Imperial Valley press., 1936-09-27
ORGANIZED LABOR
ABUSES ITS POWER


The situation at Salinas has gone
from bad to worse, from the practical
angle of existing conditions and from
the objective standpoint of abuse of
power by organized groups.
The labor organizations in that trou-
bled agricultural region are demonstrate
ing exactly what united workers should
NOT do. Their efforts as demonstrated
at Salinas and Seattle and San Francis
co are just as much an abuse of power
as was the abuse of power by employ
ers, against which the organizations were
created to fight
Because industry and employers fail
ed to recognize justice in wages, work
ing hours and living conditions, the
workers united in order to accomplish
what they felt were their rights.
At Salinas we see the worker of today,
neglecting the issue just as much as en-
ployers formerly neglected the issue.
Salinas is not at war over wages or
working hours or working conditions.
Salinas is at war over whether unionism
shall control the farm. California wages
are the highest in the country Employ
ers and growers and shippers are pay
ing good wages in the Salinas-Watson-
vile area. EVEN THE WORKERS AD-
NIT IT!
But the unions demand a closed shop!
BY doing so, they are raising public
opinion against them, just as it was
aroused formerly against the industrial
lists who refused to consider the funda-
mental issue.
To accomplish the purpose, organized
labor in Salinas is using force in its
worst form. They are not calling for
reason and logic and pursuasion at the
council table. They are calling for CO.
operation from other unions, shutouts,
sympathetic strikes, agreement by as
sociated groups over the country NOT
TO HANDLE THE LETTUCE BEING
SHIPPED BY THE STRIKE-BREAK-
ERS!
This is forcel 1t is just as sickening
as force of arms; it is reverting to the
belief that might makes right. 1t is
unionized racketeering. 1t is disregard
ing reason in favor of compulsion-
which is even worse than the system of
dictatorship and the methods used by
fascism and communism.
We see little difference between un-
reasoning domination by an American
group of workers, and domination by
a reasoning European dictator. One is
just as obnoxious as the other. Both are
completely foreign to the American
ideal
Every worker, farmer, merchant, en-
ployer and employe is entitled to fair
wages the fruits of their labor, a COM
Portable living and decent working con-
ditions But no group has the right to
coerce another group.
1t makes little difference whether
Reds and agitators are at the bottom of
the Salinas situation, or whether it is
just group of union organizers. The
results are the same. And the results
are wrong fundamentally, actually, and
theoretically.
The philosophy of this land is ''the
greatest possible freedom for the great
est possible number of people" This
philosophy is being perverted at Sail
mas where a minority of few thousand
workers are threatening the welfare of
hundred thousand others. And this
minority of two or three thousand is
controlled by handful of trouble-mak-
ers.
The farmer, beset on all sides by many
woes, struggles through the year and at
the time of his crop, this handful says
"we'll crush this wealth out of existence
unless you recognize US as your lord
and master"
This cannot last for long. Force be
gets force; fire is to be fought with
fire. There is an old saying beware of
a patient mans wrath" The public is