The labor world. [volume] (Duluth, Minn.) 1896-current, 1918-11-16
LABOR OUTLOOK
.. IN C!oNG|R |RESS is
NOT HOPELESS
Reasonable to Presume Repub-
|Gans Will TIy to Please
Labor and Big Business.

WASHINGTON, Nov. 14.-Repub-
licans in the house will have a good
deal to say as to the conversion Of
the war industries into peace indus
tries. In the senate the two parties
are so closely balanced that two pro-
gressive Republican senator's can
hold the balance Of power, If it so
stick to party lines on the demobili-
zation issues. In view of the likeli-
hood that Theodore Roosevelt is to
be the Republican candidate for the
presidency in 1920, it is reasonable
to presume that the Republican pol,
icy will be one Of trying to please
both the labor movement on the one
hand and the big business interests
on the other. For that reason the po-
sition of organized labor, in dealing
with the new congress is not quite
hopeless.
Labor's position can scarcely be
called fortunate. however: The defeat
of Keating and Hilliard in Colorado,
and of pro-labor men in scores of
districts in other states, is bound to
hinder the legislative program of the
railroad brotherhoods, the organized
metal trades, the opponents of child
labor, and all the forces that are try
ing to build into law the day-by-day
gains of the Industrial battlefield. The
Nonpartisan League farmers in North
Dakota send three men to the house
to vote with labor. and labor sends a.
man from the Duluth district of. Min
nesota, where Clabnce. Miller has
been 1i replaced by W3L: carss, a loco.
San francisco GOMEZ back, and Kelly
Of Pittsburgh, and Nan Dyke Of st.
Paul. Some of the new men among
the Republicans are reported: to be
union card men who are still loyal
to labor. Finally. there is a change
from Meyer London back to Victor
Berger as the lone Socialist member.
Both of them are union men and
have always made a straight labor
record in congress.
One of the first issues to be settled,
when the anew congress comes to-
gether, will be the degree. to which
the Republicans VII interfere with
President Wilson'S methods Of putting
the industries of the: country. upon a
peace basis. The President will prob
ably not wait for the Republicans to
dictate what shall be done. ef4e has a
friendly congress for the next. four
months and he will probably get
through, in that period; a measure
which will permit him. to- make. i'm
mediate arrangements for sending
home a large part of the men now
in training camps. That is, provided
the German army is wholly surren-
dered or disarmed before that time,
and there remains no further dahger
of war. The men now in France could
probably be brought home within
six months. but they will stay until
the peace congress has completed its
work. After that, a large number Of
them may still remain for a year or
more to police certain parts of Eu-
rope and to help in the rebuilding
of northern France and Belgium.
They. propose that the government,
through the 1,50O community labor
boards, shall find out just how much
employment at each trade or calling
is to be had in each community. Then
the labor department is to notify the
employers that certain industrial
standards must be met-standards as
to hours, rates of pay. the right of
the workers in industrial plants to
have shop committees and to have
a voice in the actual management. Un-
less guarantees are received that these
standards will be accepted and en-
forced in a given locality, the labor
department will advise the war de-
partment that no men should be de-
mobilized to accept work in that To-
cality.
This plan is merely a plan. as yet
Any labor body that thinks we'll of
it, or any part of it. should notify
the secretary of labor or the secre-
tary of war of that opinion. What
is wanted is a definite plan. approved
by organized labor, with which to
ward off the hostile tricks of the
Slnkers in congress. The time is,
short.