National Affairs: After 45 Days

Shut down for 45 days, the Missouri Pacific Railroad rumbled back into operation this week after a costly strike by its 5,000 engineers, conductors, enginemen, trainmen and firemen. The nation’s ninth largest railroad lost an estimated $24 million in revenues; its strikers lost some $2,250,000 in wages. Another 20,000 MoPac employees had been forced out of work, losing about $7,500,000 in pay.

In the end, the strikers agreed to a proposition proposed by the railroads before the strike was called; 63 working-rule grievances would be settled by a special arbitration board and the Railroad Adjustment Board.