Toledo union journal. [volume] (Toledo, Ohio) 1942-current, 1944-09-22
Regional
Views
By Richard Gosser
Director Region 2B, UAW-ClO

To those who gave their support dur
ing our recent Grand Rapids convention,
offer my sincere thanks. To those who for
reasons of their own did not see eye to eye
with me last week, pledge my cooperation
and aid in matters pertaining to the preserva-
tion of our union and its members.
/ want to say without any reservations
that shall be guided by the rule of the major
ity as expressed in the convention last week
and pledge myself to carry out the mandates
of the delegates during the coming year.
1t is my feeling that the decisions and dis
cussions of this years convention will have
far-reaching effects, particularly with respect
to the no strike pledge. l believe that the
referendum this question in which all our
members will express their conviction by
secret ballot will give us the correct answer
to a problem which the delegates had diff
Guilty in solving.
EXPERIENCE
Those who criticized the no strike pledge
and said that labor's agreement had been too
one sided with industry making no compar-
able sacrifice do not find me in disagreement.
We had no precedent to guide since the
labor movement in this country is still very
young and could not pack into 10 years what
the English labor movement has learned in
fifty.
We all know that our strike pledge
should have been given only when sufficient
guarantees had been given us that we would
not suffer because of patriotic desire to
serve the war effort to the best of our ability.
But after 80 months and the war coming to its
end, think that only the workers in the shops
themselves know what they want to do with
this serious problem.
Perhaps the experience which we haveH
gained through this war will be of no benefi
to any of us now in the labor movement, buN
do know that it will be of great value to
those who are to follow us should the country
ever go to war again, and assuming that there
are no major changes in our economic order.
In the matter of the referendum, I can
only say that for one agree with permitting
our members to express themselves in demo-
cratic way. / of the opinion that our
workers will give us the right answer.
Those who opposed the referendum on the
grounds that the rank and file members had
elected delegates to act for them seem to fear
the democratic expression of the rank and file.,
These people who a very small minority
seem to fear democracy. They seem to fear
anything they can't control, and their kind of
control does not promote democracy.
WORK HARD
Last Saturday night, l told the people from
Region 2-B that we must all return home and
work like we have never worked before.
repeat that Our task is great and the time
is short for us to do the things that are neces-
sary to be done to aid our economic position.
and aid country to become one of the
worlds greatest military powers in such a
short time, we should be able to work to save
ourselves from our political enemies who are
intent upon capturing the government and re-
turning US to the days of Harding, Hoover
and Coolidge.
Our struggle from until November 7 .
is to get the workers to register and vote We
must give this important matter our best
efforts and not let down until the task has
been finished
Again want to ask for unity in our region
and hope that we can Sidetrack any differ
ences of opinion that might exist until we
have met the challenge of the coming election
Regardless what differences of opinion there
may be among our members on union policies,
we must agree that our political interests out
weigh all others at the time. If you have not
registered, register at once and then vote in
November, for if we do not win this election,
we will be losing more than many of us
realize.