George K. Foster to A. R. Fisher on a Union Dust Clause in Quebec Arbitration (1949)

A two-page "Personal and Confidential" memo from George K. Foster at Asbestos, Quebec, to A. R. Fisher at Johns-Manville's general headquarters, copied to Ivan Sabourin. Foster reports on a meeting in Sherbrooke with officials of Asbestos Corporation about a contract under arbitration, in which a "dust clause" was "a very important one under discussion." The union had proposed: "The Company will take necessary steps to eliminate as much as possible the dust in its operations." The companies would not accept it, and left their member of the arbitration board "secret instructions" to offer a substitute only "as a last resort."

What it shows

The companies' fallback wording spoke only of "progressive improvement in the alleviation of any nuisance arising from the existence of dust," through measures the company might "from time to time deem to be practical." Where the union's clause committed the company to remove dust, the companies' version described dust as a "nuisance" and left any action to the company's judgment. Foster also notes discussion of which doctors and which economist might testify, and that the publicity so far had been "unfavorable." See Jeffrey Mine and Canadian Johns-Manville.

In Johns-Manville's chronology

Johns-Manville's own chronology of what the company knew describes this document as follows:

George K. Foster memorandum to A.R. Fisher, 8/9/44, discusses the contract negotiations in arbitration at the Jeffrey Mine. The union would like a "dust clause" included into the contracts. The union's clause states: "The Company will take necessary steps to eliminate as much as possible the dust in its operations."

Foster recommends accepting a "dust clause" only if necessary, and proposes the companies recommend the following: "The Company recognizes the desirability of progressive improvement in the alleviation of any nuisance arising from the existence of dust in its operations, and will continue to pursue its policy of adopting such measures as it may from time to time deem to be practical, having in view the accomplishment of that objective."

Editor's note: J-M's description dates the memo August 9, 1944. The typed date appears to read August 9, 1949, and the arbitration it describes fits the period after the 1949 strike. The memo does not name the Jeffrey Mine; it refers to the companies' contract under arbitration in general.