Evening star., 1935-03-26
STEEL EXECUTIVES
HIT WAGNER BILL
Say Measure Is Biased in
Favor of Professional
Labor Unions.
BY the Associated Press.

By the Associated Press.
Two steel company executives at
tackled the Wagner labor disputes bill
before the Senate Labor Committee
today as a measure designed 10 favor
organized labor.
E. j. Poole, vice president Of the
Carpenter Steel Co. of Reading. Pa,
described the bill as fundamentally
a political measure designed to pla-
cate the American Federation Of La
bor."
He was joined in his criticism by
w. c. Sutherland, vice president Of
the Pittsburgh Steel Co., who said it
was biased n favor Of professional
labor unions" and that its passage
would "set the stage for conflict. which
would retard national recovery"
The DILL would outlaw the COM
pany dominated union, make per-
manent the Labor Relations Board
with added powers, and give the labor
organization chosen by the maio rity
of the employees in plant the right
to speak for all employees"
Continues N. /. r. A.
Poole said the measure would
continue the worst features" of N.
I. R. AS collective bargaining guar
antee.
Intelligent men In industry are
now quite generally convinced that in
the final analysis it is not to their
best interest to disregard their re-
sponsibilities toward those in their
employ, and the demonstrated success
in the nature Of the many employees
representation plans now in operation
has long removed the matter from the
experimental field" he asserted.
The average worker as an in
dividual. for obvious reasons possesses
lesser degree of reasoning power
than does his employer.
Because Of this fact he Is easily
prompted to feelings of suspicion and
uncertainty with regard to the motives
and acts Of those with whom he nat
urally desires to cooperate. He Is
likewise peculiarly susceptible to the
influence of those whose principal aim
in life is the fomenting of discomfort.
Confidence of Employees.
Management in industry realizes
that such a situation imposes upon it
the duty Of securing the complete
confidence of its employees through the
exercise Of frank and scrupulously
honest treatment of every right, legal
or moral, which the worker possesses,
to the end that he may come to ap-
preciate not only his own obligation to
his task, but also the economic in
f1uences which may operate either
to his advantage or detriment.
THE present employees representa-
tton is furnishing a satisfactory dis
position of the so-called labor prob
lem.' and we prayerfully urge you not
to allow the further entrance Of the
negative influences this Wagner labor
disputes bill would encourage"
Sutherland said that by specifying
certain acts to be unfair labor prac-
tees. the bill shows it is biased in
favor of professional labor unions" +"
"Woyld Mean Closed Shops"
TT is designed only to further the
advancement of these organizations
and impose the closed shop.
The provisions of the bill which
forbids an employer making contribu-
|tions toward the operating expenses
OF the representation plan of his
employees is a conspicuous contrast
to the absence Of restraint upon the
amount Of dues to be collected by the
union labor organizations or upon the
use Of these funds.
Il am firmly convinced that the
foremost desire of labor in the steel
industry today is for an opportunity
for regular and steady work and any
legislation, the influence of which will
cause a contrary condition, will not
be pleasing or beneficial to that large
group Of people who are most anxious
to see the last traces of the industrial
depression disappear"
Administration Aid Seen.
Meanwhile. administration support
Of the Wagner bill was predicted pri-
vately by American Federation of
Labor leaders. This support, they
said, was to be given in return for
federation backing of new N. r. A.
legislation and a cessation of fedora
tion hostility toward a number of ad-
ministration labor policies.
Among the warmest grievances the
federation has had against the admin
istration have been the interpretations
of Donald Richberg of N. T. r. A. s
collective bargaining guarantee, the
policies of the Automobile Labor Board
and the administration backing given
the steel industry in its attempts to
bring proportional representation" to
the steel mills.
The Wagner bill, with its majority
rule" provision, federation chiefs say,
would force abolition of the Wolman
Auto Labor Board and its proper
tional representation policy
Chairman Walsh interrupted Suther-
land during his testimony, asked all
the steel management representatives
at the hearing to rise, and said:
You realize this bill would not re-
quire any one to join union"
In view of that. he said, he couldn't
see what opposition the employers
could have to it.
United States Steel and Bethlehem
Steel, among the largest of the steel
companies, filed briefs with the COM
mite, also opposing the bill.