The Michigan Daily-Sunday, September 10, 1978-Page 7 Big city postal strike unlikely WASHINGTON (AP) - A group of big-city postal union officials is drumming up support for a nationwide mail strike Wednesday, but they may have trouble finding workers who will march to that beat. "Let's face it, we're a very conservative workforce," said William Burrus, president of the Cleveland area local of the American Postal Workers Union. WE'VE ONLY had one strike in 2006 years - in 1970," added Burrus, who is chairman of the group of militant APWU leaders behind the strike call. He said the group represents 250 to 300 of the largest locals in the 299,000- member union, with strong bases of support in such cities as New York, Cleveland, Philadelphia, Denver, Los Angeles, San Francisco, Detroit, Dallas and Miami. Burrus and his colleagues want to stage a mid-week nationwide strike to pressure their national leaders into reaching a negotiated contract settlement with the Postal Service before a 10 a.m. EDT Sept. 16 deadline the bargainers have set for themselves. BURRUS SAID in a telephone interview that strikes in all major cities beginning Wednesday night would demonstrate to APWU bargainers that a contract settlement through arbitration "is not acceptable to postal workers." But he acknowledged that a final decision to call a strike depends on how many workers would support one. Burrus said his group will be taking the pulse of their members during the next few days to see "if we would have broad support" for such a walkout. The postal union officials concede that postal workers - unlike disciplined rank-and-file members of industrial unions such as the United Auto Workers - cannot be counted on to walk off the job any time their leaders give the signal. FOR ONE thing, mail strikes are barred by federal law, a potent deterrent to walkouts. Violators can lose their jobs, be fined and go to jail. - In addition, the current dispute led a federal judge to issue a temporary restraining order barring a postal strike. The judge could order the immediate jailing of workers or union leaders who violate his ban. National officials of-the APWU and two other unions representing more than 500,000 postal workers currently are bargaining with management under a unique arrangement that must produce either a voluntary contract settlement or a settlement through binding arbitration by the Sept. 16 deadline. THE 15-DAY bargaining procedure was adopted by the two sides to avert nationwide mail strikes that leaders of two of the unions threatened to call after members rejected an earlier settlement. The two sides have been meeting under the new arrangement since Sept. 1, but reportedly have made no progress toward resolving their dispute. They scheduled no sessions for Saturday, but planned to resume negotiations today. A new settlement reached by the parties would have to be resubmitted to members for their ratification. But if they cannot settle on their own, the arbitrator will set final contract terms for the two sides, thus precluding a vote of approval by union members. The unions are seeking a better wage package than the 19.5 per cent increase, including cost-of-living adjustments, contained in the three-year pact voted down last month. The rejected three- year contract wage offer would have boosted a typical worker's average annual pay from about $15,900 currently to $19,100 by 1981. Daily Phone Numbers: Billing-764-0550 Circulation-764-4558 Classifieds-764-0557 Display-764-0554 News and Happenings-764-0552 Sports-764-0562 I M 74 0 w W4 0 p " a Alfred Hitchcock's 1946 4§ NOTORIOUS § CARY GRANT, G-man, convinces the playgirl (INGRID BERGMAN), daughter of a Nazi spy to accept a dangerous mission near the end of § WW 11, taking her to Brazil and into the arms of Claude Rams. "This is truly my favorite Hitchcock picture." Truffaut. Suspenseful Romance. . . Tuesday: Hawky His Girl Friday TONIGHT at OLD ARCH. AUD. § § CINEMA GUILD 7:OOand9:0 $1.50 Last fling A group of students enjoyed a last breath of summer in the Arb yesterday before buckling down to the books. Gas compromise bill still too close to caxll. - - - -- WASHINGTON (AP)-Senators are finally getting a chance to act on the complex natural gas compromise which is being championed by the Car- ter administration, but even on the eve of debate no one seems to know for sure whether it will fly. It's still too close to call because of a large uncommitted block, most prin- cipals agree. A week of heavy lobbying on both sides swung some votes but failed to produce a clear winner. SENATEMAJORITY Leader Robert Byrd. has announced he will take the deregulation bill up tomorrow and that both sides will just have to take their chances. * Byrd told reporters yesterday at his weekly news conference that suppor- ters of the bill are not yet in the majority, but predicted the Senate will "rise to the occasion" and pass it. He said, "my personal contacts with at least 70 senators and my knowledge of the uncommitted bloc and the iden- tify of those senators making up the un- committed bloc, leave me increasingly optimistic." AN ASSOCIATED PRESS survey showed that as of this weekend, 28 senators still listed themselves as un- decided. For the rest of the Senate, the opponents seem to have the upper hand-with 38 against the compromise or leaning against it to 34 favoring it or leaning infavor of it. But an afialysis of who is on the "un- decide" list shows the White House may be ble to narrow that gap and even pull ahead in the days ahead. There are twice as manyDemocrats as Republicans among the uncommit- ted-something which could make a difference as the battle becomes in- creasingly partisan. AND AMONG THOSE senators are . many who have supported the admin- sitration in key votes in the past-Walter Ruddleston of Kentucky, Thomas Eagleton of Missouri, Dale Bumpers of Arkansas, John Glenn of Ohio, Ernest Hollings of South Carolina, and Adlai E. Stevenson III of Illinois, for instance. Both sides were scurrying for last- minute converts. Several senators favoring the com- promise suggested that Carter's vic- tories in the House last week-the wide sustaining of his nuclear carrier veto and rejection of a Republican attempt to strip him of the power to impose oil import fees-added immensely to his prestige on Capitol Hill and could help him win votes for the gas bill. "Those victories were psychologically very important. It's just like in the stock market," said Sen. Richard Stone (D-Fla.). Maine Sen. Edmund Muskie's decision Friday to support the com- Ia.f UO I promise-and to bring a number of other undecided senators along with him-was seen as a big plus for the ad- minsitration. SOURCES AMONG opponents, meanwhile, reported it seemed to be getting more difficult to win over senators, adding they still were far short of the majority needed. However, they said the decision of Senate Majority Leader Howard Baker of Ten- nessee to join their camp could bring in- to the fold a number of undecided Republicans. It took House and Senate negotiators more than nine months of mostly secret sessions to produce the compromise which would lift fedral price controls from newfound natural gas on Jan. 1, 1985. The first showdown vote is expected on Wednesday or Thursday on a motion by opponents to return the entire measure to the conference committee that produced it. SENATE LEADERS say that would hve the same effect as killing the measure outright. That could deal the ultimate death blow to Carter's 16-month old energy program since the other major element of his plan-a tax on crude oil-is already considered dead in Congress for this session. If opponents lose on this vote, then they may mount a filibuster-but the leadership claims that it has the votes needed to half such delaying tactics. The opposition consists of an unlikely coalition of liberals who claim the com- promise is too costly to consumers and conservatives who say it doesn't deregulate enough gas. Estimates on the costs vary. Op- ponents claim it will cost consumers between $29 billion and $41 billion bet- ween now and 1985. The White House puts the cost at less than $5 billion over the same period. And the Congressional Budget Office estimates a cost of $15 billion during that time. The longest pass play in the Big Ten in 1976 was an 82-yarder for a touch- down from Marshall Lawson of Michigan State to Kirk Gibson. It was against Ohio State. n--- Ann Arbor Civic Theatre 201 S. Mulholland off W. Washington w announces Open Auditions FOR "The Unexpected Guest" by AGATHA CHRISTIE Sun. Sept. 10, 7:30 p.m. and Mon. Sept. 11, 7:30 p.m. AT PI Ann Arbor Civic Theatre Building 201 S. Mulholland, Ann Arbor ORODUCTION DATES OCT. 25-28 U I AUDITIONS FOR UAC Musket's MAN OF La MANCHA SEPT. 15-16-Pendleton Room MICHIGAN UNION MASS MEETING-SEPT. 14 7:00 Pendleton Room Michigan Union "a elipse 4 4qk L0 0 CINEMA II PRESENTS 2 HITCHCOCK FILMS THE BIRDS 0* AnnArborJazzFestival In Celebration of the Music of DI IKF Fl 1 INGTON IHill Auditorium September 21-2 This Hitchcock thriller is enough to make you stop bird-watching and put the old bird feeder to the axe. In a small California town, birds assume a horrible malevolence as their pecking increases to mass attack on hun- dreds of people. Superb special effects create a terror that will be etched on your memory for a long time to come. with TIPPI HEDREN, ROD TAYLOR, and SUSANNE PLESHETTE. 7 ONLY. MARNIE Marnie's sexual, romantic and emotional emphasis give it a richness that sets it apart from Hitchcock's other films of the 60's. An amateur psychologist (SEAN CONNERY) is obsessed with a beautiful kleptomaniac (TIPPI HEDREN) who is haunted by strange dreams and the color red. A masterpiece of cathartic climax and Connery's escape from his Agent 007 role. 9 ONLY. THURS,21st8pm FRI,22nd-8pm MARY LOU WILLIAMS JOHNNY GRIFFIN STAN GETZ DEXTER GORDON MAX ROACH Ot./ARCHIE SHEPP FREDDIE HUBBARD - -- Y - - - - ~ - - SAT,23rd-8pm STANLEY TURRENTINE KENNY BURRELL SUNRA SUN,24th-lpm II V I ORCHESTR CHICO FREEMAN HUBERT LAWS SUBSCRIBE TO THE DAILY-Call 764-0558 SUN,24th-8pm MERCER MOSE ALLISON ART BLAKEY r ELLIK'GTON/ DUKE EWNGTON ORCHESTRA --Iw WORLD CHAMPS U M MEN'S GLEE CLUB FESTIVAL SERIES TICKETS NOW ON SALE AT MICHIGAN UNION BOX OFFICE (M-F 11:30-5:30) $30, 25, 20 INDIVIDUAL TICKETS GO ON SALE