The Bridgeport times and evening farmer., 1919-06-17

ernIental authority; and to supplant sane, progress sive Trades Unionism with the 'One Big Union idea which is akin to the w. w. and Bolshevist move ments in other countries
 The Winnipeg Citizen, answer to the many demands upon it, herein proposes to survey the ori- gln or the strike and its expansion to it's present magnitude, and to republish principal editor lals in which the Citizen daily surveyed the issue ana dealt with the arguments of general strikes proponents
 The Beginning Things
 In the month of April of this year Trades Union officials Labor Temple presented enn ployers of the Trades with proposed new sche ues ot hours and wages demanded by the Metal lrades Workers for the ensuing
 The Metal Trades employers immediately took up these schedules with shop committees of their own employes-commttees nominated by the work CTS themselves in each respective shop. In at least one case the workmen negotiated agreement sat- 1sfactory to themselves and in the com mittee process was still under way when the Metal Trades Council a combination of Unions including several not affected by the three large ironworks in the least asserted itself insisted on being metal trades workers
 The three large ironworks involved were The Bridge and Iron Works Ltd, and the Vulcan Iron, Works Ltd As soon as they received the proposed new schedule they proceeded to negotiate it with committees of their own men, In this way they rec ognized the principle of collective bargaining the part of their employees.
 When the Metal Trades Council stepped in and insisted on doing the mems collective bargaining for them, the three employers insisted upon dealing With t1elr own men direct, declining to deal with organizations other than those of own enn- ployes
 At about the time the Metal Trades Workers, Building Trades Workers submitted
 
 very substantial increases in wages, changes in other conditions of employment. The maximum de- mand in this case was s1 hour
 The employers in this case, the Builders Ex- change met the Building Trades Council another combination of unions, and negotiated with their employees through this The sticking point in this that of wages, builders holding that the rates demanded would render building prohibit tive and markedly lessen work They offered coun- ter-schedule, with a maximum of so cents an hour against the s1 hour demanded, and so on down the list of unions involved.
 The workmen declared this unacceptable and gave notice of strike for May 1.
 In the metal trades, the workmen gave mo- tce of strike May l. The issues tua1, of these two preliminary strikes. took place May l. according to notice,
 Metal Trades-Recognition of Metal Trades Council
 Building Trades-Higher wages
 The General Strike Proposal.
 These two strikes continued quietly with ap- until May 6, before any further developments place. On May the Trades Labor Council held secret meeting and, contrary its consttu- tfon ordered general sympathy strikevote to be taken fin all unions within days, all men voting to be counted voting in strik- ing in sympathy with the metal and building workers.
 The issue in the Metal Trades dispute being rec ognition of the cobina of unions known as the Metal Trades Council and the employers having de- clined recognize extraneous preferrfnR to deal with their men. the Trades and Labor Council leaders distorted the non-recognition Metal Trades Council into non-recognition of the principle of collective bargaining.
 Collective bargaining being fundamental of the Trades Union movement. it easy for the ex- trernists who in control of the Council tnem by setting up the misrepresentation that the principle of collective bargaining challenged at stake
 have shown above. collective bargaining never challenged; the only dispute to that was whether employers should bargain with an outside organization not composed Of employees wno claimed the right to control all tho emplyes lil shops E x. k 7X 4