From: ae547@yfn.ysu.edu (Ronda Hauben)
Subject: UAW Welcomes Auto Factory of Despair -PRB #1001 (Part 1 of 4)long
Reply-To: ae547@yfn.ysu.edu (Ronda Hauben)
Organization: St. Elizabeth Hospital, Youngstown, OH
Date: Thu, 12 Nov 1992 02:16:47 GMT


UAW Welcomes Auto Factory of Despair into Heart of Union Territory
            Public Review Board Case # 1001
                 Part 1 of 4

                     THE PUBLIC REVIEW BOARD
                    INTERNATIONAL UNION, UAW
                                   
Appeal of 
Ronda Hauben, Member
 Local 3000 (Flat Rock, MI), Region 1A
     Appellant                               Case No. 1001
vs 
 
UAW International President
(The United Autombobile, Aerospace
and Agricultural Implement
Workers of America),
     Appellee
                    ORAL ARGUMENTS REQUESTED                         
                       BRIEF of APPELLANT
     
     The following is submitted to supplement the appeal and 
responses already submitted by Appellant in this case now before 
the Public Review Board. This brief has been prepared after 
receiving a copy of the Record in this case from the Board.  
 
     The Appeal of Ronda Hauben, Member (local 3000) (Flat Rock, 
MI, Region 1A) vrs UAW International President, Public Review 
Board Case No. 1001 (herein called Hauben vrs UAW Intl Pres) 
testifies to the wonders of the achievements of the Flint Sit 
Down Strikers who succeeded in building the UAW.
 
     On the surface, this case (Hauben vrs UAW Intl Pres) seems 
an amazing travesty of justice and in the sense of the 
Czechoslovakian writer Milan Kundera's book "Of Laughter and 
Forgetting", of "forgetting" the important lessons of UAW 
history. But on more careful examination, this case currently 
before the Public Review Board shows the great achievements of 
the unsung heroes of UAW history.
 
     First a bit of background.
 
THE BACKGROUND 
 
     On August 19, 1988, a letter to the editor appeared in the 
Flint Journal called "Union history repeats itself". The Letter 
described events that had occurred at the 13th Annual Pioneer 
Picnic that had been held in Flint on August 6, 1988. The letter 
explained:
 
          "The pioneers were present in good numbers and good 
     spirit. The sharing of memories was vigorous, the happiness 
     of seeing each other contagious. A speech read by one of the 
     Pioneers received loud applause when it opposed "jointness," 
     "partnership" and "commonground".    
 
     The letter continued:
 
          "But just as The Journal reported almost 40 years ago, 
     freedom of speech is not standard within the labor movement. 
     A researcher of Flint labor history was trying to tell the 
     story of how the five Flint UAW locals won cost-of-living 
     adjustments. The chairman cut her off. Similarly, 40 years 
     ago, at a meeting in Flint on Feb. 8, 1948, the same 
     discussion was prevented when Walter Reuther didn't allow 
     Jack Palmer and other advocates of COLA to speak.
 
     After describing how another speaker was given over 1/2 hour 
of time to tell jokes, the letter went on:
 
          "As always, Flint was the heart of the worker's move
     ment. Sadly, that movement is still strait-jacketed by those 
     who prevent free and open debate." 
 
     Another letter to the editor ("13th Annual Pioneers Picnic") 
published in the August 26, 1988 issue of "The Searchlight" the 
local union newspaper of UAW Local 659 (Flint, MI) described the 
same event. The letter explained:
 
          "The next speech analyzed the significance of the 
     victory won in 1948 of COLA in the GM contract and it's 
     connection to the "My job and why I like it" contest. It 
     began with a little of the history of the many efforts 
     toward a labor party, especially in 1947-48. Then the 
     speaker went on to speak about Alfred Sloan's economic 
     mistakes and his call for psychological warfare against the 
     workers." 
 
     The writer continued:
 
          "After about 10 minutes and before it was done, the 
     Chairman cut off the speech saying the speaker's time was 
     up. This was a serious mistake....
 
     The writer describes more of what happened:
 
          "Afterwards a number of people asked for copies of the 
     speech and were concerned that the chair was allowed to cut 
     her off...A younger worker did take the microphone to inform 
     everyone that the situation in the plants is returning to 
     pre-1937 conditions. And she asked that the Pioneers again 
     tell everyone they know how it was they were able to take on 
     and defeat GM...."
 
     In conclusion the writer explained:
 
          "But still the story of the crucial role of the rank 
     and file remains to be told, recorded and accorded its 
     place as the basis of history. At the next annual picnic, it 
     is time the microphone be open to the Pioneers and to those 
     who have a serious contribution to make showing the connection 
     between the battles of the Pioneers in the past and the 
     struggles of today..."
 
     The speech that had been censored at the 13th Annual Pioneer 
Picnic was an account of how the Flint Sit Down Strikers had won 
two great victories, one in 1937 with the victory of their strike 
against GM, and the second, which has been rarely discussed, in 
their victory of gaining the COLA and pattern bargaining in their 
1948 UAW-GM contract. Little known is the fact that in 1946-48, 
GM had begun to try to introduce quality work circles (similar to 
the current QWL and "teams" of today) into its factories in an 
effort to replace the unions won by the sitdown strikes of the 
1930's). Flint workers successfully challenged the corporate 
agenda and instead won higher wages and other union benefits 
which set standards for the US labor movement for the next 30 
years. 
 
     The speech described the debate that went on between Alfred 
Sloan's vision of the postwar years, and the vision of the Flint 
workers. The speech explained:
 
     "But the secret weapon that Flint labor possessed was the 
     uncensored local union newspaper."
 
     Even though the International Union had censored the 
arguments in favor of COLA and campaigned vigorously against 
putting it into the 1948 UAW-GM contracts, UAW members in Flint 
publicly debated their reasons for pressing for COLA in their 
local union newspapers, especially in the "Searchlight" (Chevrolet 
UAW Locasl 659), but also in other Flint local union newspapers 
like the "Sparkler" A.C. Spark Plug's local union newspaper.
 
     In an article in the Searchlight, pioneer unionist Carl 
Johnson, explained why the uncensored local union press was so 
important for UAW rank and file workers. He wrote:
 
     "If the Labor press does not try to give Labor the whole 
     truth, where will Labor get it? This, of course, raises the 
     question: Who is right about Labor's destiny? Certainly we 
     can't rely on the capitalist press to tell us, for it is 
     obvious that their interest is the opposite of Labor's 
     interest. But who from the ranks of Labor? Let them all 
     speak -- that's what Free Speech was intended for. Let them 
     all present their views in a forum. From that the reader 
     will have a fair chance to decide."
          (from "Only More Democracy will Save Democracy" by
          Carl Johnson, Oct 29, 1949)
 
     Johnson felt, quoting "If local union publications...provide 
the ranks with a freer discussion which alone can prepare the 
ranks for the fight which is sure to be plenty tough, then we 
need not worry too much, for American labor proved in 1936 and 
1937 that it can move fast and furiously when it knows where to 
go." Crucial to Johnson's vision, the speech explained, "and to 
the labor movement's was an uncensored press. Johnson called for 
a newspaper which `permits a full range of uncensored opinion'."
 
     If someone, he explained, including the editor, disagreed 
with what was said, they could print their disagreement. But 
articles were to be printed as the writer submitted them unless 
they were judged libelous. (Ibid.)
 
     The speech went on to show how the weapon of this uncensored 
press made it possible for Flint workers to win pattern 
bargaining in the UAW-GM 1948 contract. 
 
     In their book "Changing Alliances" (Boston, 1987) the authors 
Dyer, Salter and Weber, refer to the achievement COLA represented 
as "An enduring pattern of auto bargaining took shape in 1948." 
(pg 41)
 
     And an article by labor history professor Ben Fischer, who 
was a veteran of the CIO, described the important achievement of 
this 1948 period: 
 
     "The 1948 GM-UAW agreement established what proved to be a 
     34-year wage pattern for basic industry....It has called for 
     an annual improvement factor reflecting the overall long-
     term growth in the economy plus a periodic review and 
     adjustment of wages to conform to changes in the cost-of-
     living...in the succeeding era of more than three decades, 
     wage movements in the economy followed a course...often 
     dictated by the GM formula or very strongly influenced by 
     it."
                              ("Fifty Years of the CIO," Labor 
                              Law Journal, Aug. 1985, p. 660) 
 
     Similarly, achievements like seniority, paid vacations, 
classifications, etc. were some of the gains of the labor movement 
of the 1930's and 1940's.  
 
     The speech ended, by summarizing:
 
          "Thus the effort of Sloan and CE Wilson to bring 
     behavioral modification instead of higher wages was firmly 
     and soundly defeated for 40 years by the Flint labor move
     ment. However, it has all reared its head once again and the 
     lessons from how it was defeated need to be carefully 
     studied and built upon. The uncensored press, the commitment 
     to higher wages, and the commitment to independent political 
     action for labor seems to be some of the chief weapons 
     wielded by Flint labor. Jack Palmer, writing in 1947 
     explained "Sometimes, it is advisable to review the past in 
     order to foresee the development of the present and the 
     future." 
     
TRYING TO REVERSE THE VERDICT OF HISTORY
 
     Shortly after the censorship of her speech at the 13th 
Annual Pioneer's Picnic, on August 12, 1988, Ronda Hauben 
received a call from Mazda Motor Corporation telling her to 
report to work for a week of "training." Mazda had been welcomed 
into Michigan and the heart of union country by the State of 
Michigan and by the UAW International Union. As a story which 
later appeared in "Automotive News" explains, Mazda had received 
millions of dollars of public money from the State of Michigan to 
introduce the "much-heralded team manufacturing system" (February 
13, 1989, p. 1) It was this same "team" manufacturing system that 
Flint UAW members had shown to be a problem in 1947-48 and which 
they succeeded in getting GM to abandon then.  
 
     When Ronda Hauben arrived at Mazda on August 15, 1988 for 
her orientation, there were approximately 50 other new hires. 
They learned that Mazda had just added a second shift and was in 
a rush to get them out onto the floor to staff it. On Tuesday, 
August 16, they were told that normally an auto factory of the 
size of Mazda would have 3,500 workers. But that Mazda had not 
given personnel permission to hire more than 2,500 jobs. 
 
     Then Bill Judson came to make a presentation for the UAW. He 
described how he had been appointed President of the Mazda Local 
by the UAW and had been interviewed by Mazda officials before he 
was accepted for the job. That he had come from an extremely 
adversarial background from a company that was like GM in his 
area. But that Mazda had made promises and if such promises 
became a reality, then "we wouldn't need a union." He explained 
that other union contracts had over 150 work rules and that these 
had been eliminated in the contract with Mazda. That the language 
in the contract had been created to be ambiguous and open ended. 
That Mazda was a test ground to see whether Japanese management 
techniques and the union could coexist. That he had been told 
not to make waves.
 
     Next he showed a video tape of Owen Bieber, President of 
UAW, International Union. President Bieber welcomed employees to 
Mazda and the UAW. He explained that the UAW was working with 
Governor Blanchard of Michigan to produce highly motivated 
Michigan workers like the workers at Nummi (the GM-Toyota joint 
effort.) He explained that the "new" management policies had been 
successfully implemented at Nummi and that these policies were to 
be advocated from the beginning at Mazda. He said that the UAW 
had signed a letter of intent with the Mazda which recognized 
"quality control," "job security", and a "management system based 
on understanding and respect rather than conflict." He proclaimed 
that there would be a new union-management relationship at Mazda 
and that workers would have full input into important decisions. 
 
     Next Region I-A Director Ernest Lofton appeared on the 
video. He said that there were 100,000 UAW members in Region 1-A, 
and what was happening at Mazda symbolized "the wave of the future." 
He claimed that the management concepts Mazda was introducing 
could serve as a "milestone for industry."
 
THE WAVE OF THE FUTURE IS "THE FACTORY OF DESPAIR"
 
     Less than 6 months later, an article appeared on page 1 of 
"Automotive News" titled "Injury, training woes hit new Mazda 
plant." (February 13, 1989) (See Record, pg. 59-63) Subsequently, 
a similar article was published in the Japanese newspaper "Asahi 
Shimbun" announcing "Despair Spreading Among Employees". (April 
24, 1989). And a book "Working for the Japanese" by Joseph J. 
Fucini and Suzy Ficini (N.Y. 1990) appeared the following year 
describing the reality of the dangerous working conditions at 
Mazda.
 
     Though Mazda workers at the Flat Rock factory were mainly 
producing the Ford Probe car, the UAW-Mazda contract they were 
working under gave up most of the language that had been set as a 
pattern by GM auto workers. Classifictions were abolished and 
instead workers were required to do a variety of jobs at the whim 
of supervision. Seniority was only available for some production 
workers, while others were hired to work full time but not 
accorded seniority. Instead of a grievance procedure, the words 
"problem resolution/complaint procedure" were adopted so that a 
grievance was now called a "complaint." The disability provisions 
of the GM or Ford contracts were not included in the Mazda con
tract so that Mazda could produce Ford cars but set a new low 
standard for its workers. Also, Mazda workers got lower wages and 
fewer benefits than Ford or GM or Chrysler workers. Though the 
Mazda corporation was 25% owned by Ford, a new low standard for 
auto workers was set as the norm.
 
     The Flint sitdown pioneers had worked under similar condi
tions prior to 1937. The lesson they had learned from their 
fight, however, they told Ronda Hauben, was "If you don't fight, 
you can't win." They had also explained to her that before the 
sit down General Motors would often injure workers and then throw 
them out on the street. One of the main reasons they made the sit 
down and formed the UAW, they explained, was to prevent companies 
like GM from injuring workers and then throwing them out. 

    (To be continued)
-- 
Ronda Hauben                    email address:ae547@yfn.ysu.edu
Amateur Computerist Newsletter              or
P.O. Box 4344                   rhauben@heartland.bradley.edu
Dearborn, MI 48126
Xref: sparky alt.amateur-comp:194 talk.politics.theory:4838 comp.society.futures:572