Imperial Valley press., 1942-01-05
CAPITAL TALKS
by
Peter
Edison

, WASHINGTON. Jan. 5.-Organiz-
ed labor's armorplated adherence to
lis predetermined policy of putting
oyer-right noW-national recogni-
tion of ,hc principle of the closed
Shop and It's tWeedledee twin the
union shop is one OF the chief rea-
sens WIZ The Presidents labor-in-
duStry conference was delayed for
mulatinL 4 basic program for main
tanning uninterrupted production
during the wal.
In that mouthtul of words Is
commandment number one Of labor S
policy today. Il Will battle to the
last ditch 10 put the closed shop
or the union shop provision in every
labor contract negotiated from here
on, as long as the war lasts and
then some.
Tne II representatives of indus
j try sitting in on this 24-man con-
] ference, you'll recall, proposed a
freezing of the open shop closed
shop conditions as of today, for
the duration of the emergency.
Organized labor would accept
ncne of that idea if it could pos
sibly be avoided.
/ The reason given for this atu-
/ tude Oil the part OF labor is that
! the union shop contract is neces-
sary for organiZed labor to survive
the postwar period. Professional Ia
j Dor organizers remember what hap
pened to their movement after the
] last war. one of the policies adopt
ed by the old War Labor board
in 1917 was the freezing of the open
/ shop-closed shop condition for the
duration. Organization drives by the
unions were not restricted and they
could sign UP as many new members
as they could get. New contracts
could be negotiated, too, but if a
particular plant had an open shop
labor policy before the war, the
management of that plant could rest
securely in the knowledge that II
would stay open shop till the war
was over.
HARD ar ~ AN
When the war did end, things
went along all right for time,
but when the postwar recession
really set in, organized labor took
a beating. II lost a number of inn
portant strikes. Efforts to organ
ize in some of the major open
shop industries failed miserably.
1t was not until the 1929 boom
and the New Deal period of pro-
labor legislation that the unions
really got going.
Remembering that experience, the
labor leaders of today are playing
their cards so that they won't lost
trick when the present tiff Will
the totalitarians Is through. Labo
Organizers feel that as long as they
have closed shop OF union shol
contracts in force, they can wealth
er any postwar depression. on tn
other hand, with open shop con
tracts in force, the organizers fee
/ that management would have labo
over a barrel and that most OF th'
ground gained in the last 10 year
would be lost by the unions in th'
slippery and uncertain times o
peace and readjustment.
UNITED on ONE POINT
A. F.. OF L. and C. I. o. repreSen
tatIyes at the Presidents confer
ence were apparently united OF
this stand. They showed no inclina
ton TO want to wreck the confer
encc. hut thc inside story OF tn
long sessions of argument revealed
the y representatives of manage
ment lined up solidly for frcezln
the open shop conditions, while tn
y labor representatives were line'
up lust as SOlidly fer maln'alnll
their right 10 drive and bargain
for closed shop conditions in ever
defense .ncIstry throuaheu. tn
war.
Caught in between taeec tw
forces were Inc government mod
orators. William H DaEl7 Of tn
National Defense Mediation Boar,
wh!ch the c. I. O. now calls near
" dafunct." and Senator Elder
Thomas OF SAT- Lake CNF. Utah
Ckldll man CI tilt DttldNt \ inlLiilt &c
on Education and Labor WhIcn vii
settle the fat" Of arti-S.Y6e legis
!at.on after Il" labor p,l'cJ re
CommnudatiCas # the conference
are accepted BY the President
These t%o gentlemen ha'e lacKec
any authority in these NEGOTIATION
and as matter of fact, when th'
President talked to the conieree
after the first session, he told then
that ne had dug up tie nam'
moderator "a good word - be
cause he didn't think they Woult
have t. WELD any big STICK.
DRIVE. WILL GO on
In Insisting on the closed shOI
principle, the labor Representatives
haze taken the position that thcl
are sincere in their assertion tnat
they will give up tho rl2h. 70 atrikf
during the var In retW4 l0r ma
concession. they have naIptalnCc
that the ISSUE of closed shop OF
open shop Is . qU"su,. FOR nocDiia
ton between employer ana en-
p.ogc. Citing thc captIvc 'uln" ease
a. . Drccrd6ut. whore ;C.Dc 80 pei
cent Ot tAc employees bo!l&and tC
the union anyway q aA4oa oaOr
cGu'rar, wa III OrCE.. I. Wa0r
membership mad been only % pen