REPORT of JOHN BROPHY, President - To The Membership of District No.2, United Mine Workers of America - March, 1927

Sep 21, 2026

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A 1927 union report addressed by John Brophy, president, to the membership of District No. 2 of the United Mine Workers of America. The report explains why a formal convention was postponed, outlines actions and outcomes from the prior period, and describes how operators’ public campaigns were used to argue for wage reductions. It also presents a response to an open letter from the Punxsutawney Business Men’s Association, defending that lower wages are not the solution to mining problems.

LanguageEnglish

CategoryResearch & Report

FormatPDF

Pages14

Reading Time35 min

AccessFree to download

Technical Microform Data

Operators' Propaganda

97-84152-17Brophy,John Report ofJohn Brophy. [S.I.] [1927] # COLUMBIA UNIVERSITY LIBRARIESPRESERVATION DIVISIONBIBLIOGRAPHIC MICROFORM TARGET ORIGINAL MATERIAL AS FILMED-EXISTING BIBLIOGRAPHIC RECORD 308Z Box 629 Brophy,Johnd.1963 Report of John Brophy,president,to the mem=bership of district no.2,United mine workersof Ameriea.March,1927.1927120 p.230m。426748ONLY D Reproductions may not be made without permission from Columbia Universily Libraries. RESTRICTIONS ON USE: # TECHNICAL MICROFORM DATA FILM SIZE: 35mmREDUCTION BATIO: 1/:/ IMAGE PLACEMENT:IA( IB IIB DATE FILMED: 59 INITIALS:工一. TRACKING\#: 26205 FILMED BY PRESERVATION RESOURCES,BETHLEHEM,PA. REPORT of JOHN BROPHY,President To The Membership of District No.2United Mine Workers ofAmerica. 乃o×629 March,1927. 3 e+/RcF 3491 41 N TO THE MEMBERSHIP OF DISTRICT No.2,UNITED MINE WORKERS OF AMERICA. GREETING: The District Constitution provides that a Conven-tion be held during the last month of the officers'term,inorder that among other things there can be a review ofthe work before the officers retire. Owing to the fact that a majority of the District Ex-ecntive Board has seen fit to postpone the regular con-vention until after my term of office expires,I will not beable to submit my report to the convention.Because Ibelieve that the membership should be familiar with theaffairs of the union,particularly the major questions withwhich we have to deal,I feel it my duty to acquaint therank and file with the facts which would have been con-tained in my report to a convention.For that reason Iam sending to all local unions this resume of the pastthree years and set forth what I consider the steps neces-sary to maintain the integrity and to promote thestrength of the union. Following the last regular convention held in Altoonain March,1924,the district scale committee met repre-sentatives of the operators'association in Philadelphiaand on March 29th after several days'negotiations,con-sumated an agreement based on the Jacksonville settle-ment for the Central Competitive Field.This agree-7ment continued the wages and conditions of the contractthen in force,to run for a period of three years,terminat- ing March 31,1927.This agreement was approved bya referendum vote of the membership of the district. The signing of this agreement was heralded withgreat acclaim and predictions of a three year period ofpeace in the industry were made and accepted through-out the entire country. # OPERATORS'PROPAGANDA But hardly had the ink dried on the agreement be-fore operators in many districts,including our own,be-gan to attack it as the cause of depression and stagnationin the coal industry.In this district there was whatseemed to be a well organized propaganda drive to pre-pare the public generally and the miners as well for alowrward revision in the miners'wage scale.This prop-aganda consisted of articles in the daily press,speechesat Rotary Clubs,Chambers of Commerce,ete.,all pur-porting to prove that this whole section of the statewould be adversely affected by the maintenance of thehigh wage rates. The prolonged shut-downs and the propaganda ofthe operators affected the small business men to such anextent that in the latter part of 1924 the PunxsutawneyBusiness Men's Association addressed an open letter tome using the operators'arguments that the depressionin the coal industry in this district was due to the Jack-sonville scale,arguing that a conference between theoperators and miners should be held for the purpose ofreadjusting wage schedules,which would bring morebusiness to the operators and add to the prosperity of thepeopie of Central Pennsylvania generally.To illustratejust how this was met I give my reply to this letter from 5 the Punxsutawnev Bu

FAQs

Why did John Brophy say he could not submit his report to the convention?

He stated that a majority of the District Executive Board postponed the regular convention until after his term expired.

What agreement period was discussed after the 1924 convention?

A contract based on the Jacksonville settlement was reached, continuing wages and conditions for three years and terminating on March 31, 1927.

What argument did Brophy address regarding wage reductions?

He argued that lower wages are not the solution to the mining problem and that unemployment is tied to broader industry conditions rather than wage levels.

Sep 21, 2026

Uploaded by Hazel