The daily worker. [volume] (Chicago, Ill.) 1924-1958, 1933-07-04
For United Struggle
Against the Roosevelt Attack

By JACK STACHEL
Acting Secretary of the Trade Union
Unity League
CONCLUSION
president ROOSEVELT claims
the new act will create jobs and
raise wages. 1t is also claimed the
workers are given the right to or
ganize. At the same time, the capt.
talists are promised increased prof
it's. The workers are told to coop
crate with the bosses. The capital
lists are to be organized more COM
pactly, disregarding the existing
antitrust laws. This will enable them
to fix prices, to increase their prof
its. In the very first code proposed
the cotton industry capitalists and
the government are trying to eStab-
lish minimum wage OF $40 and S11
per week. This is less than the av-
erage wages in the industry today.
At the same time the code does not
provide for guarantees that the
workers receiving wages above the
minimum will not be driven to the
level of the minimum. This shows
the intention of the bosses and the
Roosevelt Street government
to use the recovery act for lowering
of the living standards of the work
ers, for further reducing wages di-
rectly through cuts, through speed
up and through initiation.
Furthermore, though the code
speaks about the 40-hour week, and
some of the government officials
talk about shorter week, it &C
tually does not differ from the Hoo
yer stagger plan. 1t does not guar
antee even 30 hours per week. For
that reason the whole talk about
minimum wage, aside from every
thing else, is meaningless.
The whole purpose of the recovery
bill is already clear from the pro-
poSalS OF the textile code. 1t is one
of further lowering the living STAN
dards Of all the workers. 1t Is, at
the same time, an intensification of
the attack on the unemployed. AL
ready unemployed workers are hav-
ing their relief completely cut Off
Forced labor is being widely devel-
oped for those who receive little
relief. The Roosevelt government has
completely abandoned its former
promises to provide unemployment
insurance.
Attack on Workers Rights
THROUGH the recovery act, and
other measures, the government
is attempting to stop the rising
struggle Of the workers. To outlaw
strikes, to enforce compulsory arbi-
tration, and destroy all militant
unions. and to stifle all militant
oppositions in the reformist ard re-
dictionary controlled unions. This at
tack Is clearly seen in the fur in
dustry. Here the Needle Trades
Workers Industrial Union affiliated
to the Trade Union Unity League
has been able to win better condi-
lions for the workers than exist in
any other section of the needle in
dustry. The workers have almost to
a man become part of the Fur
Workers Section Of the Needle
Trades Workers Industrial Union
Now the government in Washing
ton, through its direct representa-
tive, the strike breaker McGrady,
former organizer of the A. F. of l..
and now an assistant in the Labor
Department in New York is direct
ing the fight of the employers, the
corrupt officials of the A. F. Of L.,
the Tammany government, the So
cialists, against the workers. 1t is clear
that this attack is being made for
the purpose of enforcing worse con-
ditions in the entire needle industry
Role of the ALL. Leadership
The recovery act supposedly
guarantees the right to organize.
But in theory this right has always
existed. What is involved now is
really an attempt of the capitalists
with the aid of the government to
prevent the workers from organic
ing into militant unions. For this
purpose, wherever the workers are
building their own class unions, the
bosses bring in the A, F. of L. lead
ers to organize" the workers for
the purpose of enforcing a worsen-
ing of conditions. Where such a
danger does not appear so great
the capitalists oppose the organiza-
ton of the workers even into the
A. F. Of L. because they fear that
the leaders will not be able to keep
control over the workers They see
that in many of the A. F. of l.. or
carnations the rank and file organ
ICES against the policies of the lead
ership. In such cases the bosses
build the hated company unions.
Nevertheless, all these efforts do not
completely thwart the desires of the
workers to organize, to elect their
own representatives. In number