The labor world. [volume] (Duluth, Minn.) 1896-current, 1902-06-07
l ! } !. And ! ! J. UNIONS ! !!

| 49, 80 -.
QUESTION OF TRADE JURISDICTION
BOTHERs TIVE FEDERATION.
Max Hayes, of the Cleveland Citizen.
| Says Some Spicy Things About
Trade Disputes and Industrial
Organisati0n-Union Must ANAL
gamate in Order That They Keep
Pace With the Times.
The jurisdiction fights in the A. F.
OF L. appear to be becoming more Bit
! ter.
In Cincinnati the most intense feeling
| has been engendered between. the
| brewery workers on the one side and
| the engineers and firemen on the other.
The former are locked out and have
| the solid support of organized labor,
| while the latter are at work with scabs
! IN the brewery plants and using every
effort to minimize the effects of the
boycott on Cincinnati beer, says Max
| Hays, in the Cleveland Citizen.
In the clothing industry, the garment
workers have defiantly announced that
| they will not abide by the action Of the
A. F. of L. in chartering the custom
clothing workers..
In New York trouble has been on for
| some time between the amalgamated
and brotherhood carpenters, and now
the officials of the latter. union are re-
ported as having begun a fierce attack
on the amalgamated weolworkers. The
Woodworkers in turn are having their
little differences with the boxmakers
and the wood carvers, and are said to
be reaching for the patternmakers.
In the metal trades trouble has
| broken out again between the amalga-
! mated engineers and machinists in sew
eral places. The molders, it is rumored;
will claim jurisdiction over the brass
molders, who are identified with the
| metal polishers, at the forthcoming
! convention. Several minor organiza-
tons are also mixed up in disputes over
control of certain branches.
The printers and pressmen are on un-
friendly terms regarding the label, and
at the coming convention Of the latter
the job pressmen threaten to secede
| and form separate national union.
| There are many other struggles on
| between various national bodies, and
enough local squabbles to fill volume.
While it must be admitted that these
controversies are to be deplored, yet it
is we'll to take philosophical view of
the situation and see whether it is not
possible to remedy conditions with as
little friction as possible.
These fights had to come. The divi-
sion and subdivision Of trades alone
would naturally bring them on. The
Capitalization of capital is another
cause that fastened and encouraged
them. The rapid growth of. trade
unions, the ignorance of many new
corners regarding the principles of true
unionism, and the ambition Of officials
to increase the memberships of their
| organizations are all causes that con-
tributed toward bringing about these
family quarrels.
THE FACT THAT THEY ARE
HERE PROVES THAT TRADE
UNION1SM IS VERY MUCH ALIVE,
VIGOROUS AND GROW1NG!
If harmony reigned completely, the
| trade union movement would become
stagnant and enervated. - -. - 2 =
So long as humanity exists there will
be contention and differences of opin-
ion. If that were not true, there would
be no progress.
But when jurisdiction fights become
positively harmful, as in Cincinnati, for
example-When the suicidal course of
aiding employers at the expense Of
w-Workers is folloWed-then the
line must be drawn. There ought to
be no temporizing in such a case. We
cannot aid and abet treason!
Many of the injurious phases Of these
quarrels between organization could be
| obviated by adopting broad minded,
intelligent methods. Industrial organ
ization, to include all the workers Of a
given industry, must supplant narrow
autonomy of crafts or parts of crafts.
The modern methods Of production de-
Quoting labor's economic organizations.
Concentration is the order of the day.
1t means the abolition Of waste and
true unity and greater power.
The unions in the mining woodwork
ing, metal, printing, clothing, brewing,
transportation and other industries
must be merged into close declarations
or completely amalgamated. That
"OuAO NC SClCl1tl1lC OI6dulZdIlOu ana
up to-date.
OF course, small army of presidents.
vice presidents, secretaries, treasurers
board members, etc., would perhaps be
abolished. but personal ambitions
should not be considered when the good
of all is at stake.
The rank and file ought to study this
question seriously, so that delegates t.
conventions could take proper action to
do away with many of the difference
that tend to- arouse anfmosities and
jealousies without reason. :s
In Europe, and especially in Great
Britain. the unions have been grad
ually merging and combining for some
years. It was found that where or
CARNATIONS maintained separate exist
ence and stood upon their Autonomy
it created no end of confusion and
chaos, as. we'll as weakness, and the
employers were quick to take advan-
tage of the situation.
A