The daily worker. [volume] (Chicago, Ill.) 1924-1958, 1934-05-04
ALL. Workers Back
I'll. r. 1898 Despite
Treachery of Chiefs
Philadelphia c. L. U.
Machine Rescinds H.R.
1898 Endorsement

2
PHILADELPHIA, Pa, May
3.-The A. F. of L. machine,
by trickery and by confusing
the workers, overruled the
decision of the Philadelphia
Central Labor Union to sup
port the Workers Unemployment
Insurance Bill CHR. 1899 despite
the wishes of the membership to
give full support to the Workers
Bill.
In Philadelphia, as elsewhere, the
fight for adequate unemployment
insurance began among the rank
and file. The Carpenters local was
the first to endorse it. Tt soon
spread throughout the locals in the
city. local after local endorsing the
Workers Bill, up' it was brought
I'D by the A. F. of L. delegates to
the Central Labor Union, where it
met unanimous approval.
On April 9th Letter was received
from William Green, in which he
attacked the bill as being uncon-
stitutional, "Communistic" and i'm
possible Of passage. He attacked
the Workers Bill because one clause
stated that the insurance would be
administered by elected rank and
lie workers. He called upon the
C.LU. to endorse the Wagner-Lewis
Reserves" Bill, the fake unemploy-
ment insurance bill which has the
support of the Roosevelt admins
tration.
A motion was made that the
C.L.U. rescind its endorsement of
the Workers Bill, and support the
wagner-Lewis Bill This motion
met with such opposition by the
rank and file that the motion was
tabled until an Investigation was
made of the two bills.
Admit H.R. 1898 Ideal
Knowing that the Wagner-Lewis
Bill would not receive tie support
of the delegates if submitted on its
own merits. the executive board
took it upon themselves to recon-
mend the endorsement of the Wag-
ner-Lewis Bill in preference to the
Workers Bill, and submitted this
recommendation for concurrence ct
the next meeting of the delegates
two weeks later. The executive
board did not dare criticize the
Workers Bill, but on the contrary.
after studying both bills declared
the Workers Bill the ideal bill for
meeting the present needs Of the
workers. but because it did not have
the support Of the A. F. of L. off,
cialdom and Congress, they believed
1t impossible of enactment.
When this was presented to the
membership, 1t was met with bitter
opposition by the delegates who
accused the executive board of being
inconsistent in their recommended
tions There was a heated discus
sion which lasted about two hours.
in which one delegate after another
took the floor and exposed the
Wagner-Lewis Bill as being detri-
mental to the interests of labor.
Even a member OF the executive
board (who was not present at that
board meeting) got up and spoke
against the recommendations, stat
ing that he was in favor of con-
tinuing to support the Workers Bill
unless some definite proof was pre-
sented to show its being uncon-
stitutional.
The chairman then resorted to
other tactics, refusing the floor a
second time to anyone having
spoken before he re-read Green's
letter, and made lengthy speech
In favor of Green's stand.
The motion to rescind the en-
dorsement Of the Workers Bill and
endorse the Wagner-Lewis Bill was
then put to vote. and it was
unanimously defeated. The rank
and file had apparently won out.
when someone jumped up and said
we should have voted on whether
20 concur with the recommendation
Of the executive board. The chair
man Immediately outlawed the
former motion and substituted it
with the later, which caused con-
fusion among the membership as
to what they were really voting for
When the motion was voted on.
there was division, and when the
votes were counted the executive
board won out by vote of As to So.
After this experience we workers
are beginning to realize that the
fight for unemployment insurance is
also q fight against the bureaucrats
and labor racketeers in the A. F.
of L.