Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1947-08-24
Workers Suffer as CIO
Boycotts Labor Bourd
Unwillineness to Drop Communists
Held Betrayal of Workers Interests
Rv Gerard d. Reilly

By Gerard d. Reilly
When Congress vested the major RESPONSE
bility for the administration of the Taft-Hart-
ley Act in the National Labor Relations Board,
critics OF that battle Scared agency were quick
to predict that enforcement by the staff would
be half-hearted. BY the effective date of the
statute, which occurred on Friday, however.
there were several indications that the attempt
of the new general counsel, Robert N. Denham,
to pour new wine into an old bottle Is achiev-
ing measure of success.
Regional directors returning from a confer
ence in Chicago where the board formally
reinquished control over the prosecution and
enforcement staff. were heartened by the degree
OF preparation which had been made. Despite
the long delay at the White House in filling
the new offices, the revised regulations and
forms had been drafted and were available for
discussion. Their completion by the final date
was due in part to the foresight Of William
Consedine, one of the associate general coun-
sci, who started getting ready for the new act
after the designations of several of his colleagues
who could not reconcile themselves to law
opposed by the unions.
At the conference Mr.. Denham announced
the abolition of dual supervision over the field
Offices For many years, the regional investi-
the director of Field Division, while the re-
gional attorney reported to the general coun-
sci. The result was that each of these officials
had built up an inspection staff of his own,
which visited the same field Offices. and gave
duplicating-and occasionally confiicting-ad-
vice on the same cases. This archaic system
was ended by an order giving each regional
director final authority in his own Office and
making him responsible only to the general
counsel.
On the substantive side, the new rules dashed
any lingering hopes that unions refusing to
comply with the requirements Of financial
registration and affidavits disclaiming COM
munism among their officers, can still take
advantage of the act by such subterfuges as
motions to intervene or the filing of charges
by individuals. Mr.. Denham took the uncom-
promising position that such charges and
motions would not be entertained. He also
instructed the regional Offices to suspend
action for 20 days on all pending complaints
and election cases, and to dismiss them at the
end Of this period unless the unions involved
filed documents in accordance with the
statute.
In highly organized New England promul-
CATION Of the new rules had a marked effect
on. the volume of cases in the busy Boston
Office of the NLRB. Regional Director Bernard
A.. Alpert reported that the cases pending In
his jurisdiction dropped to half their normal
number. AFL unions in New England signified
their readiness to conform to the act and
continue to appeal to the board for the pro-
lection of the rights of their members and
their various locals
A last minute furry developed, however
4r1y III
AFL and CLIO bodies must also sign the nom
communist aff1davits to make their affiliated
unions eligible. 1t was rumored that John L.
Lewis was blocking all pending AFL cases by
refusing to sign the aff1davits Since he Is one
of the Is vice presidents of the federation,
his affidavit under the Denham opinion, was
necessary to enable any AFL union to qualify
The withdrawal of some is cases filed by Dis
trict so of the United Mine Workers In New
England furnished some confederation Of this
report of Mr. Lewis intransigencs.
X
The general readiness of the AFT unions in
this area, however, to meet their new oblga-
tons was in marked contrast to the attitude
of their CLIO rivals. Francis F. Carmichael,
New England representative of the CLIO, re-
ported that Philip Murrays instructions were
still to boycott the NLRB. This news was a
blow to the Textile Workers Union the largest
CLIO organization in the region, which has
several election cases pending in Maine and
New Hampshire plants.
In fact, signs were multiplying that the rank
and file of CLIO workers in New England were
gradually discovering that the Murray Press
man boycott strategy is too high a price to
pay for protecting a few Communist officers
in CLIO unions from the necessity Of filing
afldavts.
On the eve Of the act the United Electrical
Workers, CLIO affiliate, withdrew q COM
plant case involving $50 employees in the Win
chester Arms plants alleged to be the victims
Of discriminatory discharge. At the time
Of the withdrawal, the case was actually being
heard before trial examiner in New Haven
and the workers had pinned their hopes Of
back pay and reinstatement upon its success
full outcome. After the unions action, the
workers sought to file individual charges but
these were barred by the statute of limitations.
The United Steel Workers. CLIO, also with
drew 10 pending cases from the Boston re-
gional office in the last week. check re-
vealed that these related to number of in
stances of alleged employer discrimination
against individual union members. The unions
policy will deprive the employees concerned of
any legal redress since the six-months period
has also run on them. OF course. the official
Go line is that it is futile for unions to rely
workers for very long will fail to see through
this cynical betrayal of their interests