The journal. (Caldwell, Ohio) 1934-1961, 1949-10-27
The 80
American Way
EvENTUALLY-WHY
NOT NOW?
By MAURICE R. FRANKS

lZed labor has fought Tor collec-
tive bargaining as a legal estab-
lishment. it would seem that un-
ion leaders, as a matter of
course, would go all out to apply
it. Instead, our present crop of
labor chieftains, big and little,
senior and junior, appear to place
small faith in it effectiveness.
On the slightest provocation,
they leap from the conference
room and 60 running to the gov
ernment for intervention.
We have the steel dispute at
hand for easy reference. Here
the union leaders, ide-tracking
the principle of collective bar
gaining, made a demand on the
industry based solely on figures
supplied by a so-called "statisti-
cian". When told by the employ
ers it would be impossible to
meet this initial demand, the un-
ion leaders declined to approach
the issue any farther via the
avenue Of collective, bargaining.
Threatening to call a nation wide
steel strike, they cornered the
President into setting up a fact
finding board. Apparently they
were confident that friendly
President would appoint board
friendly to their side of the dis
pute and, with eyes glued on fig
ures obtained from their own
private "fact-finders," they look
ed forward to a decision strongly
biased in their favor.
Possibly the decision of the
board, when it came, was a dis
appointment to the leaders of
the Steelworkers union-for it
made no bones about pointing
out that the steel industry could
not possibly accede to run union
demand. Being made up of hon.
est, fair minded men, the board
rendered what it believed to be a
fair opinion. Unable, due to lack
of time and technical know
ledge, to learn all the facts, the
Presidents fact-finders never
theless dealt squarely with what
ever facts did actually come to
light. And herein lies a lesson
for all labor leaders-a lesson
that some of them may thus far
have overlooked:
The likelihood is slight that any
capacity the one appointed to
the President will ever be made
up of crooks or imbeciles-
chances are all such boards will
match in integrity and mental
capacity the one appointed to
examine the steel industry. Very
well, if organized labor in the
future is to place its faith in such
governmental boards, rather than
collective bargaining, the day
may not be too far distant when
another such board will render
another honest opinion-one
which, based on indisputable
facts, may possibly call for re-
duction, rather than increase, in
wages.
With eyes wide open to reality
Samuel Gompers pointed out
the way for organized labor's
surest advancement. "The hope
of the public, and hope of the
workers, the hope of all for
peace and progress, for contin-
uity of production and for safe
ty from oppression, lies not in
state-erected machine, he de-
clared, but in acceptance by
employers generally of the ma
chinery of collective bargaining"
This practical goal has now
been achieved, and every honest
labor leader knows it. More than
that, untold advantage has thus
far accrued to organized labor
as a result of that achievement.
The wonder then is that at this
late stage of the game, some of
our greatest leaders of labor
coldly turn their backs upon this
basic instrument of effective un-
ionism and go in search of the
very state-erected machinery de-
cried by Gompers.
If unionism is to enjoy long
life, it must build on its own ac-
complishments-and one of the
most sturdy of these is its col
lective- bargaining status, its
n-to-man equality with man
agement before the law. BY re-
linquishing all this in favor of
the dictates of government, or
ganized labor is only digging its
own grave. If the strike is to be-
come but a device for switching
the agencies of government into
the picture, then unionism is on
ly preparing its own body for
burial.
Ali industrial disputes are ev-
entually settled, either one way
or another. Thus far, ONE WAY
has been, discovered whereby
they can be settled without loss
to either side-namely, at the
bargaining table, while the
wheels of industry still turn and