The Ely miner. [volume] (Ely, Minn.) 1895-1986, 1941-06-19
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WASHlN GT0N
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Senator Q.kAR.N
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which can and will be made against
this National Administration when the
present emergency is over and we can
all appraise events and happenings
little more reasonably will be its I'M
forgivable delay in devising measures
for handling labor relations IN this
emergency.
It was clearly apparent a year ago
when the first huge appropriations
for defense were passed that these ex-
penditures undoubtedly would create
a problem in labor relations. 1t was
likewise clear that speedy, efficient
production is the very heart of mod
ern defense and that this objective
could be achieved only by wholehearted
cooperation of labor, management
and capital.
Government machinery for concilia-
| ton and mediation of labor disputes
without stoppages of production was
pitifully weak outside the railway in
dustry. All we had was the Depart
ment of Labor Cancellation service, an
ineffective Maritime Labor board and
Sidney Hillman's OPM setup, which
functioned independently and did not
have the complete confidence of either
labor or management.
Yet the Administration refused it
self to develop any clear-cut definite
labor policy and consistently blocked
every attempt in that direction in the
Congress. It was not until March 10,
1941 that President Roosevelt created
the National Defense Mediation Board
to supplement the existing Cancellation
service.
Even after that, the Administration
continual to oppose any legislation and
made no move toward unifying all
Cancellation and mediation services
into one agency, a move obviously
needed badly.
Congressional committees were told
repeatedly by the Administration that
there must be no compulsion on labor
that the problem was being worked
out by voluntary cooperation, and SC
on.
! Then along came Northwest lum-
Der strike in defiance of the Mediation
Board followed quickly by the North
American strike in California. And the
Administration, disregarding every
thing it had been telling the Congress
for six months, took over the plant
, with soldiers and broke the strike
with bayonets, applying the most ex-
IRENE kind of compulsion.
; I think the President had no alter.
native but to take the action he die
at the North American aviation plant
t But the point I would make is thai
| if the Administration had moved 1t.
self, or permitted Congress to move
. to develop a fair, clear-cut policy ane
: set of procedures for settling labol
disputes without stopping production
eight or nine months ago, the chance:
are the extreme action taken in Calf
ornia would never have been necessary
Now the administration, after doing
nothing for months, seems determined
on the most extreme kind Of action
It opposed my amendment to the plan
seizure bill, which merely provided
that mediation should be utilized frs
to settle a dispute and extreme actor
taken only as a last resort. Report
are it has refused to permit Commun
list strikers to return to work, some
thing which a private employer coult
not legally do under the Wagner act
In the House, an appropriation bill
amendment would blacklist any EN-
ploye who engaged in a strike in de
fiance Of the Mediation Board.
I most emphatically disapprove o
such historical, strong-arm, crack
down methods of approaching thi
problem. I believe, as have TO
years, that the best way to tackle tn
problem would be for congreSsiona
committees to sit down with expert
enced mediators, union leaders ant
employers and work out a clear-cu
labor policy and set of procedures t.
settle disputes before they ever reacl
the strike or lockout stage. I am stil
hoping can get the Senate Education
] and Labor committee to do just thai