davidaulloa/AmericanStories huggingface dataset:
The daily worker., 1933-12-23
by JOHN sCHMIEs

representing the basic shops, including
Ford and General Motors. In addi-
ton there were delegates from the A.
F.. OF l. automobile locals, from the
Mechanics Educational Society of
America locals, Detroit Flint and
Pontiac, a delegation from the Michi-
gan Chamber of Labor, ex-Socialist
Party members and delegation OF
shop workers representing 800 mem
bers organized in the A.W.U. Hayes
Body plant, Grand Rapids.
This conference met under similar
conditions, as the one of year ago.
The automobile companies announced
their continuation of the N.RA. pro-
gram. The answer of the delegates at
the Conference to this program was a
demand for organized action. The
program submitted by the A.W.U. was
accepted practically unanimously. The
delegates came to this conference for
real work. The form of organization,
the campaign and the demands were
the center of discussion.
The Conference showed its broad
representation and convinced every-
body present what a tremendous ef-
feet ths Conference will have if prop
erly led and guided in the way of day
to day struggles facing the automobile
workers.
Unity was the key note of the Con-
ference. Unity of action between the
skilled and production workers was
the message Of the delegates from the
MESA. United action of all workers
in the shop was made into strong
plea, by all delegates, especially those
organized in reformist unions. A de-
mand for relentless struggle against
the mtsieaders in the reformist unions
was made one of the central task to
carry on mass activity.
Show Correctness
In the main the Conference was
called and has shown the correctness
Of how we can and must work, if we
take the Open Letter as our guide,
which says:
The organizing Of the struggles of
the working class for these demands
must be carried out on the basis of
the united front, in which the Party
must always have the initiative. The
united front tactic consists In or
ganizing and mobilizing the workers,
regardless Of Party or trade union af-
filiations, religion or color, for COM
mon struggles in behalf Of their most
immediate and urgent demands. In
the factories and trade unions and
among the unemployed we must help
the workers formulate their demands
concretely and effectively, really
adapting them 10 the immediate de-
mands Of the workers. These de-
mands must serve to develop their
The daily worker., 1933-12-23

in organizing the struggles of thou
sands OF miners on the basis OF the
united front from below and to
stimulate the struggles OF the min
ers in the reforHnist unions. Most
OF these struggles resulted in partial
victories.
ROOSEVELT HANDS MINERS TO
LEWIS
The Roosevelt goVernment, which
through the N. r. A., attempted to
arrest the developing struggles Of all
workers greatly helped the Lewises
through denagogy and false promises
to organize large masses of miners
into the U. M. W. A. They hoped
through this campaign to stop the
growing struggles Of the miners. But
despite their efforts the miners used
their increased numbers for the
The daily worker., 1933-12-23
Communists Act to Lead
Struggles in Auto Field

A review Of the Party activities in
Hia Detroit District for the last II
rnonths must give to our Party con-
siderable rich experience OF how to
carry oslt the task OF the Party as
aid down and explained to the Party
membership In the Open Letter.
2 M nov exactly one year ago that
41a automobile companies began 80
prepare another extended attack
against the automobile workers. This
attack resulted in wholesale wags cuts
c9 10 10 3S per cent, increased speed
Np and mass lRY-offs. The sutomo-
bile workers. however, answered this
program, by surprising not only the
anamies, but even soma revolutionary
workers. when they organized under
ne leadership Of the Auto Workers
Onion. which became the signal OF a
nationwide strike wave, against the
companies and the government N.R.A.
policy,
This Assso wos&sEg Union with tns
eetive cooperation and leadership OF
ttas Party called q shop conference,
9sat Of which crystallized leadership
and organisation, responsible for lead
sng tssess automobile strikes TO VIC
Dsg,
Elas shop conference yesE ago
Hes held IN the midst Of mass up
Sssrss on the part of tha automobile
%cgkeFS This mass upsurse has
szrthsg developed since. as it was
ahown Ia the strike of the fighting
tool and die makers, and the general
growth Of unions In the automobile
industry. This however. does not ex-
plain tbs whole picture We find on
si1e other hand, that in spite OF this
rsmendous militant up-surge among
automobile workers the A.W.U. did not
grow, and did not expand its organi-
rational activity since the strikes last
yeax.
In fees ths activity and the union
declined. 11fe basic reason for this
decline hss been explained and is
recognized today, as a fact, that It was
primarily due to tbs lack Of initiative
on the part Of the Party and the
union leadership.
On December 1Ttsa, the second
United Front shop Conference was
called by the A.W.U. Over 225 elected
delegates were present. Some Of them |
The daily worker., 1933-12-23
How the NRA and AFL Heads
Broke Chester Ford Strike

without organization, q group of
workers In the body shop and chassis
kne Of the Ford plant at Chester,
Pa, laid down their tools September
rs, 10 A. M. Discomfort due to I'm
bearable conditions and SIG maximum
weekly wage was the cause of the
walkout. Nearly half the workers
walked out in sympathy. The rest
we're locked out.
The following day the men were or
ganized into the United Auto Work
ers, A. F. of L. The Auto Workers
Union was not given any opportunity
to approach the rank and file.
The A. r. OF L. Organizer Rein
hardt, in conjunction with Dewey of
the Labor Board, made beautiful pro-
misses that full pressure would be
brought to bear at Washington
through the A. F. Of L., MIRA. and
N. l.. B. to bring n. Ford to terms.
Reinharit was the only organizer in
the heid and spent only one hour
each day with Ford ke-claiming
he had 16 other strikes to look after,
all more important than Ford strike
(because they paid dues-we didn't.
Reinhardt stressed that A. r. Of L.
would not tolerate violence and that
mass picketing would be unnecessary
washington would take care of
u.s."
During the following three weeks
in which plant was closed the strikers
motorcade of 1900 men
and got the Edgewater plant out.
the Office force at Chester
were not pfcketed out. Reinhardt
saAd that was not necessary, the "of-
fee force were not production men"
article is the only one dealing with
this subject.
The daily worker., 1933-12-23
EDITORIAL NOTE

This excellent article by a striker
OF the Chester, Pa, Ford plant, who
was victimazed for his activities
should be Of the greatest interest to
all workers, particularly auto workers.
Here in more concrete way than
we have heretofore presented in the
Daily Worker he exposes just how
the A. 2. of L. leaders and the N.
r. A broke this militant and historic
Ford strike. The Chester and Edge
water strikes were the first major
actions of the workers in the history
Of the Ford Co.
The workers acted Independently.
and then looked to the A. F. Of L.
for eadership-nainly because the
Philadelphia district of the Com
munist Party and the Trade Union
Unity League were isolated from
these decisive industries in that dis
trict and DID not give leadership OF
direction to the struggles. When the
strike broke out we were still isolated,
and as this striker points out, the
only contact was throught the IN
ternational Labor Defense, on the
question of defending arrested
strikers.
Sometime after the strike was ON.
efforts were made by the Auto Work.
ers Union to participate in the strike.
But the workers did not accept lead
ership on its own recommendation
that it is militant. We did not prove
TO these workers by our program and
activity that we were the ones who
could lead them to victory.
From this article, we can say that
thousands OF workers have become
dissiluSoned with the N. r. A. pro-
misses and the A. F. of l.. strikebreak-
ers. But they will not of themselves
reach higher lever of struggle or
organization.
There is now dual condition that
must be dealt with. First, conditions
in the Ford plants are worse than
ever. Speed up is greater. Turnover
Us greater. Dissatisfaction now must
be greater. Second, there are be-
tween 750 TO 1000 men unemployed,
and as the writer of this article puts
it "disorganized, disheartened"
We believe that the Philadelphia
QlStTlCb SHOULD make q special e1OIL
to concentrate on the Chester, Pa,
and Edgewater, N. j., Ford plants,
on the basis of the united front pro-
gram worked out in the recent auto
conference held in Detroit. At the
same time, the national office of the
auto union, which recognized these
strikes as of great Importance to all
Ford workers, should pay special at
tention to building up shop and de-
partment groups among these ey-
strikers who undoubtedly have rot
forgotten their past bitter experience
and are now certainly looking forward
to and graphing with problems Of
new forms Of struggle.
The unemployed can be organized
for struggles for relief, rallying the
employed behind them in this de-
nand AT the same time, they can
be organized to help in the strug-
giles Of the organized, in preparation
for new strikes. in the demand fw
reinstatement
The daily worker., 1933-12-23
BY A STRIKER

The second issue, Dec. 13, slides
backward somewhat in the material
These office workers were busy con-
tacting Loyal Ford Workers" to re-
turn to work on Oct. 16. Through
this method 400 scabs were recruited.
The strikers-due to nisleaderShip-
were unaware of this move, until a
few days before reopening of the
plant. We were able, nevertheless,
to mobilize 1000 pickets on Monday.
Picketing was unorganized as was
the entire strike body-no defense
committee, ETC., only one strike COM
mittee-composed of five patriotic
committeeman, faithful to the A. F.
of L. leadership. When the scabs
left the plant that day there was
some action several blocks from the
plant. The scabs' ''motorcade" was
stoned, 10 strikers were arrested.
The following day the Chester po-
lice did not allow picketing. Those
arrested were not provided with law
yers or bail. The leaders failed the
rank and file, and with the help of
police terror the morale of the strik-
ers was broken.
Ritchie Too Busy
An appeal for help to Ritchie. the
A. +. OF L. head in Philadelphia Dis
strict, met with q refusal to help.
Too busy" etc. In further arrests,
the International Labor Defense fur
nished counsel and was accepted as
the Defense Organization. An I. L.
D. branch was formed. A motorcade
to Detroit was proposed in conjunc-
tion with Bdgewater. On the hour
OF departure q telegram was received
from Edgewater strikers saying that
the march wes postponed on advice
from Labor Board because OF future
developments"
Meanwhile, due to lack of picket
ing about 1000 Scabs were working,
half were new men. Daily the num-
ber Of strikers at Union Headquarters
declined. Meetings were held once
each week and were poorly attended.
The week after the l. L. D. waS ac-
copied the committeeman of Edge
water came to our meeting in Chester.
to ask our cooperation and to have
faith in Roosevelt" etc, and to
have nothing to do with radicals. e.g.
the LID. With the help of burocratic
Chester leaders the I. L. D. was
ousted. No provision was ever made
for these awaiting trial
Evssive Rspsses
Washington was unable to arrange
a conference with Ford directly. Two
weeks after Edgewater had its Con-
ference with the plant officials we
we're able to arrange one in Chester,
Oct. 25. The demands were sent to
Dearborn, not Washington. The re-
ply a few weeks later was very evasive
and loose, and did not take into ac-
count the matter Of strike or of con-
crete demands, such as So minimum
wage, etc. Reply, Ford Motor Co.,
in future as in past will judge all ap-
plicants for employment strictly on
the ground OF individual merit with
out discrimination for or against
them on account of membership or
non-membership in labor unions. tt
has been the custom of this company
when increasing its employment fol-
lowing a slack perid to rehire its
former employees as far as possible
without discrimination except on
ground OF individual merit or fitness
for the work to be done. No man
now In the company's employ shall
be discharged at anyone's request or
for any other reason than lack of
work or failure properly to do his
The daily worker., 1933-12-23

Communists and ell militant min
ers, Is to, prepare these struggles, to
unite the miners In the various
unions, to free the miners from the
Roosevelt demagogy and the dornina-
ton of the labor burocrats. 1t is
these tasks that face the Commu-
nists in the mining fields and which
must receive the immediate stten-
ton Of the Party.
The daily worker., 1933-12-23

AE~dc O1uOkf OulVy LS&igHcy
published In Detroit, Nov, 1898,
issue and Dee. 49,, 1888, issue.
An signs point TO major struggles
soon in the auto industry. During
the past strike struggles the auto
workers Jagged behind. There were
strikes mainly in two divisions-the
1900 tool and die makers in the
auto shops, and the four or five thou
sand Ford workers in Chester, Pa,
and Edgewater, N. j. But thanks
to the A. F. of L. bureauerats (open
shop auto code), splitting the ranks
OF the workers, and the NJ R. A. Of
ficials, the great bulk Of the auto
workers were kept from struggling.
In the two issues of the Auto Work
ers News we can see that the Auto
Workers Union is actively preparing
for these struggles, overcoming some
OF its past weaknesses, and making
serious effort to forge a united
front Of all auto workers against their
powerful bosses.
N~%NANS bAAC PACAANeNSlOA1 O1 b51CGo IMO
numbers, this united front effort has
reached the stage of flesh and blood
through the united front conference
which closed on Dec. 10, in Detroit.
A committee was elected, represent
ing organized and unorganized auto
workers, to prepare for actions; and
unlike past united front conferences,
a definite time was set for the
achievement of this action, providing
for the calling Of another emergency
conference.
The November, 1898, concerns It.
self chiefly with the die and tool
makers strike LED by the Mechanics
Educational Society. An excellent
leading article is printed analyzing
the strike from beginning to end,
covering the main actions, exposing
the role of the misleaders, and cor
rectly uncovering all the reasons for
The daily worker., 1933-12-23

With the struggles developing the
miners are looking towards April 1st,
the date Of the expiration Of the
present agreements in most fields, as
the time when the present scattered
struggles will eliminate in major
struggle in the mining fields.
The question now before the min
ers and in the first place before the
The daily worker., 1933-12-23

| ployeeS or their representatives on
matters that properly pertain to the
relations between them, but regards
a system Of stated meetings as un-
| necessary to the continuance OF lust
relations between the company and
the employees"
Strikers Accept
Ford living up to the MIRA
weak as is this answer, the strikers
accepted it. Lacking counsel, lead
ership, ETC., the strikers knew no
other course of action to follow. The
statement seven new names added 10
payroll has its answer in the fact
that anyone who worked for the COM
pany in the last seven years was ON
the payroll. Many men laid of dur
ing these seven years were called
back. After the acceptance OF this
'reply," strikers trying to get back
to work experienced difficulty, al
though scores Of new men were being
hired daily at the plant. A few
union men got as far as the doctors
examination, but were refused work
by employment manager Smith
When Smith was questioned by men
for the reaSon-his answer was 'the
less you know the better" Several
union men did get to work but did
not last long. When they asked reason
for firing-the answer was, Guess
you know as well as I do" Is it my
work." Smith was asked. II didn't
say anything about your work" he
answered.
A committee of strikers were del
egsted to inquire at the plant of
this discrimination on Nov. %. An
swer from Harris, uperintendent--
There is no discrimination; we have
more union men in the plant than
you have outside. We are picking
our men and making Goddam sure
we get the right kind in here" We
were asked to write to the plant tUx
work. The following Monday, Dec. T.
we sent delegation Of to tsas
N. l.. B. in Washington. Presented
our case to Milton Handler, oorrnaa
of N. l.. B. After ten hours OF con-
suisation the answer was:
"'TThe men acted in an ill-adyised
manner in walking out OF the plans
without bargaining first Henry Ford
has not been guilty of any violation
of code at any time. You have no
case for discrimination according to
evidence presented. We cannot hep
you. You are the guilty ones"
While in Washington the delega-
ton went to the A. L. Of f. Office,
spoke to Morrison, national secretary,
about our status and for help. Nor
rison said: eve consider you an in
dustrial casualty, Just too bad"
At the meeting, Friday, Dec. 8, with
10 present, these facts were reported
to the men. The strikers through the
leadership voted to disband the union,
sending back the charter of A. Y.
Of L. with our thanks" The Lead
ers" refused to carry on any longer
and left. we know when we are
licked"
80 now we have about 75o to 1000
men out on the street, disorgeniEed,
disileartened. While in the plant
there are 5000 men, many new con
ditions in the plant are getting worse.
Many men cannot handle the jobs.
Turnover of labor there is greater
than it has been in long while.
We have small I. L. D. group
Of Is, but are handicapped by the
distance separating us, Chester to
Philadelphia. That was one of the
factors that hindered the strike.
Half the men in Philadelphia and the
other half in Chester.
The daily worker., 1933-12-23
III

The changed situation In the min
ing field with regard to the organi-
zation of the miners (the growth of
the U. M. w. A., the existence of
numerous miners u1ions), requires
that we accordingly adopt our tao
tics to the changed situation in the
fight for the winning OF the miners
and leading them in struggle against
the GOAL operators.
The policy Of the Party has been
throughout the building OF the Ma
tional Miners Union among the un-
organized and the building Of mill
tant opposition within the U. M. w.
A. and the other miners organizations.
This policy undergoes change only
to the extent that the situation has
changed Thus for example while
heretofore the mass of the miners
of the Western Pennsylvania, Ohio
and West Virginia fields were unor-
ganized since 1928 and the N. M. u.
had its main base there, at present
the overwhelming majority Of the
miners in these fields are organized
within the U. M. w. A. The policy
of the Communists must therefore in
the present conditions be to build
the opposition movement within these
unions, to assist the miners in carry
ing the struggle against the oper-
ators, to expose the U. M. w. A.
bureaucrats, and fight for the cleo
tion Of militant miners to every post
in the local unions, sub district and
district organizations.
The daily worker., 1933-12-23
THREATEN STRIKE

TEACHERS THREATEN STRIKE
SCRANTON, Pa. Dec. Eighty
five school teachers in Throop threat
nnsd today 10 strike for the third
sirns unless the Lackawanna County
officials paid them at least part OF
the ssven months wages due them.
The daily worker., 1933-12-23
DRAW UNoRGANIZED INTO
N.M.U.

The Communists in the N. M. u.
must strive to bring the policy of
the N. M. U. on this line for only
such line at the present moment
expresses the fight for the unity of
the miners in the struggle against
coal operators and labor bureaucrats.
The daily worker., 1933-12-23

nan. They are trying through this
newly formed organization not to
unite the miners in the interests of
the struggle against the operators,
but to divide them in order to pre-
vent the struggles of the miners. Nor
can the Communists tell the miners
who joined the Cappelini union that
In the interests of unity they must
go back to Lewis as do the Love-
stone renegades. Our policy must
be to expose the treacherous role OF
both sets OF bureaucrats, to call upon
the miners to unite their forces in
the pits, in the sub districts and
districts for common struggle. We
should build the militant oppositions
in both unions and on the basis of
struggle lead the miners towards the
building OF one united union Of the
miners In the Anthracite based on
the class struggle and genuine work
ers democracy.
Similarly in the Southern Illinois
coal fields it should be our policy to
work in both the u. M. w. A. and
the P. M. A. to expose the bureau
Gratis of both organizations and show
to the miners of both organizations
that they can only win their strug-
giles by uniting their ranks and that
they can unite their ranks and form
one organization over the heads OF
the bureaucrats of both organizations
PIMA. LEADS RADICALIZED
WORKERS INTO REACTIONARY
CAMP
At the same time, it is necessary to
explain to the miners that the basis
for the present treacherous policy Of
| the P. M. A. was already laid in the
first convention when the Pearceys
in combination with the Musteites
| (Allard), refused to adopt the class
struggle and united front program
proposed by the N. M. U. and the
Musteites have given, in the South
ern Illinois coal fields, clear ex-
ample OF their treacherous policy
namely, with radical phrases to lead
radicalized workers to their domina-
ton by open Reactionaries. And that
only militant class struggle union
freed from the strangle hold of the
bureaucrats can champion and de-
fend the interests Of the miners.
The Communists working in the
mining fields must expose the present
role of the Musteites and renegades
in the coal fields and prove to the
miners that they are preventing with
|
! Continued on Page 81
The daily worker., 1933-12-23
UNITE IN PITS AND DISTRICTS

Thus, for example in the Anthracite,
we can not call upon the miners
who are still in the U. M. w. A. to
leave the u M. w. A. and join the
Maloney Cappelini union. Maloney
and Cappelini while taking advantage
Of the desire Of the miners for an
organization free from Lewis are part
and parcel Of the employers and their
plans no less than Boylan and Bren-
The daily worker., 1933-12-23
MUST MEET CHANGED SITUATION

In those fields where the miners In
the main remain unorganized, the
Communists must make every effort
to draw the unorganized miners into
the National Miners Union because
the strengthening Of the base of the
N. M. U. which is the only militant
union of miners now in existence will
greatly help to unity the miners ma
tionally into militant union and
organize the successful struggle
against the operators and their
agents the labor bureaucrats.
In those centers where the oper-
ators with the open and secret sup
port Of the U. M. w. A. leaders were
able TO organize company unions and
defeat the U. M. w. A. (captive
mines, etc., the Communists must
follow that policy which will best re-
suit in uniting the miners in strug-
gle. Whether this policy shall be to
organize the miners who break away
from the company unions into the
u. M. w. A., the N. M. U. or an in
dependent class union will depend
upon the situation at the given mo-
ment, and in the first place upon the
desire and readiness of these masses
of miners for this or that organiza-
tion.
In those centers where there exist
two reformist unions, the Communists
can not call upon the miners to build
this or that organization as the Or
ganization Of the miners.