Toledo union journal. [volume] (Toledo, Ohio) 1942-current, 1948-09-10
Maurice Tobin
Gives Views
On TIL Law
Labor Secretary
Says Law Is
Blow At Unionism

WASHINGTON (LPA) - AT
his first press conference here,
new Labor Secretary Maurice
Tobin led off with a bitter at
tack on the damage done to La
bor-management peace by pass
age of the Taft-Hartley law.
Concentrating especially on
the ban of the closed shop, Tobin
said that under the law "the
closed shop is declared illegal
and cannot be contracted for by
those employers who desire it
and consider it mutually advan-
tageous." ." He called the ban on
the 100year old practice 'im-
practical" and conceded that it
led to "lot Of bootlegging and
dealing under the table"
The next day, President Tru-
man told reporters that he is in
complete accord with Tobin's
views. And Chairman j. Howard
McGrath of the Democratic Ma
tional Committee add on the
same day that the outlawing of
the hiring hall under the TIL in
the Great Lakes maritime union
case is an unwarranted inva-
sion of the principle of free col.
lective bargaining but legal un-
der the Taft-Hartley law. 1t
proves the point made by the
President in his veto message in
1947."
Tobin told reporters that he
hoped to name an under-secre-
tary for the department within
a month. The gap was left by
the resignation of John Kmetz,
and will undoubtedly be filled
by an AFL official. No one can
be named to fill the post left
vacant when Under-secretary
David Morse resigned, but to a
technicality.
The new Labor Department
head indicated that he hoped to
confer soon with AFL President
William Green and CIO Presi-
dent Philip Murray, as well as
other union leaders.
Here are Tobin's views on the
Taft-Hartley law:
cat the time the Taft-Hartley
law was passed millions of
workers were getting along
amicably with employers under
the closed shop agreements ar
rived by mutual consent Few
strikes occurred in industries
where the closed shop was the
tradition and the pattern, for
the most part, was one of labor
management cooperation and
understanding. The closed shop
has been in existence in the
United States for more than a
century, and was relied upon by
employers as well as employees
to create stable conditions of
employment and to obtain and
maintain an adequate supply OF
qualified workers in skilled
trades and occupations. Under
the aft-Hartley law, the closed
shop is declared illegal and can
not be contracted for by those
employers who desire it and
consider it mutually advanta-
geous.
While the union shop is per-
missible under the Taft Hartley
law, the union and employer
cannot enter into a union-shop
agreement until they have sub
mitted to the cumbersome
arrangements of the act and an
election of employees is con-
Quoted at public expense. Such
elections are repaired even
where there is already in exis-
tence clear evidence that the
employees and the employer are
willing and ready to enter into a
unlon-shop agreement.
with the Government more
deeply involved than ever be-
fore in the process of public Of
ficals, if any expenditure of
money is involved, thus the Act
prevents workers from taking
an effective position to protect
their economic security AS 1 un-
derstand the law a union could
not even pay for a hall for the
purpose of conducting a meeting
J to discuss candidates or issues in
national election. A court has
held that a union cannot buy
newspaper advertising space or
radio time for this purpose un-
der the provisions of the Taft
Hartley Act.
"Such restrictions on organ
lied labor were never in our
history a part of the federal law.
The law is blow at unionism.
Unionism for over century has
been a potent factor in our
American system. and in recent
years a heavy contributing fac
tor to our country'S overall pros
perity."
- s.