Montana labor news., 1938-06-30
Fight to Strengthen Labor Act
Will Continue
By JOHN L. LEWIS
Chairman, Committee for Industrial
ORGANIZATION.


Organization.
The amendment to the Walsh-Healey Act
was intended to prevent firms that violated
the National Labor Relations Act from re-
ceiving government contracts. This bill
would have established collective bargaining
in this country once and for all. 1t was de-
feated when the Rules Committee OF the
House refused to permit it to go to the floor
of the House where it would have been over
whelmingly passed. It's history has many
lessons.
In February of this year a bill was intro
duced by Senator Wagner containing com
prehensive provisions for the enforcement
of the Labor Act applying to both govern
ment contracts and government loans. This
original proposal not only forbade violators
of the Wagner Act from receiving govern
ment contracts and loans, but also cancelled
contracts and loans which had already been
secured if they thereafter violated the Act.
At the hearings on this original proposal
certain objections were made to the bill
which threatened its passage. However, a
bill had been introduced back in 1897 by
Senator Walsh of Massachusetts,, amending
the Walsh-Healey Act fixing minimum wages
and maximum hours on government con-
tracts.
This bill simply provided that persons who
violated the Wagner Act would be placed on
the list which the Secretary Of Labor keeps
of those ineligible to bid for government con
tracts. because they violate labor standards.
Although this measure accomplished much
less than the original proposal introduced by
Senator Wagner, the CIO felt that 1t never
theless accomplished a great deal, and we
Immediately threw our. full support behlnd
it. There was only a short period left before
the adjournment Of Congress. Lee Pressman,
CLIO General Counsel, members OF the ClO
LEGAL staff and Labor's Non-Partisan League
worked feverishly to overcome the parlia-
mentarv technicalities which stood in the
way of the passage of this bill.
The bill was passed in the Senate on June
7. It had been reported favorably by the
House Judiciary Committee. The committee
refused. however, after the Senate action,
to accept the Senate bill in place of its own.
This would have avoided the necessity OF its
ooing TO the Rules Committee, and insured
its passage.
The Rules Committee on June IA, after
having delayed any decision until the closing
DAYS Of the session, refused to grant the bill
a rule, Notwithstanding the fact that the bill
had been unanimously passed in the Senate
and Notwithstanding the fact that everyone
conceded that if it we're brought to a vote IN
the House, it would receive an overWhelm-
ingly favorable majority. The Republicans
and ~reactionary Democrats in the Rules Com
mittee of the House who are completely IT.
responsible, refused to permit the bill tC
come to a vote.
This is the same Rules Committee whlcf
prevented any action on the Wages ant
Hours bill. This is the same Rules Commit
tee whose eight reactionary members stoot
as a barrier between the urgent needs OF tn'
people and legislative action, b%razenly Haunt
ing their disregard of democratic institutions
Organized labor has the right to know VIVA
the attitude of Congressman is on this legisla
tion. It is cowardly to hide behind a Rule
Committee which is VIGOROUSLY friendly u
corporations, and unfriendly to labor.
There are two issues arising out OF the his
tory of this bill to which organized labor WI
devote itself. The first is the enactment 0