Evening star., 1947-08-18
BY the Assoeiofed Pres,

The country moved today into
memorable week in the history of
labor management relations - the
week when the last and biggest
chunk of the Taft Hartley Act goes
into effect.
The big date is Friday, go days
after Congress enacted the law over
President Truman's protests.
Unions, for the first time under
Federal law, will be subject to prose-
cution before the National Labor
Relations Board for such practices
as coercing employees, refusing to
bargain, forcing an employer to pay
for work not actually performed and
engaging in jurisdictional strikes
and certain kinds of boycottS.
Some provisions of the act took
effect June 23, but the full weight OF
the vast policy changes decreed by
the Republican controlled Congress
will not be felt until Friday.
NLRB Worth Extended.
The NLRB, which has spert IL
years protecting the rights of
workers who want to organize into
unions, now will protect-in addl-
tion-the rights of workers who
don't.
It also will protect the rights of
employers.
On Friday the NLRB will split, In
effect into two separate agencies: ()
A five-man board, which becomes a
labor court, and (2) the office of
the general counsel" headed by
Robert N. Denham.
This office will investigate and
prosecute cases before the five-man
tribunal, and eventually will have
perhaps nine or ten times as many
employees as the tribunal itself.
NLRB regional officials, back at
their home cities today after con-
verging in Chicago last week to
discuss procedures. prepared to issue
some new regulations between now
and Friday.
Questions to Be Decided.
Here are q few Of the questions
that must be decided either this
week or later:
/. How to handle the prosecution
when an employer and a union ac-
cuse each other of unfair labor
practices"
2. Whether to rule that the con-
struction industry is In interstate
commerce and, therefore, under the
new law.
3. Just what to do about the
thousands OF old cases already pend
ing.
4. To what extent the CIO and
the AFL themselves-as well as their
affiliated unions-must comply with
the provisions for filing financial
statements and no-Communist affi-
davits.
After today, only three days re-
main in which unions and en-
ployers can sign closed shop, union
shop and other union security"
contracts in the customary un-
restricted manner. Contracts signed
before Friday can run one year, no
longer.
Starting Friday, the making of
new closed shop contracts Is for
bidden. In closed shop contract
the employer agrees to hire only
union members and to fire all non-
union members.
So far as the Federal law Is con-
cerned, 1t will continue to be alright
to sign union shop contracts, under
which nonunton men can be hired
but must then join the union to
keep their jobs. But an employer
can sign such a contract only If a
majority of the employees vote their
approval.
The situation is complicated by
the fact that many States have
passed labor laws this year.
Some of these have banned not
only the closed shop but also the
union shop, indeed any contract
compelling workers to be union
members to get or keep their jobs
In such States, the State law will
govern in this field, rather than the
Federal law.
Employers under the Federal law
will still be subject to prosecution
before the Labor Board for unfair
practices" as during the last IL
years.
Union Rights Limited.
But starting Friday, unions can't
file such charges-and they can't
be certified by the board as bar
gaining Observation-Disclosures they
have registered and furnished finan-
cial statements, and unless their