Evening star., 1939-08-22

point of view of industrial executives
than is the c. I. O.. goes unheeded,
It may be taken for granted that
both c. l. o. and A. F. L. may be
united so far as support of Govern
ment pump -priming" is concerned
and that means congressional
majority.
The A. F.. L. calls for a conference
of Government, business, farming
organizations and labor to increase
production" This is somewhat the
same kind of plea as that recently
issued by Philip Murray of the
c. I. O., who called for a national
conference of leaders of all groups.
The fact that labor leaders of all
factions are urging some form of
governmental cooperation with
business and labor is in itself not
new at all, for periodically such
pleas 60 out. They seem to afford
a convenient outlet for expression
on the current economic situation
without disclosing any particular
formula of how to achieve the CO.
III 4uCStlOll.
Thus the A. F. L. pointedly says
that although every one is con-
cerned in this problem of expanding
production" the National Associa-
ton of Manufacturers is clearly not
ready to accept the challenge of
Congress and appears to be waiting
for legislation to weaken the Ma
tional Labor Relations Act"
Responsibility on Business.
The A. F. L. goes on to remark:
"If this is typical of business leader
ship, we can expect little help from
industry, on its own initiative, to-
ward an immediate increase in
production"
The A. F. L. survey takes up the
point, often made recently. that
Congress placed the responsibility of
expansion and recovery squarely on
the shoulders of the businessmen
when the "lending-spending" bill was
killed, but that businessmen seem
''as helpless as any one else" in find
ing the way to achieve recovery.
Furthermore, the A. F. L. survey
insists that progress must be made
ION cooperative basis" or else
there will be Government domina-
ton"
Most assuredly the A. F. L. state
ments will be refuted by business
men with the declaration that, while
there are some among them who
would weaken" the Wagner labor
relations law, there are many more
who would like to see it amended
so as to help instead of Illustrate
production. Any law which permits
the use of so many technicalities and
devices to stir up labor disputes by
minorities needs prompt revision, but
the last Congress did nothing about
1t.
Antitrust Laws Bar.
AS for organizing business to in
crease production, this is an impossi-
bility under the antitrust laws be-
cause it touches the field of collusive
price fixing. Enforcement of anti
. trust laws against monopolies and
price fixing would free American en-
terprlSe from many OF It's ShackleS,
but nobody is suggesting the en-
forcement of the antitrust laws to
prevent the unwarranted use of eco
nomic power by labor organizations
that ties up industrial production,
such as, for instance. has been wit
messed recently in Detroit, where the
A. F. L. and the c. l. o. have been
participating in a destructive war
whilst employers are the innocent
bystanders and the public is the in
nocent victim.
When the A. F. L. speaks of
avoiding Government domination
no reference is made in its survey
to the domination and interven-
ton of Government which has been
going on these last few years, a
process which has helped to halt
production because of the uncer-
tainties involved and the abuse of