Evening star., 1937-05-26
|C. |. 0. WAR SOUGHT.
|BYL0NGSHOREMEN
A. F. l. Is Asked to Prevent
Spread of Activities
on Atlantic.

A"Le''CuH IdOOT movement SpLtI
apart last Summer when A. F. OIL.
Council suspended C. /. O. unions
Which Dere pressing organization
drtpes in mass production in
dustries.
Recently c. I. o. began to issue
charters and its aNliates hape ap-
peared in direct jurisdictional con.
fict NTH A. F. of L. unions. Trou-
oled maritime industry has been
one to feel this conflict OF forces
most directly Uith rivdl unions
Junctioninc on both coasts.
BY the Associated Press.
CINCINNATI, May 26.-Joseph p.
Ryan, president Of the Longshoremen's
Union, sought united American FEEDER
alton OF Labor action on the Atlantic
coast water front today to prevent the
spread Of c. I. o. activity.
Contending that John L. Lewis
Committee for Industrial Organiza-
ton and Communists were closely
linked in their seaport activities, Ryan
went before the A. F. OF L. Executive
Council to try to settle numerous ju-
risdictional disputes that have ham,
pered the federation water front
unions in their efforts to combat the
Lewis movement.
AS his first move in his anti-Lewis
program Ryan threatened to call
strikes against all ships that employed
radio operators belonging to the Radio
Telegraphists' Association, a c. I. o.
union. Ryan said this union was
strictly Communistic.
The water front unions have been
beset by division for several years.
First all OF the Pacific Coast unions
but the longshoremen broke away
from their international unions sev-
eral years ago to form the Maritime
Federation Of the Pacific. The West
Coast Longshoremen, led by Harry
Bridges OF San Francisco. remained
with the national union in name only,
Atlantic Union Divided.
Last Fall the International Sea-
mems Union on the Atlantic Coast
divided, with left-wing section
claiming to represent the majority
OF the seamen. This section eventual
ly formed the National Maritime
Union. which has been dickering for
G. I. o. membership.
Every A. F. OF L. union on the
water front faces a dual union move
ment." Ryan told delegates to the
A. F. OF L. loyal union conference
here. Its high time we settled our
own differences and set in to defeat
this gang Of Reds"
Other principal issues to face the
council:
l. Whether to indorse President
Roosevelt's minimum wage, maximum
hour and child labor bill.
2. How to manage the "co-ordi-
mated organization campaigns d.
rected by the conference in view of
the opposition to direct war on Lewis
voiced by considerable block Of
delegates.
William Green. A. F. OF L. presi-
dent, declined to comment on the
wage, hour and child labor bill before
the executive council expressed its
opinion. He said, however, that many
federation leaders consistently had
opposed Federal regulation of mini
mum wages for men because Con-
gress could fix maximums il it could
fix minimums.
Division In A. F. L. Ranks.
Support Of the child labor pro-
| visions, he added, might give the
impression the federation was Drop
ping its support Of the constitutional
amendment to outlaw child labor for
all time.
Considerable division has developed
In A. F. Of L. ranks as to how the
federation should proceed with its Or
| ganization campaign.
Green indicated he intended to fight
the c. I. o. directly with rival unions
in some cases.
Another groups spokesmen said the
federation should try to retain its
supremacy by organizing the unor-
ganized, but should not move into
Lewis territory. Daniel Tobin, presi-
dent Of the Teamsters' Union, warned
the conference that his organization
would not contribute double dues to
try to take from the Lewis movement
members who had not been organized
before the c. I. o. campaign started.
Lewis, in New York, expressed little