Evening star., 1935-08-02
AT. OF |. ELECTION
ByBU|LD|NG GROUP
RENAMES LEADERS
"OfficiaT" Department Acts
to Validate Poll Held
Voided in Court.
FIGHT MAY BE TAKEN
TO FEDERATION MEETING
Williams and Full Slate to Stay
in Office Despite Strong
Opposition.

In a move to validate an election
voided by a decision OF District Su-
preme Court, the so-called official
building trades department OF the
American Federation of Labor, in spe-
cial convention today, renamed the
slate of officers headed by j. w. Will
liams, whose incumbency had been
declared illegal.
Concurrently, this action was con-
demned as unlawful by M. J. Nc
Doncugh, head of the group which the
federation does not recognize and
which had attacked the previous
election. 1t was predicted that the
fight, involving more than 100000
workers in 19 unions, would go be-
fore the federation convention in At
lantic City In October.
Along with Williams, Herbert Rivers
of Washington was renamed Secre-
tary-treasurer, and the following vice
presidents we're again CHOSEN: John
Possehl, engineers; Richard J. Gray,
bricklayerS; D. w. Tracy, electrical
workers, and William Mccarthy, mar
BILE workers. all of Washington, and
Thomas L. Hughes, teamsters, Indian
apolis, and Joseph v. Moreschi, hod
carriers and laborers, Quincy, Mass.
Williams is a member of Carpenters
Union and Rivers of the Hod Carriers
and Laborers.
Began Term in November.
The group headed by Williams came
into Office last November at a special
convention called by President Green
of the American Federation of Labor
after a breach between the two fac
tions at the San Francisco convention
q month earlier.
McDonough's group-comprising IL
unions-did not participate in this
election and on the first of the year
moved out of the Federation of Labor
Building, taking the department rec
ords and establishing new headquar-
ters. The Williams group sued to
regain the records and to restrain the
other organization from exercising
any departmental function. McDon-
ough's group, claiming to be right
fully in Office, filed cross-bill to bar
the other organization from acting.
Justice Jesse c. Adkins dismissed
both proceedings. He held the VIII
liams group had been elected unlaw-
fully because the opposition was en-
titled to Office until January /.
1t was on the contention that Nc
Oonough's group was out of office on
the first Of the year that the Official
department held today's election at the
call of President Green.
McDonough said today, however,
that his group had set up a de facto
department and is appealing from the
court ruling.
Refused to Seat Delegates.
McDonough was reelected president
Of the Building Trades Department in
September of last year, but that con-
vention refused to seat electricians,
carpenters and bricklayers, and was
declared unlawful by the American
was then that the November meeting
here was called. In dismissing Nc
Donough's cross-bill Justice Adkins
also held that the September election
was void, but that the election in 1881
gave McDonough and his associates
the right to hold Office until January l
Of this year.
The court also said, however, ac-
cording to McDonough, that he and
his associates had an implied right to
hold Office until their successors were
duly elected and this convention which
went In session yesterday and ended
today was illegally called the dis
senters contend.
AT the Offices Of the official" Build
ing Trades Department today, when
a question was asked if new effort
would be made to recover the records
in McDonough's possession, it was said
that was a matter for the federation
itself to decide.
While the official" department has
the fewest number of unions-seven-
it has majority membership.