The toiler. [volume] (Cleveland, Ohio) 1919-1922, 1921-02-19
LABOR UNIONS AND SHOP COMMITTEES


The official leaders the American labor movement have long
been the puzzle and the despair the international revolutionary
labor union differing lucrative profession in the
United States ranks well with the lawyers profession stockbroker-
age real estate.
The heads of the American Federation of Labor counting them
selves the voice of the wogman the leaders of the
yellow Amsterdam international LaborSuppessng Secreaiat by
refusing cooperate with that yellow International the ground
that it seeks to gain too much for labor With compact union
political machine almost entirely divorced from and subjectng the
mass the membership the GompeIs type has led merry and
prosperous life these Labor leaders hold lifetime sine
and when they pass away their pobaed wills often reveal
fortunes worthy of Wall Street operatives Occasional accidental
exposures bring light labor kings by whom the craft unions
hired for percentage, are Withdrawn employer
consideration paid by another voted the elections and disciplined
either by the labor kings private thugs through tips
employer police Labor leaders holding government positions
during the Systematically worked with the government
service in the arrest of militant labor unonists for disturbing
production Heads of the large Railroad Broehoods published
the capitalist signed statements calling for union members to
act srkebreakers in the recent "oulaw strike"
With such leaders their moupece the majority the
trade unions of America manifest purpose further than that of
conserving the capitalist system and lawful manner gaining
slight concessions wages and working conditions The desty
of the American labor unions nevertheless revolutionary
Split up into isolated craft groups within shop holding
union meetings two evenings per month in places far
moved from both residence and shop the workers attend union
gatherings only in handus and leave the affairs of the oganza
tion to the mrestrained will of officials.
Facing such paralysis of the body Of organized labor and yet
knowing that organized labor and must take large part
ovelhrowing capitalism sustaining the dictatorship of the working
class and reconstuctg industry the Workers Republic the
United Communist Party considers of the and
immediate problems the question of the best method of breaking
the bureaucratic control and forming the structure into
a machine of revolutionary action
Not only the revolution not about without the active
participation of the larger part of organized labor but the e
peence of Hungary and of Germany would prove even American
experience did not forecast that labor unions neglected in such
condition and left under control of such leaders will manipulated
deadly implement for the defeat Of the workers revolution
The workers revolution cannot succeed without the support the
great bulk of whatever labor organizations may exist the time
For these reasons the United Communist Party be salts
fled with the formation of few unions of declared revolution
airy but of small membership and slight relation to KEY
industries The exceedingly dcouagg surface indications of the
old labor movement have led the spngng up of several new
unions comparatively small in SIZE of revolutionary
the old craft unions corrupt and mpoen beyond redemption
and should be deserted in favor of organizations But mostly
the members do not desert the old unions for the new The most
typical OF the new unions do not grow size Therefore daec
reasoning brings the conclusion that reliance upon the formation
OF unions confined in membership to workers are theoretical
revoutonists, is mistake in policy
Ihe Old unions grow eactonary when the revolutionary
workers leave them The oppounst officials discern this and will
by every means to expe the Communists from the unions in
order that their influence the weakened by their
isolation Bearing mind the necessity the closest contact of
communists with those workers who have vet reached the
point of the class struggle Communists must not foster artificial
division IN the labor movement deliberately bring Il about On
the contrary they must all measures short of abandoning
munst work in the unions to avoid giving the bureaucracy the