Twin city review. [volume] (Champaign, Ill.) 19??-1929, 1921-06-03
DEMAND THE LABEL

Two events of recent occurrence in
dictate very clearly that the organized
labor movement has a gigantic fight
on its hands IL 1t Is to successfully
combat the plans made by its enemies
for its disruption. The first is the at
ttude of big Business toward the
report of the lnterchurch World Move
ment on the situation In the steel in.
dus ny, and the other the overwhelm-
Ing vote of the members of the Ma
fional Chamber of Commerce against
collective bargaining.
The answer to the first proposition,
of course. is through organization Of
the workers In the steel industry, and
In the light Of past experience this Is
no child's job Eventually this can
and will be done for the seed of orga-
nization planted In the last strike Is
bound TO bear fruit In abundance II
proper care and encouragement are
given IT,
As to making the National Chamber
of Commerce "sit up and take notice"
the problem should be more simple:
but IL has complexities which will need
the individual support of the organ
ii can be successfully carried out.
There are approximately 100000
organized workers in the United States
whose individual daily wage is least
"a, an aggregate of $1S.000.000 per
day, and for a working year OF 300
days, we find that there passes
through the hands of the toilers who
are organized the enormous sum OF
$5,400, 100000 received in wages
The major membership of the Ma
-tional Chamber of Commerce are re-
tail merchants of employers OF min
or character in the various cities OF
the country and can easily be made
to see the foolishness of their hostil-
ity to fair deal to the workers by
a little economic pressure by those
they seek to deny the rights Of every
other citizen.
Practically ali. of the members OF
the Chamber of Commerce In any city
are dependent upon the workers OF
the city to maintain their business and
this being true the first step to be
taken in defense against them Is to
withdraw or withhold our patronage
until certain conditions are met.
There is no law that can imprison
any union man or woman for refusal
TO buy <non-union goods, nor can any
Injunction be issued denying them the
right to buy union labelled goods from
clerks who are members of a trade
union. The same is true of meat mar
kets. barber shops. restaurants ETC.
where union shop card is displayed
The forty international unions In
aniliation with the Union Label
Trades Department of the American
Federation OF Labor, all have union
labels, shop cards and working put
TONS. Some one of these labels can
be found ON practically all articles
used in the home in every day Ire
so that at least so per cent OF the
more than five billion dollars which
passes through the hands of trades
unionists each year In the form OF
wages goes right back into the chan
nels of trade.
Ii is our job, therefore, to see to II
that none of this money. earned under
union conditions, established by the
trade union. goes back into trade
channels except for goods made and
sold by trade unionists, and at all
times and under all circumstances re-
fuse to purchase the commodities
made or offered for sale by our enc
mics, the open shoppers"
This Capitalization of purchasing
power by the workers will result in
many beneficial effects, principal
among them being the strengthening
and upbuilding of the unions, whose
members make and distribute so many
Of the daily necessities of the people,
because the power of purchase usual.