The daily worker. [volume] (Chicago, Ill.) 1924-1958, 1924-06-12
TYPO STRIKERS
DEFY HEARST'S
CAMP Align
Union Resisting Drive
to De-UniOnize Coast
Especial to Tho Daily Worker

War which William Randolph
Hearst has declared on the
typographical union in the COM
posing rooms of his Seattle
Post-InteIIigencer is seen by
union men as the commence
ment of a great open shop drive
in the publishing industries of
the northwest.
Letters are streaming out
from the Office of the non-union
publishers association here urg-
ing all publishers to follow the
Pr example and break with the
typographical union and it's
sister unions in the industry.
L. A. Times Their Model.
The non-union publishers are hold.
ing up the infamous Los Angeles
Times-open shop sheet-as an object
of emulation for Washington and Ore
gon employers.
Officers of the typographical organ
ization and the stereotypers and mail
ers' union are taking up the challenge.
They declare that no Los Angeles
Times will be permitted in the north
west and point to the open shop or
gan's many conspiracies against the
labor movement, among which is the
Mcnamara case.
Another LaborHating Times.
The labor hating Seattle Times
owned by the Blethen family is watch
ing the fight keenly. The Seattle Times
has long wished to practice the open
shop policy which it has so long
preached.
The men on an evening paper in
Seattle which Hearst desires to take
over are also vitality concerned.
The printers walkout was forced by
the company when it broke with the
policy of its sister sheets in Seattle
and arbitrarily heightened the working
hours from seven to seven and half,
besides taking away union safeguards.
Wouldn't Work With Scabs.
Lockout of stereotypers and mailers
followed when these union men re-
fused to work with the 10 scabs that
the Hearst bosses succeeded in get
ting. Freshmen, afraid of their striker
breaking international president Geo.
Berry, stayed on the job.
Among the grievances listed by
Typographical Union, Local No. 202,
are the following
Heightened WnrkIng Hours.
I. Lenethenlng the seven-hour
day, in effect here for years, to seven
and a half hours.
2. Modification Of the seniority
rule for employing "extra" men.
8. Hiring and firing to be conduct
ed solely by the foreman, taking
away all safeguards gained by dec
AIDES of effort by the union to pro-
tect It's members.
q. Extension of the 1923 scale of
wages.
5. Allowing the printing Of sec
lions Of Seattle papers in other
cities.
The last named grievance relates to
the publishing of the American Week
ly section Of the Sunday Post-Intel-
ligencer in San Francisco.
There has been no strike on the
Observation-Disclosures since 1902. The old
management learned a lesson in a
two-hour fight then.
Tied Up In General Strike.
Early in 1919 the plant was tied up
during the great Seattle general strike.
Tho the typographical union did
not strike, publication was stopped for
the duration of the general strike by
the walkout of the stereotypers.
Late in 1919 the old pre-Hearst man
agement averted a strike by spectac-
ularly yielding to the local typograph-
ical chapel in an incident that made
history in the printing trades.
II was at the time Of the great open
shop drive in the shipyards and other
industries and the first big jailings I'M
der the syndicalism law. Organized la.
Dor was protesting The printers them.
selves were aroused. One day the
"P-I" workers got orders to set a big
advertisement, signed by the Associat
ed Industries, and assailing the labor
movement.
Printed Attack on Boss.
But not only did the union printers
refuse to set the open shop advertise
menJ Out tney ureW up HiutduI ueC-
laration which they compelled the
management to publish in its place.
This display union declaration de-
nounced the open shop ideas of the
=. Associated Industries and the "P-r"
m striking terms, declaring that they
the union printers-were tired OF
braiding the rope to hang themselves
with.
And they will not let their new boss
Hearst hang them now.