Evening star., 1947-01-15
PuruIIeI Seen in u. S.,
British Labor Moves
Union Chiefs Unrestrained Acts
Bring Crises in Both Nations
By David Laurence

oiliOu NulClS SuI Sou dlHCd AVIS
Bring Crises in Both Nations
By Dapid Laurence
An amazing parallel is being revealed
in the labor problems OF Great Britain
and the United States.
For nearly twenty years-from 1927 to
1s46-the people Of Great Britain were
protected against the general strike"
menace. but when the Labor government
came into power the statute was
promptly repealed. There was no crisis
in 1916, and the Labor government
spokesman said they resented the pres
ence of the law on the statute books.
They forgot that, in 1926, a general
strike had paralyzed the economic life
Of Great Britain and that Labor gov
erAments were unpopular from that
time on. In fact. the Labor govern
ment of Clement Attlee came into office
after a long lapse and won on a mega
tive wave assa protest against the war
time controls Of the Churchill govern
ment and its failure to make the social
transitions from war to peace necessary
to placate a postwar Electorate.
Today the British Labor government
is face to face with crisis after crisis
The use of troops to move food by truck
is drastic measure which no Labor
government would apply except In case
Of dire necessity. 1t may be that the
so-called Trades Disputes Act" will
have to be re-enacted. Certainly during
the two decades 1t was law In England,
there were no serious labor disturbances
that threatened the life Of the country.
Sympathy strikes were illegal.
Provisions in Statute.
In this statute 1t was declared:
"(a That any strike is illegal II 1t
ID has any object other than or in addi-
ton to the furtherance of a trade dis
pute within the trade or industry in
which the strikers are engaged, and ca
is q strike designed or calculated to
coerce the government either directly
or by infiicting hardship upon the COM
munity."
There was q similar provision with
respect to lockouts by employers, and
also Q provision saying, "it Is further
declared that 1t is illegal to commence,
or continue, or to apply any sums in
furtherance or support Of, any such
illegal strike or lockout"
One provision fixed penalty Of fines
and imprisonment for any person who
declares, instigates, incites others to
take part or otherwise acts in further
ance Of strike or lockout, declared by
this act to be illegal" But it was also
stipulated that mo person shall be
deemed to have committed an offense
under this section or at common law
by reason only of his having ceased
work or refused to continue to work or
accept employment"
Other provisions outlawed "intimida-
tion," especially by picketing, and the
financial liability of unions for wrongful
acts of their officers was declared in
connection with violations OF the Trades
Disputes Act
Parallel Is Plain.
The parallel between the British legis-
lation, now repealed, and the efforts of
American legislators to outlaw sympa-
thetic strikes and secondary boycotts
is plain. But the most significant an
alogy is with respect to the powers given
the British government itself, which
apparently we're to be exercised pri-
marily against strikes that threatened
the economic life Of the community. In
America, the controversy with the United
Mine Workers concerned the power Of
the Federal Government to issue an
injunction against the coal stoppage
which occurred when the mines were
in the Governments hands.
In both the United States and Great
Britain-the two biggest democracies of
the world-the tolerance by the public
as whole Of special groups with vote
getting potentiality has led to situa-
ton in which, in the absence OF statutes,
there emerges q usurpation OF economic
power in defiance of the peoples in
1rest.
Much as the vote conscious admins
trations in both Britain and the United
States may dislike it, the pendulum is
swinging. toward restrictive legislation
which the rank and file of workers them
selves wish to see adopted as q means
Of bringing order out of economic chaos.
The theory that strikes injure only the
employers is being proved fallacious by
the devastating nature of the strikes
that are occurring in both Britain and
the United States as result of unre-
strained acts by labor union leaders.
(Rnnrodurtion piohfx Pssarvsdl
Our WeIsh-Americuns
From the Emporia Gazette.