Evening star., 1935-02-04
mime E-STEEL UNION labor REGULATION
BREACH W|DENED| by u. s. AT CR|SS|
A. F. of l.. Is Described as
Seeking to Control EN-
pIOyer Relations.
BY DAVID LAWRENCE.

BY DAVID LAWRENCE.
Far more penetrating than the
gold clause" issue and far more real
iStic to the average man are the lines
of cleavage just now forming in the
dispute as to how far the Federal
Government should go in regulating
employer-employe relations.
The climax is here The American
Federation of Labor, encouraged by
the writing into law of the principle
Of collective bargaining, now has un-
dertaken to say that its definition and
no other shall prevail and that all
persons who disagree are anti-labor.
Such is the charge hurled against
Donald Richberg, director of the Ma
tional Emergency Council. and. in
sense, No. man in the handling of
the emergency agencies of Govern
ment. The assault on Richberg is,
indeed, an attack on President RooSe-
welt.
The particular causes of strife are
two-the renewal by the President of
the automobile code and the with
drawal by the President from the
National Labor Relations Board of
authority to adjudicate cases arising
out of the newspaper publishers code.
A.F.L. Control Factor.
When all the facts and views are
boiled down to a single significance. it
is simply that organized labor does
not like any set-up which permits COL
lective bargaining through shop or
plant organizations not controlled by
the American Federation of Labor.
The usual term applied to these or
ganizations is the company union"
and the inference is that the COM
panieS by bribery or coercion or in
timidation tell these workmen how to
vote and how to select representatives
to bargain for them. This kind of
doctrine is accepted by many men,
bers of Congress. including Senator
Wagner OF New York, who last year
introduced legislation prohibiting the
company union"
But an election In the automobile
industry, held under the auspices of
a board set up by the President of
the United States after a written
agreement between labor and en-
ployers, now reveals that out of $4,000
Workmen, only about 5000 belong to
the American Federation of Labor
and that the remainder prefer not to
be affiliated with any labor unions.
Naturally. the American Federation
of Labor considers any such large
group of unaffiliated workers a fer
tile field for membership drives and
dues paying. But the elections were
held under rules laid down by the
Automobile Labor Board, of which a
neutral. Leo Wolman, was chairman.
The board did not favor either side
Hence it came cropper in the eyes
Of the American Federation Of Labor,
and the latter now has withdrawn
from the solemn contract it entered
into with the President of the United
States
Traitor Charge Hurled.
Also, because the President re-
fused to bend his knee to the de-
mandS of the labor leaders and turn
the question over to a one-sided labor
board, dominated by members friend
ly to the American Federation of
Labor, the charges are coming thick
and fast against Mr.. Richberg, presi-
dental adviser. He Is called a "trai-
tor" because he once was counsel for
the railroad brotherhoods. In other
words, once man accepts public
responsibility and recognizes his obli-
cation as an officer Of the Govern
ment of the United States to play
no favorites, to grant no special priv
ilege and to be fair to all, he becomes
a traitor" to the group or cause he
once eSpouSed.
There is, therefore, very little diff
ference between the reactionary ideas
held by the special interests who for
years dominated the Republican
party and the reactionary ideas held
by labor leaders today who regard
Government merely as means of
getting special privileges.
The chief claim of labor to the SYM
pathy of Government has been that
it represented a voiceless majority
throughout the land-workmen who
were being exploited by Bourbon en-
ployers. But when it comes to setting
up system that is fair to both en-
ployers and employees in a democratic
sense there is violent objection from
labor's ranks.
Showdown Possible.
The issue has grown so important
and is so close to the President of
the United States that it is difficult
to see how he can avoid a showdown,
taking the matter to the people over
the radio. The political power of the
American Federation of Labor in Con-
greSs is considerable. Its lobby is one
of the most effective ever organized.
Members of Congress of both parties
are carefully watched and if they do
not toe the mark they are threatened
with organized opposition at the polls
The American Federation of Labor
has plenty of controversies within its
ranks. 1t has radicals and liberals
and direct-action members, and some
who, though in the minority, have
leaned toward the general strike idea,
which came so near wrecking the labor
movement in California last year.
The craftsmanship in the American
Federation of Labor which made that
organization truly great during the
war is absent today. The strategy is
more like that of the old-fashioned
political leaders who believe that gov
ernment is merely an instrument of
private power. There is less and less
interest in what is good for the whole
country, workers and employers alike.
Much Done for Labor.
Mr.. Roosevelt has played ball with
union labor because he has felt SYM
pathetic with the privileged.
No other President has ever done as
much for union labor as Mr.. Roose-
velt. No other President has accepted
collective bargaining as recognized
legal right and used his influence to
get it written into the statutes. If
anybody is guilty of biting the hands
that have fed them, it is the labor
group who now assail Mr.. Roosevelt
because he undertakes to correct the
errors of a year ago when the scales
were held unevenly in the settlement