The Gem worker and the Idaho labor herald. (Boise, Idaho) 1914-1917, 1915-04-15
POWER or UNITY.
Basic Principle Of the Organized
Labor Movement.
STRENGTH OF TRADE UNIONS.

Whenever Factlonalism Springs Up
Then Is the Cause Of Labor Weak
ened-DuaI Unions a Menace to the
Welfare Of Workers.
The greatest factor in the organized
labor movement Is unity. That is the
bedrock upon which 1t is founded. Un-
fortunately, however, the bedrock Is
bit thin in some places. and some I'M
ions seem to be inclined to get on the
thin places. 1t might be thought that
this disposition is due to indifference or
lack Of knowledge, but such is not al
ways the case.
It is true that group Of unorganized
workers may not have very much
knowledge of the labor movement
Still. they may feel a desire to organ
ize. but It takes very much missionary
work among them to pull them togeth-
er. Sometimes the employer does It.
perhaps Internationally, but none the
less effectively. Given fifty men work
ing on the same class OF work and In a
sense working IN each others company
and given an employer who makes a
change in the working conditions or
wages that affects large part Of these
6fty men. and the first step Is taken
toward driving them together In one
solid body.
Now, as said before. they may not
know much about the labor movement.
They get together and decide to form
some kind of an organization. and
which way they will fall-that is to
say, whether they will join the lsgiti-
mateVyade union movement or one OF
the outside factions-may be deter
mined by any one who chances to meet
them at the critical time or what repre-
sensations that particular party may
make or what misrepresentation he
may make. These are the men who
may be innocently led through their
own lack of knowledge or through
malicious miseadership into an I'M
sound position.
As for such misleaders, however, the
excuse Of ignorance cannot be made.
AS a rule, such men have split away
from the regular movement because
their aspirations for office were not
gratifed. Some of them have sought
to place it upon the grounds OF dis
agreement as TO principle, but when
any man who has ever been a men,
Der of a legitimate trade union and
then goes of in a secession movement
and starts a dual union attempts to
Justify himself on the basis of dis
agreement as TO principle he has
mighty narrow foundation TO stand
upon. In fact he has no foundation at
all for his argument.
There can be no disagreement as to
principle that can justify wage
Garner supporting a faction of wage
earners opposed 10 the general move
ment of wage earners. That sort of
opposition is violation of the funda-
mental principle of unity that must be
the basis of labor unionism; that is
the basis of labor unionism, and that
furnishes labor unionism its strength
In proportion 10 the extent to which
this elementary trade union truth Is
realized and accepted.
Sometimes these misleaders, knowing
the unsoundness Of their position on
principle, try to make it up in Other
ways. They assume a radical attitude
they invite adherents on promise OF
immediate successes and radical i'm
pr0vements. They fight to organize
and organize to fight. They precipitatt
contests In the desperate hope tina
success may entitle them to large
membership. larger revenue and NOR
official salaries to be paid. The result
is that wherever they can they secur,
a membership sufficiently large to b.
a basis of a strike order. Right at thi
point we wish to say that we are out
lining these circumstances as the,
have occurred in the shoe industry
We are not speaking Of any other In
dustry. Therefore none Of our stste
international unions can take exceI
tons, because we are not talking abou
any Of them. but only of the shoemah
ers. One result of these contests is
bring hundreds of green shoemaker
into the trade while the real shoemal
ers are walking the streets.
In an unsuccessful strike In one IA
tory In Milwaukee it is said that owe
200 new shOemakers were brought I'M
the field while the old shoemaker
whom they displaced, are now idl
Very likely ten times that numb'
were displaced in the affair at Port
mouth, o. Conditions somewhat sim
lar occurred in st. Louis several TIM
within the last ten years, and 9th
shoe manufacturing centers have vi
messed similar scenes. which lead n
only to the teaching Of more sh'
workers, but to the indefinite pos
ponement Of organization. and all
cause there is lack Of appreciation
the necessity that unity shall be t
foundation Of the labor movement al
that any individual who departs fro
that unity is a traitor to the cause al
unworthy Of being followed or belle
ed.-Shoe Workers Journal