The daily worker. [volume] (Chicago, Ill.) 1924-1958, 1935-01-10
Steel Workers
Press Fight
For Union Poll
Carnegie Co. Ignores
Deadline Set by
Labor Board
BY Tom Keenan,

DUQUESNE, Pa, Jan. 9.-Gen-
eral sentiment for action grew
stronger among the steel workers
today as the "deadline" set by the
National Steel Labor Board for
surrender of the Carnegie Steel
Company's payroll list of Duquesne
employees passed without an cleo
ton.
Instead through it's company UNI
ion stool pigeons the company has
stalled the election most likely for
many months, through court &C
ton in the Philadelphia and Gin.
cinnati Circuit Courts of Appeals.
The Duquesne local is proceeding
with collection of pay envelopes
and will itself conduct an election.
Everywhere in this central steel
area the general keynote is one of
organizing the unorganized in prep
aration for concerted action. The
same spirit is in evidence in all
other districts of the Amalgamated
Association of Iron, Steel and Tin
Workers, according to reports.
III Ou4ucSuC, bllC 1ecuIS is ulRH
and overflow mass meetings are
held every day. At an open meet
ing Saturday night, approximately
thousand employees gathered to
hear Lodge President William
Spang, sound a warning in regard
to the loopholes in the Steel
Boards election order and against
banking on the Board to do the
work of winning concessions from
the employers
Union to Conduct Poll
Spang made an appeal for all
Duquesne employees who have not
already done so, to submit their-pay
envelopes to the union so that the
base for an honest election can be
laid without waiting for the sur
render of company lists. A large
ma jority of the workers. it is re-
ported from reliable sources have
already turned in their envelopes,
estimates placing the number as
5 high as seventy-five per cent of the
present working force of about
S 1900.
Answer Lies
The lodge issued leaflet Sat-
: urday night in answer to the COM
!. pany's attack on the union which
appeared in the local weekly news
paper, the Duquesne Times. It de-
nounced the spreading of COM
pany poison" by this gutter sheet"
y and the lying attack on the union.
{ we want that election right
y now" declares the leaflet, ct
= has been a hard fight to force the
:, Board to order an election. For
months they have listened to the
steel bosses demand for delay
so that they could attempt to
crush our union and put over
their company union. Only when
we condemned them and decided
[ to move toward action last Sun
days conference) did they order
an election"
Serious Dangers
At least two serious pitfalls now
j., threaten the path of the steel work.
:, ers in Duquesne First, and most
dangerous, is the possibility Of
waiting too long while giving the
! board chance to bring about the
election without carrying through
: an election by the "A. lodge itself.
: Such course would lead to
: Stacking of the growing local SEN
: timent for struggle; give the COM
: pany more time to maneuver both
; in and out of court, strengthen the
' company union as weapon, and
II launch their drive in the capitalist
Il press against all concerted action;
10 and would greatly cripple the or
!, ganizational drive in the steel in
dustry and the general movement
Vt toward the winning of the demands
! formulated at last years conven-
u ton.
g The holding of an election as soon
e as possible by the lodge, on the
basis of the list of pay envelopes,
and with the Steel Board invited
" to come in and supervise the ball
e loting on certain specific date
e will avert the first danger to some
h extent. Meanwhile, the carrying
n on of smaller, inner plant strug-
" gles-departmental grievances, tenn
n porary stoppages. etc. - and the
II raising Immediately of concrete,
1t economic demands would do much
/ to increase the tempo of the move
IL ment toward action.
/ Second, is the possibility of allow
y ing the company to betray the Du-
!. quesne workers into premature
= walkout, before sufficient support
" had been consolidated in other
y mills Of Carnegie Steel and other
!, companies where the AA. is now
n growing.
= The Indictment to mob violence
is Immediately launched by the COM
ID pany in the local press indicates
.r that increasingly provocative at
lie tempts will be made to draw the
In union into pitfalls of premature
action, so that discipline among the
workers is most important phase
i, of the preparation for struggle.