Evening star., 1941-11-23
Whittier the c. |. O.?

| The written record or the cOnVen-
ton just concluded by the Congress
of Industrial Organizations is so
elf-contradictory that it is difficult
if not impossible to form any worth
while opinion as to the role this i'm
portant labor organization will play
in the coming year of national de-
fenSe effort
1t was a convention marked by an
exceptional degree of factional bit
| terneSs. In its closing stages
measure of superficial harmony was
brought about by the unanimous re-
election Of Philip Murray to the
presidency, but this gesture was not
! enough to remove the impression
| that the split between the Murray
| forces and the minority faction
| headed by John L. Lewis is one that
will be difficult to bridge. OF greater
moment from the standpoint Of the
national welfare, however, is the
| question of how the c. !. o. will
reconcile its resolutions proclaiming
loyalty to the President and his
foreign policies with the plainly an
tagonistic stand taken on domestic
| labor issues.
One of the resolutions, after COM
mending the Presidents forth
right foreign policy" said: The
/ c. o. declares it to be of paramount
Importance to this Nation that we
! Immediately furnish all possible aid
! to and completely Cooperate with
Great Britain, the Soviet Union and
| China " and thereby bring about
the military annihilation Of Hitler's
regime" Yet the same convention
went on record as indorsing and
supporting the captive coal strike,
which at that time threatened to
prevent the giving Of any aid to the
opponents of HitleriSm, and ap-
plauded speeches unqualifledly op-
posing any legislative restraint on
the right to strike in defense in
duStrieS.
The convention also went on record
as advocating the utilization Ito
the utmost degree" of the agencies
set up by the Government for the
mediation and peaceful solution of
| industrial disputes. But at the same
time the delegates expressed their
approval of the resignation of c. I. O.
members from the National Defense
Mediation Board because that agency
in one case ruled against c. l. o.
union, and pledged their support to
railroad unions which have threat
ened to strike rather than accept
the recommendations of the media
ton agency in that controversy.
And, of even greater significance,
was the announcement during the
convention that the United AutOmo-
bile Workers had refused to accept
the Mediation Boards services in
the dispute with the Bell Aircraft
Company, the explanation being that
"the C. 1. o. is not using the Media
ton Board any more"
BY resolution, the c. I. o. made
strong plea for national unity and
denounced what it described as the
efforts of such persons as Charles A..
Lindbergh to disunite the American
people. Yet it cheered its own presi-
dent, Mr.. Murray, when he in
discriminatory denounced dollar-a-
| year men as saboteurs of national
defense and implied that the Gov
eminent was not dealing in good
faith with labor.
There does not seem to be any way
in which these Inconsistencies can
be reconciled to support hard and
fast conclusion that the c. I. o. is
going to move in one direction or the
other in so far as support OF the
national defense program is con-
cerned On the contrary, it is rea-
sonable to assume that during the
coming year, as in the past, there
will be repeated conflicts between
union ambitions and the demands of
national defense, with time alone
determining which will be given the
Number 1 position on the c. I. o.
program.