The Topeka state journal. [volume] (Topeka, Kansas) 1892-1980, 1921-12-27
WHO SHALL CONTROL?

employees. says this paper, defy the de-
cisions of the court. The same might
be said of the transportation act and
many other laws.
The only basis for industrial peace,
the article concludes, ''is an honest
recognition of the right of organized
workers to an increasing measure of
control over industry It should not
be overlooked, however, that control
of industry by organized workers usu-
ally has resulted in the wreck of the
industry.
THE Nation" also holds that the
shop committee or company union as
a remedy for labor unrest has failed
signalIy, as illustrated by the recent
strikes in the shops of the Colorado
Fuel and Iron company, and Swift &
Company of Chicago.
| The employee representation plan in
the Chicago stockyards has been
, given an-acid test and. according to a
correspondent of the Outlook, the
newly constructed relationship be-
! tween the workers and the manage
ment has withstood this test success
fully.
! The controversy between the pack
| ers and the AmaIgamated Meat Cut
! ters' and Butchers Association of
| America has narrowed down to de-
mand of the Amalgamated officials
that the packers arbitrate their pres
/ emit differences with them; a conten-
| ton that has been ignored The rea-
son for this action on the part OF A.
mour & Co. and other Chicago pack
ers, says the writer. is based on the
sincere belief on their part that the
Amalgamated represents a minority
body of their employees, and therefore
is not entitled to the recognition it de-
mands.
A short history of events to date is
given as follows: ,
/ When the plan was tentatively pro-
posed to the employees of Armour &
! Co, their yards were cut up into di-
visions of about three hundred work
men each. A blank ballot was then
| issued to every man on which to write
| the name of the individual he desired
| to have represent him on the Confer
ence Board. To demonstrate the thoro
| democracy OF the eIScLlOnt as nl2n as
| twenty-five men were named on the
| ballots in a single voting division.
| The two men receiving the largest
number OF votes in each precinct had
! their names printed on the final ballot
| for the general election in much the
| same manner as the ballot issued in
| our general political elections. Eighty
| three per cent of the employees of the
! company voted in the primary cleo
/ ton, but because of the activity of
| organized enemies of the plan the
! total vote cast in the general election
was not 50 great as in the primaries.
| Yet in the final election over 20 per
cent of the total working force in the
| Chicago plant voted.
The nominees receiving the highest
vote in the general election were duly
declared elected, and the first meet
| ing held by this joint conference board
was composed of twenty-four work
men and twenty-four representatives
of the company, who redrafted the
tentative regulations so that the final
rules adopted were the result of a
joint agreement between the workers
delegates and the company's repre-
sentatives.
When the matter of wage reduction
recently came up, representatives of
the othex Armour yards met in Chi
cago to discuss the proposition. A
committee of five of the workme en- s
delegates were picked by this joint
committee to go into session and pass
ON the rejection or approval of the
reduction requested. After an ex-
animation of the books the wage re-
| duction was agreed upon.
The delegates agreeing to the re-
duction represented at least 20 per
cent of the Armour employees The
agreement reached by the conference
board - was ignored by the Amalga-
mated Meat Cutters land Butchers
Association of America. who ordered
a vote of its membership and on re-
ceiving the necessary majority to call
a. strike ordered a. walkout on De-
cember 5. This brought the feasibility
of Industrial representation to show
down.
On December 5. it is reported, of the
total working force of Armour & Co.
in Chicago of $500. s,012 reported for
duty. These men went to work thru
Gordon of pickets. In other words
| over go per cent of the workers in the
Armour plant signified their loyalty
to employe representation rather than
the Amalgamated union.
The other Chicago plants, it is said,
varied from this ratio only slightly.
On December Z, due to violence at
the gates, the number of stay outs
increased to some degree. Their num-
Der also increased on the sth and eth.
Yet at no time, according to informa-
ton, were the strikers able to keep
over 30 per cent of the regular en-
ployes from the yards. The increased
numbers staying away from the yards
from December 6 to December 9. it is
alleged, were not due to voluntary alb
sentation frem duty. On December Z
the yards were besieged with tele-
phone calls from workers asserting
their loyalty to the company but de-
claring they were kept at home thru
intimidation. Women began to ap-
pear at the stockyards begging their
husbands to quit work and come home
because they had been told that If
their husbands did not leave the yards
before night "they would be killed."