Evening star., 1917-12-10
SEES NO DANGER
OF POSTAL STRIKE
Samuel Gompers, President of
A. F. of l., Takes Issue With
Postmaster General.
CALLS ORGANIZATION DUTY

| Declaring that he can see no danger
of a strike of postal employees IL they
Ihave free access to Congress and pub
| lie opinion to secure the correction of
their Grivances," Samuel Gompers.
president of the American Federation
of Labor. replies to the suggestion of
| Postmaster General BurIeson that
postal employees be denied the right to
organize and affiliate with labor.
MIR. Gompers declares that the Amer
lean Federation of Labor will resist
anv effort made by Postmaster Gen
eral Burlesou to put into effect his
Recommendation TO Congress in this
regard
Il can conceive of serious trouble
arising if the Burleson idea of re-
pressing men and not giving them the
opportunity to organize and to come
into contact with their fellow workers
in II sincere desire to make better the
lot of all groups of workers is put
into operation Mr. Gompers says
Fought for Anti-Gag Law.
More than ten years ago. in 1895.
said Mr.. Gompcrs. the American FED
bill of grievances to President Roose-
Welt and mentioned as one of the par
ticulars the restoration of the right OF
direct petition to Congress to govern
ment employees right that was de-
MED them by executive orders issued
by Presidents Roosevelt and Taft. We
kept this issue prominently before the
public and on August "a, 1912, the
Sixty-second Congress enacted what
was then commonly called the anti-gag
law, law granting postal and other
government workers the right to
ma intain their own organizations in the
interest of the men and free from the
domination of the department heads.
and also restoring to them the con-
stitutional right of direct petition to
Congress. 1t is this law which Mr..
Burleson is seeking to have repealed
We fought for its enactment, we be-
Iieve it use. just, necessary law. and
we are epared to fight against it's re-
peal
MIR. Burleson cannot point to sim
gle instance where an affiliated organ
ization of postal employees has threat
ened to strike. He cannot name sin
gle officer of these organizations VINO
has remotely suggested such course.
Personally. in the many times l have
addressed postal employees in all parts
of the country have explained to them
that legislation, and not the strike, was
their weapon of last resort.
'.Affiliation with the labor movement
is a safety valve for the postal work
ers. which Mr.. Burleson, in a mistaken
view of the yearnings of his employees,
would close.
Duty to Organize.
The association of the postal en-
ployes with the American Federation of
Labor is purely a voluntary one. These
men have come forward voluntarily in
recent years in large numbers to be-
come identified with the labor move
ment. This indicates only too well that
working conditions for them are not as
ideal as the Postmaster General would
have the public believe. These workers
have the right-yes, it is a public duty
to organize and make known their
grievances to their employers-the
American people, so that an aroused
public opinion can speedily correct any
administrative defects that may be
ice.
ITO deny the right of workers in our
largest government agency to organize
is to make a mockery of our faith in
democracy. If autocracy is harmful to-
the morals of our alien enemies abroad
then let US not introduce a species of
it into our largest federal institution
by attempting to disfranchise indus
trially the army of postal workers.
calls Idea Harmful.
AT a time when governmental activi-
ties are being extended into every in
dustry connected with the successful
prosecution of the war and thousands
OF workers are either already in the
government service or potentially
government employees. it is important
that their right to organize and to
petition Congress be not interfered
with. I can conceive of nothing more
harmful to the necessary extension of
government control and regulation at
this time than the adoption of the Bur
Lesson idea by our government in its
capacity of an employer.
The American Federation of Labor
stands prepared today to back up its
position of 1906, when it fought for
the rights of the government employe.
We differ from Mr.. Burleson in his
view that the anti-gag law has operat-
ed to build up organizations of en-
ployes that are a menace We fear
that the menace lies. not in the en-
ployes' organization, but in the denial
to citizens of fundamental rights"