Part: 123456789         Session: 1         Page na123456789101112131415161718192021222324252627282930313233343536373839404142434445464748495050a51525354555657585960616263646566676869707172737475767778798081828384858687888990919293949596979899100101102103104105106107108109110111112113114115116117118119120121122123124125126127128129130131132133134135136137138139140141142143144145146147148149150151152153154155156157158159160161162163164165166167168169170171172173174175176177178179180181182183184185186187188189190191192193194195196197198199200201202203204205206207208209210211212213214215216217218219220221222223224225226227228229230231232233234235236237238239240241242243244245246247248249250251252253254255256257258259260261262263264265266267268269270271272273274275276277278279280281282283284285286287288289290291292293294295296297298299300301302303304305306307308309310311312313314315316317318319320321322323324325326327328329330331332333334335336337338339340341342343344345346347348349350351352353354355356357358359358359360361362363364365366367368369370371372373374375376377378379380381382383384385386387388389390391392393394395396397398399400401402403404405406407408409410411412413414415416417418419420421422423424425426427428429430431432433434435436437438439440441442443444445446447448449450451452453454455456457458459460462463464465466467468469470471472473474475476477478479480481482483484485486487488489490491492493494495496497498499500501502503504505506507508509510511512513514515516517518519520521522523524525526527528529530531532533534536537538539540541542 of 542

unions were a nuisance, that you could never get mass production, high speed operations if you had to cope with a union. He thought that unions would be desirable if they weren't so pernickety, if they were willing to drive forward the way the great American business man, who had invented this driving forward and efficiency, did. You could then deal with them, but now they were just a nuisance. They slowed you down and bogged you down, and in a highly competitive business like motors, where everything depended upon having the parts made just right, just so, on just such a time schedule, with no money wasted on waste motions, everything having a purpose, you couldn't operate with a union. They slowed you down. However, I had talked over a great many things with him, including the code in the automobile industry, and so had pretty good information from him as to what they were thinking.

When this strike broke out, my first thought was to do the usual thing of getting an agreement. I spoke with Sloan and two or three others on the telephone and got them to come up to Washington. William Knudsen came along that day, as did another General Motors man, Donaldson Brown, who was the brother of Mrs. John Glenn. John Glenn and Mrs. Glenn were famous social workers.