The labor world. [volume] (Duluth, Minn.) 1896-current, 1909-08-07
MANHOOD VERSUS MAMMoN.

MANHOOD VERSUS MAMMoN.
The United States Steel corpora
ton Through one of it's subsidiary
companies, the American Sheet and
Tin Plate; company, is waging a war
Of determination against the Amalgar
mated Association of Iron, Steel and
Tin Workers. trades union organfza-
tion.
That company has declared It's in
tentton to operate all its sheet and
tin mills non-union, and at the same
time has posted new schedule of
wages at a material reduction from
the union scale.
The men in all the union plants, ex-
cept one, have refused to accept the
conditions and are now idle.
In issuing the notice of its intention
to attempt to operate its mills non
Union the trust was actuated by the
one motive that prompts its every
policy. That motive is to increase it's
profits. It hopes to do this by max
ing itself the absolute dictator as to
the wages paid and the conditions
that prevail in all it's plants. TO do
this it must create condition that
will prevent its employees from having
anything to say. as to what their
wages shall be or what conditions the
work shall be performed under. To
create such a condition unionism must
first be destroyed, hence its ":open
shop" (non-unlon) notice was posted.
And for fear that Syoou might iiot un-
derstand the real purpose of it the trust
accompanied it with. q wage reduc-
tfon. But the trust does not want to
have to force wage reductions, be-
cause both trusts and wage reductions
are unpopular with the people of this
trustrridden nation.
The trust has a. large number of
sheet and tin mills in excess Of those
needed to fill It's orders under nominal
business conditions, hence some OF
them are necessarily idle at all times.
The trust does not believe in or
want competition in its own business.
It prefers very much to have a
monopoly If 1t could, because monop.
oily IL the goal Of all trusts. But the
trust is firm believer in competition
between its employees. The trust has
more mills than 1t needs, hence II
cannot give all It's employees in the
sheet and tin mills steady work. II
has therefore decided to have them
compete for such work as it has to>be
done. The competition will be SHARP
and the lowest bidders will get thu
work. That is they will get the worb
so long as they remain the loves,
bidders. Under the trusts program
they will not remain the lowest bid
ders for a very long time. The trus
believes that starvation IS grea
incentive to the kind of competition
Il likes. It will see to it, therefore
that number of plants are idle To-
long enough periods to sharpen com
petition for work. . .>r-.s.,
And who will profit by this system
The trust, and nobody else. , .'.>
The trust cannot, and will not guar
ahtee any one steadier work. I
follows Of necessity that the mill.
will work no greater number: of day
psr year. It must then further fol
low that the net yearly earnings of th
= men Twill be less and the trust viii
have the difference In It's pocket. e. B,
such a policy Of cutthroat compet1
tpn..the trust hopes to escape the pull
{. lie odiun attendant upon wage Re
ductions by having its idle, intimi
dated employees petition for an, op-
portuntty to work at the trusts terms
and at the same time have ,1nir
formed business communities crIedi
b to philanthropy, acts that wer
s prompted by greed. XII. re @& {.
- D.. - .l..,-F TT