Toledo union journal. [volume] (Toledo, Ohio) 1942-current, 1946-06-21
President Still Seeking
Slave Labor Legislation
EDITORIAL-
LABOR'S PROBLEMS

One of the really important tasks facing the dele
gates Cedar Point conference of the United
Auto Workers is the strengthening of labOrs political
action.
After viewing the situation as it has unfoded itself
since the end of the is apparent that the
of abors economic weapOnthe strikedoes not provide
the complete to the problems which labor has
faced and still faces
Only last week, the United States Senate after
pIeey cutting the heart of price control passed bill
which made mockery of the need of the majority of the
people of the country Such legislation, if permitted to
become law would rob the workers of their recent gains
bring abu runaway initiation promote unrest and new
crop of widespread and serious strikes and lead in short
time economic crisis defatiOn and depression which
would make the last seem tame by comparison.
Winning strikes and getting management to agree to
increase wages 1874 cents hour becomes meaningless
the face constantly rising prices and the assault
which has ben made OPA by congressman elected by
the people and corrupted by big business.
Does the presidential veto of the Case bill give
feeling of satisfaction when the President himself is still
stubbornly insisting that Congress vote him dicatorIal
powers which infringe upon the rights of both labor and
management?
Does any member of organized labor have feeling of
safety and security after witnessing the reactOnaes of
Congress for past years? And these the gentle
men who even preparing to their usual
bOasu and lying campaigns to persuade the voters to
give another chance complete the assault the
people who work for their livings.
And in the face Of these grim realities there still
who carry membership cards in CIO who cha
Ienge us with the question "Why should belong to
PAC?"
If PAC is to do its job and it must begin to do it inn
mediately it must recruit thousands of members
from the ranks of labor who must be made to under
stand that the solution of of the major problems
faced by the unions and all workers lies on the political
front rather than the picket lines
IL PAC is to become effective, and believe that
this must accomplished it must win the active interest
and whole support of thousands of convinced
workers.
There are some who complain that it takes too long
to educate the workers and insist that hunger the only
compelling thing that the majority understand We do not
hold with this theory for believe that such claims are
uniusty selling labor short and that often those who ad
vance them with the most vgor merely excusng their
own lack of leadership and intellectual and physical IN
ertia
Today more than ever before labor leadership car
res with it the obligation and responsibility to get re-
suits 1t means that those who lead must not only be con-
vnced themselves but that they must be capable OF con-
vncng their membership of the urgent necessity for po-
litical action.
Despite the tendency to over-smpy the problems OF
labor and saw that entire to the burning issues
and probIems of the day political the fact nescapabe
that If is to Washington and various state legislatures
that labor is most frequently forced to turn
of what value are the gains through collective
Continued Page Two