Actors Guild and its membership that the American Federation of Labor executive council uphold the report made on the jurisdictional situation by Brothers Birthright, Doherty, and Knight, and take such action as will ter- minate the hostilities going on in the motion picture studios. We know that the executive council as well as yourself has given considerable time to this matter but has up to now, we are sorry to say, been unable to obtain an agree- ment that would serve as an amicable settlement of this controversy. We therefore respectfully request that you submit this matter requesting that the Four A's resolution as adopted at the last convention of the A. F. of L. in Chicago be placed on the agenda for the next meeting of the executive council, and that this letter be added to it. As a matter of fact, when this situation was discussed by you with us and a delegation representing the Screen Actors Guild at a conference it was felt that this jurisdictional battle warranted the calling of a special meeting of the executive council but as far as we know nothing has been done officially and our international board feels that first the executive council should give preferred attention to the Four A's resolution adopted at the Chicago convention and, second, that the recommendations made by Brothers Birthright, Doherty, and Knight in their report on this jurisdictional controversey, not only be ac- cepted as we understand they have been, but that immediate steps be taken to enforce them.