Voice of action. [volume] (Seattle, Wash.) 1933-1936, 1934-11-16
Starvation Wages
At WeStpOrt Mill
By Delegate No. 1913

ny DOASBabO Nos o6o
ASTORIA, Ore, Nov. 15-While
looking for work in Westport
and Wanna sawmills, about rs
miles from Astoria. | had an OPP
pOrtunity to see how the lumber
workers in these mills are actual
ly starving on the job.
The shacks where most of these
workers are forced to live are in
such bad shape that when it
rains, it rains both inside and
outside. During the cold weather
one will nearly freeze to death in
these shacks.
Westport mill is running 30
hours "a week.
Just recently this mill laid
off IA workers at one time. The
workers are organized into the
AFL, although the company has
tried to force them to join the
Al company union. Some of the
workers belonging to the AFL
were laid off and when they came
back they were told that if they
don't join the Al they can't get a
job. They, however, refused to
join, and because they put up a
militant battle for their jobs,
were rehired. One of the organic
ers of the AFL was blacklisted.
This worker took his case to the
Portland Central Labor Council,
but the gentlemen in the Labor
Council refused to do anything
in regards to getting this worker
back to work. This shows whom
these gentlemen labor leaders"
are serving. They are only good
for selling out strikes when rank
and file workers go out to battle
for better conditions.
Small Pay
Although this mill is running
80 hours a week the wages are so
small that there are many work
ers with families who haven't
seen a pay check in months, for
all the money that these workers
earn goes back into the company
store.
Wanna mill is about two miles
west of Westport. Here there are
about 100 workers. This mill is
organized into the Al company
union. We know that the only
thing that they teach in the Al
is to be a good 100 per cent Amer
lean which is to be loyal to the
master and never kick, even if
they are starving on the job.
Some weeks this mill runs II
hours and some weeks 30 hours,
and as the contradictions increase
in the NRA lumber codes it is
possible that it close down CON-
pletely. This company runs a
store and. a boarding house and
it charges SIPS a day for the
boarders. We do not have to go
into detail as to how the workers
families get by working II hours
week, on a 45c an hour mini
mum wage scale.
During the past few months
we have gone through some ter
rible experiences. By now most
of us have pretty good picture
of Roosevelt's NRA codes and
his other plans. We see the top
leadership of the ALL unions not
fighting for the workers rights,
but selling them out when the
rank and file of these unions goes
into action against intOlerable
conditions. (Ryan's sell-out OF the
longshoremen, Germans sell-out
of textile workers, etc.. When
workers leave their grievances to
the Labor Relations Boards they
do nothing, so after all, WHO is
GOING TO DO SOMETHING?
Nobody but the workers them
selves!
First these workers must not al
low such issues as union, relig-
ious, political or other affiliations
keep them from joining into a
solid united front against the en-
ploying class and their agents,
the ALL misleaders, company un-
ions, etc. Second, they should
form rank and file committees in
each department, formulate thell
demands and then present them
to the boss. If he rejects their de.
mands, they go out on strike. The
National Lumber Workers Union
is the only union in the field to.
day which has program for botl
employed and unemployed work
ers, oragnized and unorganized
1t will give all its assistance to
all rank and file lumber worker:
when they go out to fight for bet
ter conditions.