The Cordova daily times. [volume] (Cordova, Alaska) 1914-1947, 1919-10-02
THE JUNEAU STRIKE

No falr-mlnded American will deny
to labor the right to organize. The
welfare of the majority is Of para
mount Importance and labor has &C
complished great good for the major
ity by insisting on certain rights with
the strength Of organization. Where
capital is organized labor organizes
in self-defense. But the closed shop
is being viewed by Americans by diff
ferent attitude. What is it going to
lead to? The public declines to run
it's head into a moose until it knows
who is likely to jerk the rope. Labor
claims without the closed shop union
ism is helpless; that there are certain
men who will accept the benefits of
unionism without paying it's dues,
and the closed shop is a necessity to
enforce membership in the union.
Locally Juneau has had a strike.
Here a peculiar position is presented.
Tt has always been a theory that there
should be an equal division of profit
between labor and capital. In the
Juneau strike situation it is evidently
a case of ''heads you win and tails |
lose as far as capital is concerned,
because it is conceded the Alaska
Juneau is losing money. Therefore
that great principle of sharing the
profits is lost in the shuttle and no
thought of sharing the losses pre-
sents itself
The Dispatch is a union institution.
II is the one printing establishment
an Juneau where there is none en-
ployed in it's mechanical department
without a card. Therefore we can
the recent attempt to tie up the
AlaskaJuneau mine was the most
assinine thing which has happened
in alleged union circles. We do not
know who is responsible for it but
ploye of the Alaska-Juneau is not
foremost in it, and it Sits down
to outside influence which has en-
gineered and carried it on.
If this is so, we say in all friendli-
ness, labor leaders had better "look
out" For they are allowing the
closed shop to be made the instru-
ment of Bolshevism, and the public
will demand assurance before it will
yield itself to the tender mercies of
Red leaders. The future of the
closed shops is in the balance. Radi-
cal labor leaders are using the closed
shop, not for collective bargaining
but as a gun held at the head of
employer and public official and the
suffering public alike. They are de.
slgnedly destroying the value of in
dustry and driving private enterprise
to the wall. This is the direct &C
ton" method. Let us not mince mat.
ters, this is Bolshevism.
The head. of the British Columbia
Federation Of Labor declared re-
Gently that the Canadian strike was
not directed against the employer
but against the government. The
aVoWed object of the Seattle general
strike was the overthrow of govern.
ment and the substitution of the
Russian soviet.
Reputation of contracts by closed
shop unions occurs whenever the
radical element gains control With
out a belief in the validity of con.
tracts and a preponderant sentiment
opposed to so-called direct action
the closed shop union becomes q
labor trust with a strang1eho1d
tighter than that of the most mill.
tary despotism.
Inc American people are gradu
ally awakening to this fact. and also
10 the fact that the four railway
oroeherhoods Or the municipal no1ice
Or any large labor federation under
radical leadership constitutes a ma.
tional menace more serious than
the menace of organized capital has
ever been. Nor does the strang,e.
noid OF the radical closed shop apply
fcS YryY-