Montana labor news., 1939-08-03
CONGRESS INJURIES PEOPLE BY ACTION
HAPPENINGS OF The
CENTRAL LABOR BODY

IIAr kuvuIvV1 VI I'LL
CENTRAL LABOR BODY
The lumber workers are on strike
at Cass Lake, Wisconsin, so it was
reported at the Silver Bow Trades
and Labor Council last Tuesday eve
ming by Mr.. Robert Brown and MIR.
Swanson, who are travelling through
the Western states asking assistance
of the unions in their struggle
against the lumber companies. The
two men stated the workers at Cass
Lake are asking for SO cents an hour,
and at the present time the company
is only paying 80 cents. The unions
of Butte showed quite an interest
and all delegates were instructed to
take it back to their respective
unions and ask them to send checks
to the international Lumber Workers
organization of Cass Lake, Wiscon-
sin.
Metal Trades and Building Trades
organizations affiliated with the
American Federation of Labor held
a conference in Butte Monday, July
81, with officers of the Anaconda
Company in respect to r%eopening
working and wage agreement which
will expire September is. A num-
Der of international representatives
from the East were present at the
meeting.
The Trades and Labor Council
adopted a recommendation of the
legislative committee approving and
recommending expansion of the NYA
program in Silver Bow county. This
expansion will include the establish
ment of a Youth Center in Silver
Bow county where young people can
be given the rudiments of some of
the trades and also receive cultural
instruction. The National Youth Ad-
ministration is designed to assist per-
sons between the ages of 16 and rs
to 60 through high school and col
lege and to be taught trades and
vocations where these are not ac-
ceptable in any other manner
Some discussion arose over the
anti-alien bills now in Congress. The
Trades and Labor Council does not
look very kindly upon these bills
and is rather suspicious that most
of them are not anti-alien bills but.
in fact anti-labor bills. The case of
Mr.. Bridges and the attempt of the
re%actionaries to have him deported
was cited as an illustration. The
subject of the anti-alien bills was
referred to the legislative committee.
Mernin of the BARRIERS, Duncan of
the Electricians, and Mullaney of the
Electricians all talked on this sub
ject.
Unions are requested to send dele
gates to the joint hospital and medi-
cal service organization which meets
every Tuesday in the Engineers Of
flee. This organization has gone a
long way in creating a cooperative
hospital in Silver Bow county and
want all of the unions to send dele
gates to the meeting.
There will be a meeting of Labor's
Emergency Council next Saturday
afternoon, August S, at Carpenters
Union hall at 2 p. m. The purpose
of the meeting is to further discuss
the crisis in the WPA situation. The
unions and trades involved in the
WPA dispute will all be present at
the meeting. The gathering is being
looked forward to with great interest
ny lIle community.
Charles Davis, president of the
Trades and Labor Council, occupied
the chair at last Tuesdays session
of the central body. He had been
away for several weeks and it was
good to see him back again. Mr..
Davis was appointed vocational di-
rector under the George Deem act
a month or two ago and went to Fort
Collins to study for his new work.
He gave a history of vocational and
apprentice training in the United
States and what the government is
trying to do toward creating more
skilled mechanics.
A pamphlet entitled STOP" is
sued by Thomas G.. Stimatz, former
representative of the Legislature
from Silver Bow county, castigates
the labor leaders of Montana, also
our national congressman and
tors for their apparent Indifference
and unwillingness to cope with the
new relief appropriation bill estab-
fishing 100 hours under the Works
Progress Administration. Mr.. Sti-
matt, in the pamphlet, suggests that
either labor or our representatives
in Congress initiate legal action in
either the local federal court or the
United States Supreme Court di-
rectly in order to 'halt the perpetra-
ton of this gross insult and injus-
tice."