Evening star., 1937-06-18
THE POLITICAL
MILL
BY C. GOULD LINCOLN,

The steel operators who have resisted
the demands OF the G. l. O. that they
sign a contract with the union are now
called upon to submit the whole con-
troversy to arbitration by a board OF
three appointed by Miss Perkins, with
the advice and consent Of the President.
In view OF the attitude taken by the
President, when he virtually said re-
Gently that the steel operators should
sign the contracts with the union, the
steel operators may wonder how they
would fare In such an arbitration-and
how far they should 60 in agreeing to
the findings OF the new board.
The appointment of this board is the
first open Intervention on the part OF
the Federal Government in the labor
controversies which have disturbed the
Nation for months. It is undertaken
at the request of Gov. Davey of Ohio,
and after the union leaders themselves
have appealed to the Federal Govern
mnt for aid. The administration backed
away entirely from the battle over the
sit-doWn strikes which tied up the auto
mobile industry In Michigan and other
States, to very great degree. If there
was any attitude on its part, 1t was
favorable to the sit-doWn strikers.
Finally the union began to see that it
was losing out with the public because
OF this kind Of illegal Seizure of prop
erty-and not so much has been heard
OF sit-doWn strikes in recent weeks. II
the Independent steel mills are reopened
and those now operating behind picket
lines continue to operate-the union
leaders are threatening . sit-down
strike. But that may be just 4 threat.
large number Of the workers who have
remained on the job despite the picket
ing are not likely to let a group of
strikers "sit down" and so put an end
to their own employment.
The board appointed by Miss Perkins,
Secretary Of Labor, is composed of
Charles P. Taft Of Cincinnati, son Of the
late President and Chief Justice Will
liam Howard Taft; Lloyd K. Garrison
OF Madison. Wis. dean Of the Law
School OF the University OF Wisconsin
and chairman of the National Labor
Relations Board in 1894, and Assistant
Secretary McGrady Of the Department
Of Labor Arbitration Is the better
method OF settling all these labor dis
putes, provided 1t Is possible to get an
entirely impartial arbitration board.
The whole effort Of the union in these
strikes against the independent steel
companies is to get the companies to
sign contract-and back of that de-
mand is the ultimate end-a closed shop,
with the companies compelled to collect
the union dues out OF the wages of the
workers and to turn them over to the
union oficials This check on" sys-
tem-having the dues collected by the
employers-is designed particularly to
strengthen the union and to keep its
membership from being in arrears or even
dropping out of the organization. There
is always the chance that a consider
able number of the workers will get
sick of paying dues and drop out.
~ *
The administration-the Federal Gov
ernment If you prefer-has been inter-
vening to a certain degree right along
in support Of the strikers in the steel
mills as we'll as other strikers. Most of
the intervention has been along the line
OF sympathetic speaking but there has
also been the shutdown of the mails to
those companies which sought to send
food in to the steel mills for the men
who have kept on working despite the
strike. The failure of the Post Once
Department to accept and to deliver
such packages is now undex investigation
by the Senate Post Office Committee and
the committee has decided to 20 into
an investigation generally Of the steel
strikes at the request of the union
leaders.
n r.
Who thought up the idea of having
the President go to Jefferson Island. in
Chesapeake Bay, and call all the Demo-
cratic members OF the House and Senate
down there to see him? In three days
next week, if all goes we'll, the President
will entertain some 407 of these Demo-
cratic members of Congress. That is,
II they all accept the invitations and
all are invited. An invitation from the
White House has been considered a
command, and how many of the Demo-
Gratis will stand out against such COM
mand today, even II they desire to, re-
mains to be seen. Back of the plan is
to bring about a united Democratic
front-which has been sadly smashed
because of the Presidents insistance
upon adding to the membership Of the
Supreme Court, because of rows over
his wages and hours bill and over his
bill for the reorganization of the execu-
tive departments. The hope is that har-
mony will be regained after the Presi-
dent has had chance to talk to these
members of Congress. But why take
them all the way down to Jefferson
Island? TO be sure, there is club
house there for the Democrats, estab-
lished by the Democrats. What will the
wild waves be saying beside Jefferson
Island?
To get back to the labor situation,
and incidentally the hours and wages
bill asked by the President There has
grown up lot of real opposition to the
plan to authorize the President to ap-
point f1ve-man labor standards board
which shall have delegated to it au-
thority to fix the standards and to make
exemptions in those standards for Ger
tain industries. It just will not go down
with lot of the members of Congress-
They would like to have the whole mat
ter more carefully considered and 70
over until next Winter They do not
see the need for rushing into a law of
that kind, which might be later greatly
regretted. There is growing a demand,
on the other hand, for revision of the
Wagner labor relations act, which is
lopsided at present. One way to 70
about it would be to write into the law
the proposal made by Senator Tvdinps