The daily worker. [volume] (Chicago, Ill.) 1924-1958, 1928-06-13

Especial to The DAILY WORKER.)
WILk ES-BARRT, June II. - The
rri-district Saye-the- Union Commit
tee of the Anthracite has adopted the
following program of struggle against
the corrupt Lewis machine Officialdom
and in solidarity with the soft coal
miners.
To All Local Unions and
To All Members of District 7, U. M.
w. of A.
Greetings:
This program is issued to the men,
GERS of District to call attention to
certain glazing evils and dangerous
developments which threatened the
very life of our union.
The whole mining industry is in a
crisis. In the soft coal fields mines
nave produced twice as much coal as
can be absorbed by the market. This
aas caused unemployment and suffer
ng for thousands of our members.
This situation affects the anthracite
industry as well. The anthracite in
dustry is only beginning with these
crises while the soft coal industry has
.0een going through them for a num-
DER of years. We here in the anthra-
cite are seeing the introduction of
machinery, the speed-up system, by
which the coal companies have in
creased production; on the other hand
n cutting wages, undermining OF
working conditions and the elimina-
ion of thousands of miners from en-,
oloyment. We also notice that such
substitutes as oil, electric power and
,oke/ are narrowing down the mar
let for anthracite coal,
A New Situation.
All this presents to our union a
new situation which must be solved.
Instead of trying to solve the prob
lem our union officials of District 7,
led by Kennedy and Mattey, are
adopting the policy of John L. Lewis,
and the Consolidation Coal Company
in the soft coal fields and excluding
miners from the industry as they are
frying to exclude 100000 in the btu
minous field.
Our district officials have done
nothing to meet the speed-up, the in
! ;duction of machinery, the special
..:n.ug contract system and unem-
lyyment.
4 The district board, led by Andrew
Mattey, did not see fit to mobilize
the miners of District 7 in prepara-
ton to fight against the coal COM
panies who are taking advantage of
this situation and are preparing an
open shop drive as in the soft coal
fields, and who have already proceed
ed with wage cuts in violation of the
agreement, undermining working con-
ditions and trying to get control of
local unions.
The Lewis-Kennedy-M attey machine
in our district has concerned itself
with only the question of how to get
rid of fighters in our union, as in
the case of the Silver Brook local in
McAdoo, and with threats to take the
charters from other local unions
winch refuse TO expel from their
ranks members who fight and stand
with the rank and file.
Stand With Soft Coal Miners!
Immediate and concentrated action
based on program which will restore
the union to the membership is
needed;
(1) The fate of the union in the
anthracite and our district is bound
up with the struggle Of the bituminous
miners who have been so heroically
fighting for fifteen months against
the open shop and industrial slavery.
If the operators succeed in smashing
our union in the soft coal field, the
anthracite operators will undoubtedly
launch desperate onslaught to break
our union in Districts /. 7. and o. The