The Birmingham age-herald. [volume] (Birmingham, Ala.) 1902-1950, 1909-12-15
Open Shop Policy Of Steel
Corporation Is Under Attack
RESOLUTION is PASSED
Copies of Resolution Adopted at Meet
ing in Pittsburg Are Sent to
President Taft and to Both
Houses of Congress.

Pittsburg, December 14-War was for
mally declared upon the United States
Steel corporation by the leaders of or
ganized labor throughout the United
States and Canada at the close of mo-
mentous two days conference today
The decision to battle long and hard
against the stand taken by the Steel cor
poration in its policy of an open shop"
it is declared, was reached by the la yor
conferees only after hours of debate, and
deal of trouble.
At the conference which passed the
remarka BILE decree, Samuel Gompers, pres
ident of the American Federation of
Labor, presided.
The grievances of organized labor
against the Steel corporation as set forth
in the resolution, have been forwarded
to President Taft and the United States
Senate and House of Representatives.
The governors of the states in which
the Steel corporation operates plants, or
has interests. also will receive a copy of
the resolution.
Resolution In Part
In part the resolution reads:
"The United States Steel corporation
has declared war on labor. In its secret
councils this corporation has decreed that
the only obstacle to It's complete sway.
that of organized labor, shall be crushed.
The labor organizations consist of its
employees, the workers and their wives
and little ones. indirectly. human flesh
and bone.
m Is by their Iabof mat thew live
. They have no purpose other than sara
guarding their lives; their characters:
their future; the safety of the republic.
and humanity.
fhese factors now confront each other.
BY their purposes, attitude and actions
must they be judged
June /, 1909, the United States Steel
corporation proclaimed its decree of hos
tility toward labor. The rights OF the
workers to associate for their common
protection we're no longer to be recognized
or tolerated. Accompanying that decree
was notice of further reduction In
the already scant wages of the workers.
The decree went into effect July l., 1909.
We, therefore, urge that an earnest ef-
employees in the iron, steel and tinplate
industries and subsidiary correlated trades.
Call for Organizers.
Owing to immediate pressing necessity
caused by the present strike, and bv
the indefensible. hostile attitude of the
United States Steel corporation. we earn
estly call upon national and International
unions OF America to send at least one
organizer to assist in this work We
further urge and recommend that in all
places where mills are located the CEN
trail labor organizations appoint special
committees with instructions to cooper
ate In this work.
For educational purposes we recon-
mend that this manifesto be made a
special order in all central labor organ
izations at their first meetings in jan
uary, 1910.
I'VE recommend that the executive
council of the American Federation of
Labor issue circular TO all unions of
America, appealing for financial contri-
buttons. to aid the striking iron, steel and
tinplate workers.
I'VE further recommend that the
amount of such contribution should not
be less than 10 cents per member In
view of the great wrongs perpetrated
by the United States Steel corporation
not only against the workers, but the
public generally, we recommend that a
committee be appointed by this confer
ence to wait on the President of the
United States, the president of the Unit
ed States Senate. the speaker of the
House Of Representatives., and such
members OF either house of Congress an
may be deemed avisable for the purpose
Of laying before them the grievances
from which labor suffers at the hands Of
this corporation.
Invasion of Rights.
eat the instance of the United States
Steel corporation officers of local, mu-
nicipal and state governments have un-
warrantably tyrannized over citizens, in
vading the constitutionality guaranteed
right of free assemblage and free speech
We recommend that committees be ap-
pointed by this conference to walt upon
the governors of states ana such other
officials. representatives OF county and
municipal districts, as are In control
where the United States Steel corpora
ton has plants located for the purpose
of presenting to these officials the great
wrongs inflicted upon the people OF these
communities and that the committees
demand an investigation, and where
charges are made and substantiated by
evidence the officials responsible there
for be removed ana the wrongs immedi-
ately righted.
eve appeal to all. liberty loving Amer
leans for their moral and financial sup-
port. -..
ST l.. LEWIS.
.sW D. MAHON,
GEORGE w. PERKINS,
~. W. HAYS.
FRANK M. RYAN,
SAMUEL GOMPERS.
"'P. j. McARDLE.
CHARLES n. LAWLER.
All Has Been Said.
| At the conclusion OF the conference the
mon responsible for the resolutions said
| .'they had said all there was to- be said