Congress enacts the Labor-Management Relations Act of 1947 (Taft-Hartley Act). The Federal Mediation and Conciliation Service is created as an independent agency of the U. S. government. The agency is given the mission of preventing or minimizing the impact of labor-management disputes on the free flow of commerce by providing mediation, conciliation and voluntary arbitration.
Cyrus S. Ching is appointed by President Truman as FMCS’ first director.
David L. Cole is nominated as the second director of FMCS.
Whitney P. McCoy is appointed by President Eisenhower as the FMCS’ third director. In the first venture into new technology, two mediators from the Midwest put together photographic slides and a tape recorder to produce the Service’s initial “audio-visual” program on the subject of grievance mediation.
