The labor world. [volume] (Duluth, Minn.) 1896-current, 1906-06-02
INFLUENCE OF UNION
LABOR FAR REACHING
Bettering Of Conditions Of All
Wage Earners-Necessity
OF Getting Together.
Why Employers Should Be Fair
With Unions-Movement's
Trend i sUpward.

A great majority Of the people have
perhaps never stopped to figure out
the reason or cause Of the present
standard of conditions and wages
among the working people. These
conditions and wages are not yet
what they should be, but they are
improving gradually, and the fact is
important enough to deserve the earn
est consideration OF every one, be he
Wage-earner or not. This improve
1nent Is not coming Of its own accord.
The conditions under which the work.
ingman earns his living will not ad-
vance to higher plane without some
propelling force. There must be some
good and substantial power behind a
movement which Is continually as
cend4ng to q point high enough to be
satisfactory to those SO vitality inter-
ested.
Most any sort of a movement will
go backward IL left to take care Of
Itself, but it is show Of push and
energy when a movement is on the
upward trend.
There Is no more powerful or po-
tent agency in the advancement Of
the labor movement than organized
labor. If the influence of organized
labor could be wiped out with one
blow, how long would it require for
conditions and wages to recede to a
state that would be absolutely intol-
cradle to the working classes? It
would reach this state Immediately,
Tor there would then be no impede
ment to the greedy ambition of the
capitalist, who would glory in the OPP
portunity to treat with his employees
individually, and thus force conditions
and wages down to a stage OF long
hours and the lowest possibly pay.
Even under the strong and ever
alert influence Of organized labor in
demanding nothing more than human
rights, the conditions are still below
what they should be. Experience has
taught the working people that very
few employers voluntarily improve
the conditions of their employees:
therefore, it has been a matter of pure
and simple self-defense that labor has
organized. Labor had to organize in
order to protect its own welfare or
else supinely submit to the encroach-
ment of those who would fatten their
bank accounts at the expense of the
good health and even the morals of
the working people.
To be candid, the working people
have been compelled to adopt the sys-
tenn of organization and hold it as a
club over the head of the tyrannical
employer In order that decent and
wholesome conditions might be forced
If they cannot otherwise be secured.
organized labor seeks to force con-
dlt1ons up; without the collective eff
tort OF the laborers, nine tenths of
the employers would force conditions
down to a. basis Of abject slavery and
serfdom.
The working people acting togeth-
er IN given purpose can, and do.
WELD powerful and fetching influ-
ence; acting separately and each one
for himself, they have been, are now,
and always will be-, absolutely help
less In striving for their own advance
ment; but, on the contrary, help to
Increase the too strong power Of the
devilish clique of the employers. who,
at the expense Of those who are COM
PEELED to work for living, do not
hesitate to take advantage at every
opportunity to crush the strength of
organized labor and to- prevent the I'M
organized from becoming allied with
others Of their class.
Organized labor, in it's organized
capacity, is in a position to demand
falrer wages and shorter work DAYS.
Inc employers OF labor grant to the
unorganized workers the same de-
mands made by the organized in or
der to keep them out of the unions
so they can treat with them ind1vidu-
ally. This is where organized labor is
a positive benefit to the non unionist
as we'll as to the unionist Under
the upbuilding influence Of organized
labor both unionist and non-unioist
are advancing to still better condi-
tons; remove the influence of organ
lied labor and the conditions of the
working people, both union and non-
union, would revert to such depths
of degradation as would paralyze even
the highly imaginative fancying Of
the hellish dreamer and seek after
such conditions.
The helpful and wholesome inf1u-
ence Of organized labor cannot be dis
counted and waved aside by a simple
presto change" method. It still has
a large work to do in forwarding the
interests Of the toilers for daily bread.
and this purpose can be UNNECESSARILY
promoted by teaching the non-union-
lists the doubtfulness Of their position
as such, and impressing upon them
the benefit and security to be found
within the ranks Of organized labor.
They must be shown that collective
bargaining in respect to hours and
wages Is just as fair and more effec-
tive in the end than individual effort
along this line. They must be shown
that the union man can enter an en-
phatic protest and be in position
to force satisfactory results against
intolerable conditions Of hours and
wages, while the non un1onist will
have to accept what the boss" WISH
es to shoulder upon him, or else make
room for some other slave whose
backbone and manhood is as weak
- t.