Detroit evening times. (Detroit, Mich) 1921-1958, 1942-08-31
Job Rotation
On Religious
Basis Unfair
Hiring Should Be Done
Only on Merit
By wEsTBRooK PEGLER

trolling qualification, Which are
the things that we are trying
to eliminate from consideration
in the hiring of workers.
When we have done this we
must say to a worker Of one
group, whom we will presume to
be superior man in all respects,
that he can't have a certain job
for which he Is peculiarly de-
sirable, because, in the rotation
of jobs. II happens to be the
turn of a man belonging to an
other group who may be just
mediocre, a wilmer, loafer and
a demoralizer.
IN OTHER words, Mr.. A II
i disqualified on racial or reli-
gious grounds in favor of a much
less worthy individual and may
be set to brooding against the
system and then against the
group, racial or religious, to
which the successful applicant
belongs.
That is no way to abate In
tolerance. That is the way to
aggravate it.
In a sense, political belief al.
ready is regarded as a qualifica-
ton in private industry because,
as we know, il some big en-
ployer were to say that he would
hire none but Republicans that
would be construed as coercion
in labor relations and an at
tempt to impair the political
freedom of the people involved.
And so it would be.
DUT il we come TO the point
- of insisting that he must ap-
portion his jobs fairly on the.
basic and Communist votes in
the past local or regional cleo
ton, we recognize the political
test ourselves while trying to
abolish il.
But we might easily come to
that il we accept the principle
of proportionate hiring based on
race or religion.
A GOOD man doesn't want TO
"A get by or be retarded on
such considerations, he just
wants fairness and will stand on
his ability.
OF course, in view of some
recent utterances by Mr.. Biddle,
the attorney general: Mrs.
Roosevelt and Elmer Davis, on
the subject of communism in the
United States. / think an Amer
lean employer should be allowed
to bar Communists.
The government. itself. nomi-
nally. at least, bars them from
its own employ.
Mr.. Biddle officially declared
the Communist Party to be hos
tile 10 our government. which
certainly is good reason to dis
eliminate against Communists.
and Mr.. Davis adopted as his
test the attitude of any indi-
vidual up to and Immediately
after Hitler's attack on Russia.
II they were isolationists and
appeasers and called this war q
figh for the British Imperialism
up to June %, 1871. but switched
over and demanded American
participation against the Nazi
aggressor on June "a, they are
Communists to him.
II is a convincing test even
though, because the party burned
its rolls. IL is impossible to prove
membership by any record.
SEE no reason why a private
L employer should be required
10 employ an enemy of the
country whom the government
thus identifies as such and still
less why any government agency
should consider itself bound 10
compel that enemy's employ
ment under any act intended to
protect the collective bargaining
ghts or political freedom of
genuine Americans.
Naturally, even in pre-Pearl
Harbor days. / would have barred
all Nazis and Fascists also from
public and private employment
here.
Membership in the bund would
have been my test as to Nazis,
but the Fascists were more of a
problem.
They had no such organiza-
ton as the bund and were
mostly just emotional and bonn
bastic fools without stamina and
courage.
THE most conspicuous of them,
L political padrone in New
York. took down his medal from
the duce and quit like a black
shirt in Spain or Albania when
we got Italy's declaration of war
and threw IL in the basket.
Henry Ford has been accused
OF and condemned for hiring one
or more Nazis before Pearl Har-
Dor, but at the same time, as
today. our government compels
big employers to do business
with some union officials. who
qualify as Communists by Mr..
Davis test and as enemies OF
the United States by the state
ment of Mr.. Biddle.