The times-news. [volume] (Hendersonville, N.C.) 1927-current, 1938-08-15
Sees FIGHT TO
REPEALLAb0R
LECZSZ, ! 4 ! ton
Textile Expert Says En-
ployer and EmpIoye
Have Equal Stake

NEW YORK, Aug. l5.-That
lines for Il new battle over the
Wagner Act are now forming is
the declaration made by Douglas
&. Woolf, in the August issue Of
the Textile World" of which he
is editor.
.Arraycd on the side which will
cali for its repeal or radical revi-
sion al the next session of con-
gross will be employers, employees
and the general public, ne de-
ciarcS. in bringing about the draS
tic change, employers and en-
ployes have an equal stake, Mr.
Woolf states.
The National Labor Relations
board recently held that the cir
culation Of an anti-ClO pamphlet
by a certain company was an un-
fair labor practice as defined by
the Wagner act" states the edl-
torial. A large part Of the coun-
try evidenced a sense Of shock at
the news.
what surprised us was that
anyone was surprised. Our own
experience in attending NLRB
hearings has convinced us that
examiners. attorneys and others
connected with the board would
rate the aforementioned. activity
as almost a capital crime. We
have heard counsel for the board
produce evidence of mild little
acts. in contrast to which the dis
scmination of &nti-ClO literature
is positively hcinous.
"Thc result mas been that the
average employer has become
scared to death. The mere men
ton Of a union to his employees
becomes a questionable act. He
no longer feels that he enjoys
freedom Of speech. As matter
Of fact. many employers don't
even dare to answer letters which
refer in any way to the Wagner
act. We are not guessing about
this; we know.
THE board would reply. of
course, that it is not responsible
for the approximations or misap-
prehcnSiOnS of employers. How
ever. anyone who had heard some
of the charges trottcd out at
NLRB hearings that we have list
encd to would know that the
board is very definitely response
bic for the state Of mind de-
ScribCd above.
+. Not even some OF the most
ardent critics of the board really
know how serious has been the
effect Of the operation Of the act
upon industrial relations in the
average mill village. That can be
gathered only by field work-and
particularly by the attendance at
hearings. Whether the Governor
Of Iowa was right or wrong lc-
gally, he WAS 100 per cent right
in his characterization of NLRB
hearings as a "diSturbing factor
in the community.
fortunately, the avalanche OF
public opinion will engulf the
board and the act. Injustice can
not be practiced openly without
eventually arouSing the resent
ment Of the average citizen.
THE battle lines are forming
and on the side advocating repeal
of radical revision Of the Wagner
act at the next session Of congress
will be represented employers,
employees, and the general public.
The members Of the board, who
have applied administrative bias
to basically unfair act, will not
be able to save it. Nor will the
CLIO. which apparently finds in
the act almost q charter. But
those groups will fight hard-and
the opposition will have to have
at its command complete and au-
thentic evidence Of the effects of
the act upon our national labor
situation. That is induStry's No.
! lob in connection with the next
session of congress. Employer:
and employees have an equal stake
in its accomplishment