The daily worker. [volume] (Chicago, Ill.) 1924-1958, 1933-11-29
The Silk Strike Betrayed

TILE leaders of the Associated Silk Workers Union
Omitted Textile tieing rope around the necks
of the silk strikers Of Paterson, On the heels Of
long line of betrayas and attempted betrayas by these
A. F. of L. leaders, headed by Frank Schweitzer and
the Lovestone Eli Keller, the final and classic betrayal
of the militant silk strikers is now being carried
through.
The q. T. w leaders give up the right to strike.
They place the impartial" arbitration board in the
hands of the bosses by allowing the president Prince
ton University to select the Impartial chairman They
agree to give so days notice of any grievances They
agree to give all wage demands in return for "recog
milton of the union" They agree with the manufac-
turers that no other union will be recognized.
THE U. T. w. leaders have not and never had any
interests apart from those of the silk manufacturers
Of Paterson. They have supported the N. r. A. and
its boards from the start They have done their best
get the strikers back to many weeks through
secret conferences and through signing selout agree
ments which the strikers refused accept. They have
from the beginning refused the demands of the rank
and file that the call of the National Textile Workers
Union for unity OF all strikers united front strike
committee be accepted
Now the final betrayal the killing of the
strike on the terms of the manufacturers, the giving
up of all wage demands and the srangng of the right
of the workers to strike The u T. w. leaders have
openly, throughout the whole course of the strike on
the pretex of being against the large rayon manufac-
turers, followed the policy of the Paterson manufac
turers.
WHAT is the perspective now for the Paterson SILK
" strikers? Already the silk manufacturers have made
clear their policy to the insiders" The acetate rayon
mills of Paterson going to close down for two weeks
in December. The silk mills are going to work few
Gays and then put all the workers on part-time
throughout the winter The wage agreed to of So per
100000 picks is not increase but defeat for the
strikers. But the manufacturers, as all Paterson
knows, are going to hammer down the rate to the
minimum of Gfo6er ui1ir 10
working) Of $15 a week
WHAT is the of the silk workers of Paterson?
" There is an effective whereby the silk work
ers can ward off the attacks of the manufacturers:
ORGANIZATION ON A UNIFIED BASIS INSIDE
THE SHOP The demand put forward by the rank and
file OF the U. T. w and by the National Textile Work
ers Union for unity applies today as much during
the course Of the strike
IT, through exhaustion the strikers driven back
to work defeated they must Immediately organize in
side the shop. The job Is to set up shop commit
tees in all shops of all the workers regardless of union
ailiation or whether unorganzed and this will lay the
basis for united rank file Industrial Union In
the silk industry
There is already organized left wing inside the
U. I. w. This rank and file left wing must be
broaoened The traitors, Eli Keller Schweitzer, ETC..
who sold the workers out must CO. The rank and file
inside OF the o. T. W. must make the union their
The whole reacherous outfit should be kicked out and
the rank and file take the situation into their own
hands,
All Of these rank and file groups and committee
the rank and file opposition inside the A. F. of L.
unions the shop committees elected by the workers in
side the shop should be united at into the Pater-
SON Silk and Dye Workers Shop Delegates Council,
based on shop organization of the workers. The
employed workers should be represented.
The organization inside the shop on a united front
basis Is the means whereby the workers can guard
against sharp reduction in their wages and worsenng
IN their working conditions The organization inside
the shop must Immediately begin, through fighting for
shop demands, to make the slavery Keller-Schwetzar
agreement scrap of paper