The labor advocate. [volume] (Cincinnati, Ohio) 1912-1937, 1916-11-11


determines the physical, mental and
moral foundations of the masses upon
which the structure of our American in
stitutions must rest
The masses Of those who labor in our
industries constitute the foundation
upon which our American institutions
are erected, and the trade union ideal
aims to make this foundation deeper,
broader more secure than it ever has
been i'll the past, by continually elevat-
ing and advancing the wage-earner's
standard of living through higher wages
and shorter hours of labor.
There is but one more ideal which |
desire to place before you at this time,
and this is the ideal of freedom-human
freedom. Freedom in the Industries.
Democracy in the government of indus
try equivalent to democracy in the gov
ernment of our country.
No ideal has urged organized labor
forward more energetically than that of
industrial freedom The trade union
lists ideal is the full application of the
principles and mcchanisms of democracy
in the industries and the relationship OF
employer and employc
Freedom is essential to the workers'
| development and the trade unionists can
see no practical way of establishing in
dustrial liberty except through the meth
ods OF industrial democracy.
Labor's ideal is freedom-freedom to
work out its own salvation. Brother
hood and education are essential ideals
be impossible to achieve the ideals of a
] ctn ed Of 1i,y,r
Since the dark ages there have been
three great struggles for the ideals OF
liberty. One was for religious free
dom the right 10 worship the Almighty
according TO the dictates of ones CON
science, and some OF the bloodiest wars
which history records were fought for
liberty of conscience and the right to
worship the Almighty as men pleased
/ But liberty Of conscience was not
enough. While one set of men had it
within their power to determine the laws
under which others must live, men could
not develop as they should and tyranny
hourished And so other wars were
fought, thrones were overturned and
dynasties passed away i'll the struggle
which men made for the right of poll
teal freedom. the right to have their
voices count in the making of laws un-
der which they must live.
And while these contests were being
waged, labor passed from slavery to
serfdom, serfdom to peonage, and peon-
age to freedom, but .he freedom accord
ed them in the industries was not that
same quality or degree Of freedom which
was theirs in religious and political ac-
tivities.
The wage Garner is not industria'ly
free, can not be industrally free, so
long as employing capital by itself, and
without let or hindrance, determines the
terms of employment and the conditions
of labor. And so the trade union move
mcnt has cXertcd itself in the past has
made sacrifices. is making them today,
and will continue to make them, will
continue to use its efforts without ccas-
ing, so that there will be established
that condition where government or
regulation in the industries like the gov
ernment of Our country shall exist only
! by and with the consent of the gov
crned.
The trade union ideal is equality OF
rights and opportunities for employer
and worker alike, equality before the
law equality in daily practice, equality
OF rights and opportunities and rcSpon-
sibilites at all times and under all cir
cumstanCcS.
We would hold that any people who
would allow themselves to be governed
by others without protest, or who would
waive their right to voice in deter
mining the laws under which they should
live would be scrvile and unworthy, and
we are equally justified in holding that
workers who would be willing to have
their terms of employment and condi-
tions Of labor determined wholly by the
employers, or who would be forced to
work under these conditions where they
were not allowed voice. would be SER
vile, the employer would be a master
and the worker would not be a free
man in the full sense of the term.
The ideals of brotherhood, education,
standard of living, and industrial free
dom animate trade unionism and it must
be apparent that to the degree that these
ideals are realized, to that degree the
quality, physical, mental and moral, of
the masses of our people in the indus
tries will be determined.
The ideals which | have referred to
are those which have steadily guided
Labor, which have shown like a beacon
light while Labor has been tossed by
the storms which sweep over our in