Evening star., 1937-03-28
Sit-DOwn
Continued From First Page.)

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fully just how they 60 about closing
down an automobile plant, a hotel, a
department store, or anything else
which they may feel needs closing
down. 1t is highly specialized tech
nique. first developed in Europe under
extremely distressing circumstances.
But since these men took hold OF 1t,
its efficacy has been increased many
fold.
"It Can Happen Here"
They have found the way that "it
can happen here" After all, the
strikers may be right or the Chrysler
Corp. or the General Motors Corp. may
be right. All of them are convinced
that they are right. But one shudders
to think what may happen when some
little group applies the same tactics
in political life
The first necessity, of course, Is
organization. The employees must be
organized in one union. not loosely
integrated group of craft unions. For
practical purposes, says MIR. Bishop,
the union seeks to have a fair-slzed
majority before it starts anything. But
this isn't absolutely necessary. and
therein lies the far-reaching poten-
TALLY of the sit-down.
A majority in itself doesn't mean
a thing, Mr.. Bishop explains. 1t is
apt to be "yes man" majority which
will evaporate quite suddenly when
there Is a showdown. The leader
must study the personalities Of his
followers. He must be satisfied in
his own mind as to which ones can be
trusted to go through with something
once 1t is started They must be
fighters. They must be men others
will follow. Above all, the leader must
be sure that they are not company
spies"
Then these few seize some vital
part of the plant without which op-
Grafton either is impossible or is
badly crippled. This is done at the
opportune moment, already decided
upon at secret conferences. The rest
of the workers in that particular de-
partment may follow or not, as they
choose. Usually it will already have
been determined that majority OF
them are sympathetic. Non-union
members will be let out, II they choose
to go. Sometimes it may be neces-
sary to get rough" with weak-hearted
union members whose courage fails.
Make Themselves Comfortable.
Then the doorS are barricaded, the
"sit-downers'' make themselves as
comfortable as possible for an in
definite stay, and their representa-
tives on the outside try to open nego-
tiations with the company.
Perhaps this procedure is best ex-
emplif1ed, Mr.. Bishop says, In the
strike which closed the Chevrolet
plant at Flint, in which he himself
acted as one of the board Of strategy
and field officers. It was decided by
the union officers to shut down the
whole Chevrolet unit, They had a
large number Of members among the
workers-probably majority, Mr..
Bishop says-but they didn't know
much about the quality Of this men,
bership and were morally certain that
1t was permeated with stool pigeons"
First mass meeting was called, at
which plans for strike were discussed
quite vaguely. Various speakers in
tentionally stressed the difficulties
which would be met and the meeting
closed leaving the impression that
some time in the near future some
thing would be done-merely as a
gesture Of defiance to the company
at an accessory plant which stood just
outside the walls. The cards were all
stacked, it was stressed, against any
such attempt inside the walls. For
one thing, the men would be isolated
from the outside and it would be very
difficult to get food.
Now the board of strategy didn't
have the faintest idea of bothering
this particular factory. They wanted
to get everybody talking about it. They
wanted to stress valid reasons why it
should be captured. And they wanted
the company to know all about 1t.
Motor Shop Real Objective.
Their actual objective was the motor
shop, inside the walls, guarded with
extra patrols Of police and the one
vital point in the whole plant. Once
it was shut down the rest Of the plant
couldn't operate, for cars can't be built
without motors.
The next step was to call meeting
of the stewards" The union main
tains these men in every shop where
it operates-one steward to about so
men. They are the field captains-.the
men who represent the union members
in their grievances with the foremen,
etc. Supposedly they are loyal union
lists.
At this meeting definite plans were
laid down for seizing the shop outside
the walls, which could have been held
until doom's day without greatly
worrying the General Motors Co. The
board Of strategy knew this. They