The producers news. [volume] (Plentywood, Mont.) 1918-1937, 1921-07-08

Long Drawn Out Strike Ends In VIC
tory for Workers.
NO MORE SWEAT-SHOP
CLOTHES FROM NEW YORK

June LIST (6y MallJ-AHe 6IeaSCSs
victory ever secured by organized Ia
Dor in the needle trades was won yes
terday by the Amalgamated Clothing
Workers when the Clothing Manufac-
turers' Association of New York, Inc,
ended the twenty-four weeks lockout
in the mems clothing industry by
signing an agreement with the union.
The terms of the agreement were ratl.
fed by several great mass meetings OF
locked out workers. Under the term
+! of the agreement the New York cloth
ing industry will continue, to be oper-
ated upon the union shop basis. Over
fifty thousand workers share in the
victory which is regarded as death
blow to the open shop movement In
| this industry.
The determining factor in the long
struggle was the inability of the
manufacturers to break the ranks OF
the union. Efficient scab labor could
not be secured. Amalgamated pic
kets, both men and women, walked
the streets for six months beginning
in the dead Of winter. They were Of
ten attacked by armed guards but per-
sisted in their picketing. Even When
injunctions against picketing were Sc
cured the strikebreakers did not ma
terialize. In desperation the manu-
facturers attempted to open nom
union shops in Springfield, Syracuse
and other cities. The union followed
these shops out of town and they were
soon shut down.
'The loyalty of the clothing work.
ers has endured the supreme test
said Sidney Hillman, president OF the
Amalgamated Clothing Workers yes
terday in commenting upon the set
tlement. "The manufacturers chose
time of wide spread unemployment
to conduct union smashing cam
paign. They believed that the cloth
ing workers who had been on the
streets for many months could be
quickly beaten into submission, but
they reckoned without the Amalga-
mated spirit. Our people have come
out of the sweat shop and they will
not go back. Their victory should be
an incentive to all organized labor in
America to fight the open shop move
ment."
The cost of the lockout to the union
was approximately $2,00O,000. The
clothing workers throughout the
United States and Canada assessed
themselves over $1,3O0,000 in support
of the international Lockout Resist
ance Fund. This is the largest amount
of money ever raised by single
union for strike relief in the history
Of American labor. In spite of this
heavy drain, the union is financially
stronger today than it was when the
lockout began. The union also es-
tablished seven retail stores at which
it's members could purchase goods at
cost, with special union currency.
Public sympathy has been with the
union in its struggle because of the
refusal of the manufacturers to sub
nit to an impartial investigation and
because the union accepted the media
ton offer Of the New York State In
dustrial Commission while the manu-
facturers refused. A novel and dis
tinctly influential factor in creating
support for the unions position was
the report to the Pubic" by the i'm
partial chairman of the market, DIR.
William M. Leiserson. DR.. Leiserson
strongly condemned the manufactur-
ers for starting the lockout and de-
clared that they had been misled by a
small group of irreconciliables and a
lawyer agitator. Subsequent events
proved his analysis entirely sound.
A small group Of manufacturers
headed by William A. .Bandler has
withdrawn from the large manufac-
turers' body and is continuing the
battle against the Amalgamated. The
attorney for this Glitter ender" group
is Harry Gordon, notorious labor
batter" who was charged with the
chief responsibility for starting the
lockout. The surviving group Of NAL
contents does not represent more than