Edward Peters; Labor Leader, Arbitrator

Edward Peters, 88, nationally recognized labor leader, mediator and author. Peters earned prominence in mediation after Gov. Earl Warren appointed him to direct the Southern California section of the state Mediation and Conciliation Service in 1946, which he headed until his retirement in 1968. Four years later, he was elected to the National Academy of Arbitrators. Peters wrote three books about arbitration--”Conciliation in Action,” “Strategy and Tactics” and “Arbitration and Collective Bargaining.” He also taught collective bargaining and arbitration at UCLA Extension, USC, and Cal State Northridge. Peters served on the Los Angeles County Personnel Commission for 12 years and was named by Mayor Tom Bradley to negotiate and design affirmative action regulations for Los Angeles city construction contracts. Peters began his career in labor in the 1930s, organizing for the International Longshoreman’s Union. He later was head organizer for the United Auto Workers in Baltimore and was elected president of the Maryland Congress of Industrial Organizations. Born in Brockton, Mass., Peters earned a scholarship to the Massachusetts Institute of Technology. On Friday in Los Angeles of pneumonia.