The pioneer express. [volume] (Pembina, Dakota [N.D.]) 1883-1928, 1917-03-23
THE STRIKE NOT YET SETTLED,

OSOSuUSuOOOS u6U O00u 60GCl0O 80Q MON.
day morning the U. 8. supreme court
gave out It's decision that the Adamson
law was constitutional and the employ.
ers and employees agreed to its provisions
that the men should have ten hours pay.
for eight hours work and overtime pro
rata. Y
1t goes without saying that everyone
was pleased to hear that there was to be
no strike, ana particularly so at this
time when We are threatened with war.
But there are momentous questions
involved in this temporary and enforced
condition that will not be finally settled
by this decision OF the supreme court
and the agreements of the railway
authorities and the brotherhood com.
mittees.
The question of the right of any set Of
men to practically force the general pub.
lie to submit to their demands by strikes
is not settled yet.
In this particular case four hundred
thousand employees forced, hundred
million people to give them higher
wages. Leaving out the question whet.
her these men should CT should not re-.
ceIve the wages they demanded, for that
is another question and SO far is uues
ton that has been answered only by the
one interested party, 1t was practically a
hold up of the whole country. The
brotherhoods thought they had the
power to force the answer and thev used
it.
The force and the fight was not against
the railroad corporations, because the
latter expect and have been given rea.
son to expect that they will be able to
pass the cup to the general public.
That the inter state commerce commits.
sion will give them leave to increase
freight rates to correspond to the forty
or fifty million dollar increase in wages.
The supreme justices have said in
their decision that Congress has the
right to legislate in the matter of wages.
How far the court would'be willing to
carry that prlncipls is still question,
Ii tho Congress can legislate for railroad
employees and fix wages, why cannot
Congress also fix the rate of monthly
pay for farm hands in North Dakota?
The general fixing of the rate of wages
in all lines of industry would be some-
thing OF contract for even the congress
While the decision says that congress
may legislate and fix wages it also is
short in its expression of congressional
powers as to strikes. The brotherhoods
have steadfastly insisted on their right
to strike whenever they feel like it. One
would think that if congress has the
right to fix wages that they should also
have the right to make strikes illegal.
Ii any set of union laborers appeal to
congress to fix their wages then con.
gress also should have the implied power
to make the labor unions abide by the
decisions given. i.
For instance, by and by, when the
war is over, most persons expect that
there will be great change in com.
merce and trade. After such an influx
of manufacture and export of products
there is likely to be slackening. This
will mean il 1T occurs great change in
production and consequently in COM
merce generally. 1t is expected that
prices for all commodities including
labor will fall. Now II that does occur
will the brotherhood unions and other
unions accept the facts and voluntarily
and willingly take less pay than they
now receiver And in case they do not
and the railway authorities in their turn
knock at the door Of congress for relief,
will the train men accept tie verdict Of
congress or will they strike? 4
II congress can increase they should
have the power to decrease. s3s 8
II congress has legal power to force
the employers to give higher wages,
should it also not have equal power To-
force employees to accept decreased
wages? ss:,3
We do not like the present situation
at all. It practically settles nothing.
It is OF doubtful constitutionality, as
shown by the fact that four out Of the
nine judges dissented. The only ques-
tlons settled BY the present decision an
that because four hundred thousand
railway train men had the power 10 stop
commerce for some time at . very criti.l
cal period. that il was better for shsI
country to give in rather than fight back.
Whsther the railway employees opghti
70 have % increase II their wages. outsI i
no. figure in this discussion becanse that1
question haa nsvsr ban dssidsd by aauI
ponpstast tlib1naj,
All u pahlie kno . = that se ~
q ~ Az M.