Evening star., 1947-01-21
Sweeping Labor Law
Changes Urged Before
Mayors by 6M Head
By Vincent Dwyer

" Vincent Dwyer
A sweeping reform of Federal
labor laws and the way they are
administered was called for today
by Charles E. Wilson, president of
the General Motors Corp.
Speaking before the United States
Conference Of Mayors in the Hotel
Statler, Mr.. Wilson declared such
reform was necessary so that the
conditions we now face and the or
ganized unemployment and lack of
production we suffered last winter
will not be repeated annually"
He condemned labor monopolies"
for abusing their power and said
Americans "do not like monopolies
or dictators of any kind"
He said the labor laws must be
clarified so that a situation like
that which developed in the recent
coal strike would not have to be
resolved by the chance technical
maneuver of accusing labor leader
OF being in contempt of court"
Violence Assailed.
IF the National Labor Relations
Board is left in the picture, its
functions should be changed so that
1t does not attempt to be prosecutor,
judge and jury" he declared.
Mr.. Wilson asserted that COM
pulsory unionism was totalitarian
and said the closed shop should be
outlawed. He also called for laws
to prohibit industry wide bargain
ing which "is the essence of mo-
nopoly in labor relations"
Asks Municipal Strike Ban.
New laws, according to Mr.. Will
son, should have special provisions
in them to prohibit municipal en-
ployes from striking.
Mr.. Wilson was especially vigorous
in his condemnation of industry
wide collective bargaining and said
that if competing employers are
forced or even permitted to deal on
an industry wide basis with indus
try-wide monopolistic unions, en-
ployer-cartels to match them are
thereby made inevitable.
I'm the end the State will have
to step in and control both to protect
the interests of all the people," he
said.
Speaking Of the portal-to-portal
pay suits, Mr.. Wilson said there was
no equity or justice in the suits.
Mr.. Wilson criticized the admin
istration's request for peace-time
budget of $37, SOC, 900, 900 and said +:
Continuing high taxes mean
that Government is taking for its
purposes too high q percentage of
the productive effort of all citizens. I"
Representative Case, Republican,
Of South Dakota told the mayors
he had introduced a bill in Congress
which would end the legal fiction
prevailing in this country for some
time that nothing done by organized
labor could be wrong"
Emergency Factor Cited.
The new bill, MIR. Case said, pro-
vides that the Government, without
seizure. may get court order pro-
hibiting strikes when a national
emergency is involved.
Mayor David L. Lawrence of
Pittsburgh. where there recently was
public utility strike, told the con-
ference that a restriction should be
put on strikes of that type. He
stated, however, that employees who
waive the right. to strike should re-
ceive some special consideration.
Former New York Mayor Fiorello
La Guardia told the conference he
thought labor legislation was nec-
essary, but warned that 1t should
not be "retaliatory" but designed
only to "cure abuse" He said he
hoped nothing drastic" would be
done to the Norris-La Guardia Act
of which he was coaauthor.
William Green, AFL president,
and Philip Murray, CIO head, also
are scheduled to address the Mayors
on the viewpoint of Labor"
Taft Speech Acclaimed.
A speech by Senator Taft, Repub-
hcan, of Ohio, won wide acclaim
from the mayors of the major Amer
lean cities in the Hotel Statler yes
terday afternoon. The Senator was
applauded loudly when he advocated
a housing subsidy for the poor and
declared.
I'VE must eliminate want and
extreme poverty, whether the peo-
pie who receive help deserve it or
not" Senator Taft said.
Referring to the Wagner -Ellender-
Taft billa which would have pro-
vided for public housing and was
passed by the Senate but not acted
on by the House in the last Con-
gress, Senator Taft said the bill,
'or something like it, will be in
troduced again.