Judicial Settlement of Internal Union Disputes

Abstract

UNREST and dissatisfaction within the New York local of the Masters, Mates and Pilots culminated in an attempt by an opposition group to defeat the incumbent officers in the 1952 election. The election committee, controlled by the opposition, demanded that the Secretary-Business Manager give equal access in the union newspaper to all candidates, make available mailing lists of the members and follow certain procedures in handling the mail ballots. When he refused, the committee sought a temporary injunction to compel him to comply. The court took no action for three months, and then after the election denied the injunction on the grounds that appeals within the union had not been exhausted.