The daily worker. [volume] (Chicago, Ill.) 1924-1958, 1928-12-11
Misleaders in
the American
Labor Unions
By WILLIAM z. FOSTER


witness stand. The reason was OBJ
vious. Noble Representatives of the
working class. Their conduct was a
clear admission of guilt, yet they
were acquitted. O'Donnell relied
upon the power of his money and
his political connections to pull him
through, and they did. After the.
trial juror testified that he had
been paid $1,000 to work for an ac-
quittal.
Referring to the O'Donnell re-
gime, A. M. Bing says in The Sur
vey, Jan. Is, 1925: .
"The leadership of the building
trades unions had been usurped by
men who in many cases were not
members of the craft, coming in
from the outside, sometimes with a
record of crime and violence, they
frequently transformed union cleo
lions into pitched battles. Corrupt
contractors willing to avail them
selves of this situation are said to
have frequently financed the CAM
paigns for union leadership, in order
to have as heads of the unions men
they could control in their own in,
terests. Large employers have adj
mitted that some of their less scrup-
ulous competitors have not hesita-
ted to bride the union agents to
CT, 10 thn Inh Of oth
tractors"
O'Donnell was a favored lieuten-
ant of Gompers, being entrusted
with many important missions by
him. He became rich through his
graft. He had heavy interests in
real estate and the contracting bust
ness. When he died his wealth was
estimated variously by the news
papers at from 100000 to $1,000
600. During the war he was a super
patriot, being associated with labor
crushing capitalists in many branch
es of war work. How he lived may
be gathered from the following news
item about his palatial home: (Chi-
cago Tribune, Aug. 5. 1929
1.-TWO robbers entered the home
of Simon O'Donnell, 1851 Columbia
Ave-, late yesterday. After tying the
colored maid, they ransacked the
house and took silverware, jewelry
and furs valued between $4,000 and
$4,000. Included in the loot was a
sable mink coat belonging to Mrs.
O'Donnell valued at $1,000, a dia-
mond pin set with five stones valued
at $4,000, a string of beads worth
5000, three silver cigarette cases,
pearl earrings, and a number of
smaller articles of jewelry, in addi-
ton to $500 worth of silverware
taken from the dining ROOM"
Such was Simon O'Donnell, a
typical American building trades
union leader and tool of the EN-
ployers.
Michael Boyle.
"Micky" Boyle, better known as
Umbrella Mike" is business agent
of Local 1874, and board member of
the International Brotherhood of
Electrical Workers. He is potentate
of the Chicago building trades cleo
trical workers and a real power in
the organization nationally. Boyle
was a pupil of skinny" Madden's
and "side-kick" of Isl" O'Donnell's
in their palmiest days.
Boyle gained his sobriquet of
umbrella Mike" through the way
he accepted graft from building con-
tractors in his unofficial headquar-
tiers, Johnson's saloon, 1873 w. Madi-
son st. There, while receiving his
Clients" he used to hang his UNI
brella on the bar-edge and they
would drop their Contributions" into
it's capacious folds. Then Boyle
would hypocritically say that he had
not actually taken money from
them.
Umbrella Mike" has participated
deeply in the widespread corruption
practiced by building trades union
officials. He sells "strike insurance"
and "sticks up" the employers in
the most approved fashion. He
mulcts the workers for exorbitant
initiation fees and working permits.
There is no money making scheme
of the labor faker of which he is
not past master.
Closely connected with capitalist
politicians, Boyle pursued his activi-
ties with relative immunity until
1917. Then he, together with three
other business agents and ten en-
ployers, was jailed for conspiracy
to violate the Sherman Anti-Trus
Law. AS is usually the case Boyle
had entered into a combination with
these manufacturers to exclude from
the Chicago market all. electrical ap-
pliances made by firms outside of
their clique. Through this local
monopoly the favored manufactur-
ers made enormous profits, the la
Dor officials got fat graft, and the
few workers concerned were allowed
to organize. But the national "open
shop" Electrical Trust smashed this
monopoly and sent Boyle and the
others to Jail. Boyle was sentenced
70 years Imprisonment and to
pay a fine Of $4,000. During the
trial it developed that Boyle, among
/. hic atha,. o,..,loitr had xaaas,taI