The daily worker. [volume] (Chicago, Ill.) 1924-1958, 1934-11-09
Dressmakers
DenandSpeed
In Unity Move

In an appeal issued yesterday
addressed to the dressmakers of
Locals %, 10, 60 and 80 of the In
ternational Ladies Garment Work
ers Union, the Left Wing and
Rank and File Groups of these
locals demanded that all dres5-
makers of the Needle Trades Work
ers Industrial Union "be admitted
into the International with full
rights and without discrimination.
The appeal called on the dress
makers to rally behind the efforts
of the militant rank and file to
unite all the dressmakers into one
union and for the improvement of
the conditions in the shops and for
the defense of the union against
the attacks Of the bosses. The ap-
peal follows in part;
Unity of all dressmakers is Of
greatest Importance, particularly at
this time. Even a brief examina-
ton of the situation in our trade
gives us the following picture. The
attack upon our condition in the
shops is constantly getting worse.
The minimum complaints are ever
increasing. The conditions won
during last years great strike are
rapidly slipping out of our hands.
The conditions of the minority
crafts dressmakers are unbearable.
Militant dressmakers are fired by
the bosses while the impartial
chairman and MIRA. machinery
are weapon in the hands against
the dressmakers. Added to all this
is the unemployment problem,
Thousands of dressmakers are feel
ing the burden of short seasons
and the ever increasing unemploy-
mont. The entire situation is
rapidly developing TO a point where
another sharp struggle against the
bosses will have to be conducted by
the dressmakers in order to do
away with the present evils in the
trade.
"When the time for the renewal
of the agreement arrives a few
most urgent problems will have to
be settled. The question Of the 30
hour week; the question of week
work; the establishment Of an
unemployment insurance fund and
other equally important problems
will have to be settled once and
for all. Our union must be equipped
TO meet this situation.
For this we must have unity in
our ranks. We must not have two
unions in the industry. Inside the
Dressmakers Industrial Union there
are many dressmakers who have
sacrificed many years of their lives
for the building of the I. L. G. w.
U. in the past. We must have all
these dressmakers back inside our
rnion so that all together we shall
i ilitantly carry on the struggle
against the bosses.
1.-The Left Wing voted and fought
for militant general strike. Every
left winger and militant worker
was active before and during the
strike modifying the dressmakers.
The Left Wing also fought for
unity in the strike. The Left Wing
and the rank and file groups Of
Locals %, so, 10 and SO heartily
welcome the move for unity on
the part of the Industrial Union.
But we know that the officialdom
in our union is determined to place
all sorts of obstacles in the way
Of achieving unity. Because Of this
all dressmakers inside our union
will have to join in the struggle
to force our officials to accept the
proposals for unity; to admit all
members of the Industrial Union
into the various locals of our Dress
Joint Board with full rights and
without discrimination.
Forward to one powerful mill
tant Dressmakers' Unionl
Long live the unity of all dress
makers in the struggle against the
bosses!"