South Bend news-times. (South Bend, Ind.) 1913-1938, 1920-03-21
LABOR CHIEF
In ATTACK ON
LABOR BOARD
Samuel Compers Criticizes
Settlement of Unrest
Problem.
STATEMENT Is ISSUED
Says Present Machinery Is
Superior to That Planned
by Body.

WASHINGTON. March 2O.-Rec-
concentrations by Pres't Wilson's
conference for settlement Of indus
trial unrest We're attacked today by
Samuel GOmpers president of the
American Federation of Labor.
The labor leader ia a prepared
statement said the machinery for
adjusting disputes between en-
ployes and employers which has
for years been in existence in Lrac-
tically every organized industry I'm
the United States is superior 10 the
machinery suggested by the indus
trial conference both in point OF
simplicity and in point OF effective
ness"
Mass Of Machinery.
The conference" said Mr.. Com
pers. has devised a mass Of ma
chinery TO be made effective by law.
composed OF a national industrial
board and local and regional con-
ferences and boards o. industry
The whole situation in this respect
may be summed up as follows:
Tried and tested machinery for
Cancellation and arbitration between
employers and employees exists
wherever employees are organized.
This machinery functions per
fectly wherever employers forsake
the spirit # dominance and the at
titude of autOcracy.
Through the use Of this machin-
ery II has been found POSSIBLE to
maintain Industrial peace with no
stoppage Of work OF any kind for
periods ranging from 10 to 40 years.
No machinery devised by the gov
ernment or its agencies or super
Vised by the government or any Of
its agencies, could achieve results
superior to the results achieved by
machinery which has long been in
operation IN our industrial life.
Cannot Produce Justice.
"In industries where the en-
ployes are not organized, no machin-
cry OF any kind. whether supervised
by governmental agencies or other
wise, can produce industrial justice.
Organization Of the workers is the
fact upon which must be predicated
the existence Of any machinery for
the settlement of disputes or the
extension OF the principles Of de-
mocracy n industry.
Surely no intelligent agency can
hope TO achieve progress in Ameri-
can industry without organization of
the workers. With organization Of
the workers no structure OF ma
chinery need be thrust upon IL from
the outside. Organization brings
with il machinery which is both ad-
equate and practical. the result of
experience shorn OF any Of the fan
tastes OF pure theory
"The report Of the industrial con-
ference merits criticism Of a very
serious nature in connection with
the emphasis which il places on
what IL terms 'employe representa-
ton under the generic term il
groups those distinctly local shop
organizations known rs shop COM
mittees. shoI council. works coun-
ellis and representative government
in industry. Il is 70 be feared that
the commission views industry from
the viewpoint Of the single shop and
builds its machinery on the theory
that disputes are 10 be settled shop
By shop. II such a viewpoint is TO
be actually carried into operation it
will be most disastrous.
Menace Ia Workers.
Unavoidable organization with
independent units Of the employees
is menace to the workers for the
reason that St organizes them away
from each other and puts them in
a position where shop may be played
against ShOT Not only the welfare
of the workers. but the economy
for the nation demands that indus
try insofar as possible be viewed i'm
"A national light and that the work
erS be united into organization COW
ering whole industries As is now the
case with the 100 national and in
ternational trade unions.
There can be no objection 60 the
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