Evening star., 1944-05-31
Thomus' Pleu CoIIedl
Profoundly Significant
Boring From Within Tactics
Seen Cause of Union Strife
By David Laurence


By David Laurence
Something profoundly significant Is
wrapped up In that unusual and rather
Sensational statement made the other
day by r. j. Thomas, international
president Of the United Automobile
Workers. His earnest and moving ap-
peal to strikers to 60 back to work was
coupled with q plain-spoken warning
that unionisna can not survive II the
Nation and our soldiers believe that we
are ohstructing the war effort"
But what stirred Mr.. Thomas to this
and other remarkable declarations La
his statesmanlike plea?
Too many people think OF labor strife
as just management versus unions. The
truth is that the biggest struggle In
America today is not between manage
ment and the unions at all but between
groups and factions within unions SEEK
ing power and control. @
'CommieS in Union Ranks.
Ordinarily this would not be danger
GUS but proper because 1t is within our
conception of democracy for rival groups
to seek individual power in their organ
izations. The collective bargaining law
introduced kind of auxiliary system
an election process from which the en-
ployer was rightly excluded yet coercion
from rival unions or factions was
ignored. The situation In America to-
day among many labor unions, how
ever, Is such that right thinking demo-
cratic leadership IN trade unions is
being challenged by persons with a Com
munist twist OF mind. In labor union
ranks, the Communists are called com
mics and that word Is SO often in the
vocabulary OF those who are engaged In
labor union politics that 1t is no longer
thought of as just name calling habit,
The Communists actually have control
OF number of important unions and in
others they are striving for control and
constitute minority with potential
threat.
The tactics Of the Communists are
plain. They themselves denounce
strikes in wartime but they provoke
strikes behind the scenes. Their real
objective is TO create issues and grieys
ances which will produce strikes and
thus try to unseat the officers In charge
OF union. These officers In turn ap-
peal to management to help them by
giving some needed cooperation and
not delaying concessions till strikes are
forced. In some respects management
has been as blind to the strategy Of
the Communists as have some of the
trade union leaders of the better type
70 the infiltrations of the saboteurs.
The extent to which the elements that
neiieve IN class struggle have bored
within unions is well known among
trade unionists but because of the ALB
surd tendency of some management
folks to call all union leaders acom-
munists," the union leaders have only
rarely been inclined to clean house for
lear OF playing into the hands of the
management opponents who might use
the publicity to try to kill of the trade
unions and the legislation that assures
them of their rights.
Extremists Widen Gull.
The fso-called left wing has not been
without blame, Many of its writer's
and spokesmen characterize every one
who disagrees with them as q "labor-
batter" The phrase is used to describe
any critic no matter how well intended
or constructive is his motive. These
extremists have only served to widen
the gulf and make more difdcult the
reconciliation that must occur If this
war Is to be finished without serious
interruptions to production.
The only answer Is exposure to full
publicity of all the moves and maneu-
vers OF the Communists in the American
labor movement. Congressional COM
mlttees composed Of men who are not
at heart opposed to organized labor
should be chosen 50 as to find out to
what extent the Communists dominate,
for instance. such bodies as the CIo
Political Action Committee. The Ameri-
can Federation Of Labor has managed
to steer clear Of Communist influence
but the CIO has its troubles with them.
It will become more than ever necessary
to ascertain which among the CIo lead
ers are truly interested in Communism
and European socialisms and which are
interested in maintaining the American
system of free enterprise.
If the Communist tactics should re-
suit in their getting control of the CIo
Political Action Committee and hence
OF the Democratic party, class struggles
will be intensified. For strikes nowadays
are for the most part quarrels between
unionists, provoked by those who claim
not to be interested in strikes but who
are actually instrumental, nevertheless,
IN bringing about class friction.
Debt Limit
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