The Connecticut labor press. (New Haven, Conn.) 191?-1921, 1919-11-15
lACF4LNZSTS TO VOTE ON
AN7LS7RLkE LEGLSLA TON

E. c. DAWSON, general secretary
treasurer of the International Associa-
ton of Machinists, who is we'll known
in this state for his activity in deposine
Samuel Iavit in Bridgeport from his
Office in the Maohinists' Union, has SEM
from the office of the Grand Lodge q
circular to every lodge in the associa-
ton calling for strike vote on the mat
ter of the anti-strike legislation in Con-
gress The circular is as follows:
ITO the Order Everywhere, Greeting:
NEARLY a, month before the declara-
ton of war by the United States, the
executives of the national and interna-
tiona1 unions met in a conference III
Washington for the purpose of discuss
ing the situation, and then and there
issued declaration regarding the at
titude of labor toward our government
and its activities. Whether in peace. or
in war; history has recorded the tact
that labor has made good.
'"The arrnistice was signed November
II. 1918. Automatically hostilities have
ended: technically we are yet in a state
of war. The return of industry from
war to peace is not readily accomplished
The sacrifices made by labor and the
part played by labor in this great strug-
gle seem to have been forgotten by those
who were so much in need of the pro-
lection of labor during the critical per-
iod.
I'm this critical reconstruction period,
our organization is confronting grave
dangers, affecting the very foundation
of its structure. So grave has become
these dangers that the Executive Coun-
Gil of the American Federation of Labor
and representatives of the railroad
brotherhoods agreed that the executives
of the national and international unions
should be invited to participate in con-
ference at the headquarters of the
American Federation of Labor in the
city of Washington, D. c., at 10 o'clock
on the morning of December Is, 1919,
and to take counsel and formulate such
action as may be essential to safeguard
the rights, interest and freedom of the
wage earners and workers who form a
great mass of the people of our Re-
public.
"It is very evident from events that
with the signing of the armistice on
November II, actual hostilities ceased
in the World War and labor thought
that by the signing of that declaration
that the world was made safe for
democracy. 1t appears that big business,
special privilege, and others who are
seeking to destroy the standards created
by Organized Labor, have looked on this
declaration as a declaration of war
against the trade union movement, both
in the industrial field and in the legisla-
tive field. Individual contracts have been
used in many instances to bring about
a condition under which our organiza-
ton could not exist. Laws have been
introduced IN Congress which would
seek to rob us of the right to strike, and
several laws have been introduced which
have for their purpose what is common
ly termed compulsory arbitration. Other
methods have been employed, with the
evident purpose in mind of restricting
the activities of the organization, and in
order that there may be no future mis-
understandings as to the policy and
plans of the International Association
of Machinists, we call on every local
lodge at this time, first to unite its
view, and that is of accepting the cha1-
the establishment of a condition that
would mean voluntary servitude.
"In order to accomplish this purpose,
internal disturbances must cease; we
must have discipline within our organ
ization to meet this condition. The con-
stitution of our organization prescribes
a method of discipline. We can to1er-
ate no further confusion within our
ranks. The opponents of organized la
Dor has too long taken advantage of
what they have supposed to be internal
disturbances within our ranks and eff