Toledo union journal. [volume] (Toledo, Ohio) 1942-current, 1945-09-21
What's
New?
GOING FORWARD
By
Pfc.
EdUard Duck
On Ledpe
With The
u. S. Army

people had vowed to destroy
is still intact. In spite of vi
cious propaganda and numer-
Gus attempts to use the war ef-
fort in order to break up or
ganized labor, the CIO today
emerges from its battle strong
er than it was before.
Things look encouraging all
the way around. In Toledo the
employees of Toledo Scale have
finally come into the fold, hav-
ing voted for Local IL in the
recent NLRB election. In De-
troit one of the JAWS two
vice-presidents. Dick Franken-
steen, has been victorious in
the mayoralty primaries of
that city, proving that fac
tional politics in the JAW do
not stand in the way of politi-
cal action.
The UAW international Ex-
ecutive Board voted unani-
mously in favor of the plan by
which the nations automobile
workers stand to make some
real gains. 1t is not often that
these gentlemen can agree so
completely on an important
issue, but the welfare of the
workers was placed ahead of
factional differences. Every
member of the UAW can re-
joice because of this. The most
crucial period in the life of our
organization is just beginning.
If the fight is won, we will
lead the nations workers in
the struggle for better way
of living.
TOLEDO TOO
In Toledo, too, leaders of al
most every plant affiliated
with the UAW forgot their po-
litical differences and unani-
mously endorsed the Boards
recommendation. To do other
wise would have been traitor
Gus, one might say, but some
strange things have happened
In the past where factional
lines were drawn, and this
time would have proven dis
astrous.
General Motors is not
penny-ante enterprise, and
if the union is to tackle GIN 1t
will need its full strength to
do the job. Union leadership
did not play politics with the
bread and butter of more than
a million workers, and for this
we may all rejoice. The big
gest and best union in the
world proved that it is still the
militant organization that it
started out to be few years
hack and that when the chips
are down its real fight is with
those who oppose the working
man.
General Motors is not going
to hand over a billion dollars
in wage increases to its en-
ployes voluntarily-not If it is
the same GIN we knew few
years back. When these work
ers win their fight all OF US in
the other plants will win ours.
WAR is WON
The war has been won, and
now the wonderful things
which all of us have looked
for in the postwar world will
have to be obtained, Yes, we
will have to be pretty forceful
in our demands, but anyone
who recalls the hectic days OF
"a and later can see the neces-
sity of taking realistic ap-
proach to the problem. The
stakes are high, the battle will
probably be a tough one, and
the selfish or uniformed
among us will have to be
either outnumbered or edu-
Gated, as the case may be.
II behooves all of us
to pull together and help
our fellow workers win their
fight. The benefits will come
to us and to our families short
ly thereafter, Certainly If the
International Executive Board
can agree unanimously on
something it should not be too
hard for the vast majority of
the workers and secondary
leadership to get together for
the good of all concerned.
In the coming few months
we must follow the advice of
those whom we elected as our
top officers. They have
mapped the plan for advanc-
ing the workers cause, and
most of us who have heard
about the plan agree that it is
very good one. Ask your ex-
ecutive shop committeeman.
He was told about tiff he
came to the meeting called for
the purpose of explaining it.
Yessir, things look good. De-
troit will have a CIO mayor,
the Scale folks are with US,
the factional fighting has been
stopped for the time being,
and now we can go ahead for