Evening star., 1937-01-11

hand, Mr.. Lewis union has as yet no
legal right to claim to speak for all
the employees. He must first establish
that claim.
The moral position Of the company
would have been better if its directors
had stood on the basis Of the Wagner
labor relations act. which is the law.
The unions position would be i'm
pregnable if it could claim majority
of the workers. The company. how
ever, is not appealing to the labor re-
lations act because, we guess, 1t does
not like the law. and hopes that it
will soon be challenged in the courts
and proved unconstitutional. And the
union is using some provisions OF the
act to protect its activities, but is not
calling for the application OF other
clauses. notably section &C. because
it doubts its power to demonstrate
a really strong numerical following.
Law Unsatisfactory.
The interest Of the public is to
have the rights of employers and en-
plOyCS AL LLlC LldllCl Va
rights unambiguously defined by law,
and administered in an impartial
spirit. For the interest of the pub
lie is to prevent strife and anarchy.
The Wagner labor relations act is
unsatisfactory in this respect. 1t
leaves loopholes and gives the ma
tional labor relations board wide in
terpretative powers. This is unWise
and dangerous. A board dominated
by an administration hostile to labor
might interpret the act one way. An
other board might use the act to as
sist the organization of the c. /. o.
But it is not the function Of Govern
ment to delegate to private indi-
vidual or group the right to organize
the employees of the Nations indus
tries. II the Government is not care
full this Is what it can drift into do
ing. Gen. johnson was the Frank
enstein monster of the first Roosevelt
administration, and it will be too
bad II John Lewis should succeed 70
this role in the second. Too bad all
around.
The Wagner labor relations act
OF labor disputes burdening or OBJ
structing interstate commerce" In
pursuance Of that object, it estab-
lished the right of workers to organ
ize in trade unions, without interfer-
ence from employers, and provided
for the appointment of the National
Labor Relations Board of three per-
sons at salaries of $4,000 year, CIV
ing them power to settle certain
classes of disputes. The board can
decide. for instance. whether the unit
appropriate for the purposes of COL
lective bargaining, i.e.. of trade union
organization, shall be the whole in
dustry, the plant or any subdivision
thereof. This Is very wide power.
indeed, and puts the board, I should
think, in an extremely awkward posi-
tion as between contending trade
union theories. The board is empow-
cred to investigate and finally to de-
eide and certify to the parties (em-
ployes and employers in writing the
name or names Of the employe rep
resentatives selected"
Secret Ballot Provided.
The act suggests that this decision
be based upon a "secret ballot of the
employees" taken not by the union
or the employers. but under the super
vision Of the board, under conditions
determined by the board. But the
law does not compel this procedure
THE board may take secret ballot" I"
says section &C, "or utilize other
suitable method to ascertain such
representatives" What. beside Sc
cret ballot. might be suitable method
is not defined or suggested.
But one procedure Of the act Is
clearly stated. That is paragraph (a)
Of the section quoted. Representa-
tives designated or selected for pur-
poses Of collective bargaining by the
majority of the employees shall be
the exclusive representatives Of all Of
the employees in such q unit for the
purposes of collective bargaining" !"
Thus, If the union can persuade ma
jority of the workers to join them its
position under the present law Is i'm
pregnable.
But, Of course, the issue is not as
simple as all that. Even were plebi-
scite called. the board could deter
mine the conditions under which 1t
was held, and since the act appar-
emily does not define with total clar-
ity what constitutes a majority. the
board again has powers which are not
exactly judicial. In the Camden strike
Of the r. c. A., called last Fall by an