Evening star., 1944-03-05
WLB Upho|ds, 3 10 4,
Newspaper Union
Maintenance Clause
BY the Associated Press.

The War Labor Board, divided
8 to 4, ruled yesterday that an order
requiring maintenance of union
membership among newspaper edi-
torial employees would not be ar
abridgment of freedom of the pres;
or a violation of the first amend
ment to the Constitution. The
four public members joined the foul
labor members to form the ma ajority
The board directed, however, that
union maintenance orders covering
editorial employees shall include q
special additional clause designed te
further implement and extend" q
provision in the constitution of the
CIO American Newspaper Guild
guaranteeing that no member may
be expelled or penalized for any,
thing he writes or fails to write
The four industry members wrote
dissenting opinion and the foul
labor members wrote a concurrine
opinion sharply attacking the views
Of the industry group.
Davis Writes Ma jority Opinion.
Chairman William H. Davis wrote
the majority opinion in a case in.
volving the Patriot Co., publisher
OF the Harrisburg Pa) Patriot, ano
the Guild. The case was test OF
the relationship, if any, between
the boards policy on union security
and the freedom of the press" A
number of other publishers par
ticipated in the argument, heard
last october, including the New
York Times, Time, Inc, Scripps-
Howard, Minneapolis Star Journal
Tribune and Daily Times and The
Evening Star.
The decision was one Of general
policy, and its application to specific
cases, including that of the Patriot
firm, was left to the WLB newspaper
panel.
The WLB's Standard union main
tenance clause provides that within
IS days after the boards order is
issued, union member may with
draw from the union, but if he does
not withdraw, he is bound to main
tain his membership for the dura-
ton of the contract.
Fundamental Rights Upheld
Mr.. Davis said the clause gives
all employees the freedom of choice
and upholds fundamental rights to
make or refrain from making a
contract, and that the publishers
freedom to hire or his right to dis
charge is not abridged.
The limitation on the freedom
of action of the publisher" Mr..
Davis said, lis that he is prevented
from retaining in his service an en-
ploye who has voluntarily chosen
to remain or become a member of
the union and who has failed during
the contract year to maintain his
membership in good standing. Our
question, therefore, is whether such
q limitation constitutes an abridge-
ment of the freedom of the press
prohibited by the constitutional
guarantee"
He argued that "since there is no
doubt that it is lawful for publishers
to agree to maintenance clause,
= it follows that such an order
is within the boards power in a
labor dispute between publishers
and their employees"
Minority Charges Pressure.
The dissenting opinion said the
majoritys arguments rest on the
assumption that each individual
employe has free choice to join
the union or not, without coercion
from his employer or his fellow en-
ploye. AS practical matter, this is
seldom the case, because his decision
is to frequently controlled by pres
sure, threat and ostracism"
In the case of editorial employees
OF newspapers, the industry group
said, the effects may be much more
far-reaching. They argued that
"the editorial writer, or reporter,
cannot help but feel certain restraint
in his writing if he must maintain
good standing with his union or lose
his job as result. Few guild
members could fail to unconsciously
slant their writing regarding their
own or another union"
Labor members, criticizing the
industry members for their atti-
tude on union maintenance in gen.
eral, said They seek to Justify
this approach by the general accu-
sation that employees are dragooned
into union membership and kept
their by force. They know, or
ought to know, that such a posi-
tion cannot be defended
that no institution as large as Or
ganized labor could have main
tanned itself in democracy, and
grown to its present size, if its
effectiveness rested on the use of
force against its members. =.
Slanting Charge Assailed.
The charge that guild members
slant their writing is not merely
an attack on the maintenance of
membership clause. 1t is obviously
an attack on the self-organization
of reporters and editorial writer's
That is the real animus of the in
dustry members y y"
In comment on the boards de-
cision, Guild President Milton, Muir
ray said:
The specious plea of a few ir-
reconcilable newspaper publishers
that union membership is incom-
patible with editorial integrity has
been rejected by the National War
Labor Board. To write this decision
required courage on the part of
Chairman William H. Davis and the
concurring members.
They must be we'll aware that
they invite the wrath of men who
WELD great influence, in forming
public opinion and who have not
hesitated to use the publications
they own to disparage and destroy
those in public agencies who in
carrying out public policy. interfere
with the economic interests of the
publishers"