The Washington herald., 1911-03-26
RAILWAY CLERKS
CANNOT ORGANIZE
Postal Employees Barred from
Joining Labor Unions.
WARNING IS SENT BROADCAST
Second Assistant Postmaster General
stewart Summarizes Departments
Position in Letter-POintcd Out
that Oath to Government Prevents
Strike or waIkout of CIerks.

The Post-office Department has decided
that the railway mail clerks of the coun-
try cannot organize and affiliate with the
American Federation OF Labor. For sew
eral months representatives of the feder-
alton have been doing ''nissionary work"
among the railway mail clerks, and II
has also circulariZed the whole service
in the effort to have these clerks or
ganized and become q part of the fedora
ton.
The depar tment, it is stated, has given
very careful consideration to the situa-
ton, in the course OF which the legal
aspects of the case have been looked into,
and some of the officials expressed grave
doubt as to whether IL the afiliation did
take place it would not be a violation
of law.
Violation of Statutes.
They direct attention to the fact that
one of the obligations imposed upon
unions affiliated with the federation is to
strike under certain circumstances, and
this, it is claimed, if it were done by
railway clerks in a body, would consti-
tute a violation of existing statutes in
connection with the interference with
United States mails. 1t is also claimed
that there are other obligations devolving
upon organizations affiliating with the
federation which would make it impossi-
BILE for government employees to take
Second Assistant Postmaster General
Stewart, acting under the direction and
with the full approval of Postmaster
General Hitchcock, has summarized the
departments position in a letter which
he has directed to General Superintend-
ent Alexander Grant, of the Railway
Mail Service. While the name of no
organization is mentioned in the letters,
no secret is made at the department that
it is intended as indicating to the rail-
way mail clerks that the department will
not allow the organization and afhliation
aimed at by the federation.
1t is believed at the department that
there are not many clerks who have
taken seriously the proposition to or
ganize themselves into a militant labor
union and the letter is intended to def
nitely state and outline the position of
the department in regard to the matter
and to avoid complications.
Letter Sent Out.
This is the letter addressed to Super
intendent Grant, who is directed to ad-
wise all railway mail clerks as to its con-
tents:
referring to the reports that postal
clerks at various points are forming
lodges of secret organizations of railway
postal clerks, desire that steps be
taken at once to acquaint all in the serv-
ice that such action is regarded as in
imical to the interests of the govern
ment. All clerks, when they enter the
service. take an oath to well and faith
fully discharge the duties of the Office
to which they are appointed, and to per-
form all the duties required of them.
and to abstain from everything forbidden
by the laws in relation to post-off1ces
and post roads.
''It Is incompatible with their obligation
to the department that they should as
sumo another oath with a secret or
gantzation in the service, which may
at any time interfere with the obliga-
tions which they have assumed upon
entering the service. This is not to be
construed as interfering with any right
which a clerk may have of acting per-
sonally and individually with reference
to organizations outside of the postal
service.
You are hereby directed to advise all
railway postal clerks as to these prin-
ciples of employment and views here ex-
pressed and that they shall be governed
thereby"