Evening star., 1949-06-30
Final Senate Action
On Labor Measure
Is Scheduled Today
By J. A. O'Leor

BY J. A. OIeoy
The Senate is all set to dispose
OF the controversial labor issue
today. without repeating the Taft
Hartley law, and move on to the
North Atlantic defense pact.
If Senator Taft. Republican, of
Ohio succeeds, as most observers
expect, in writing the rest Of his
amendments into the labor meas
ure, it will look 50 much like the
present Taft-Hartley Act that or
ganized labor and the Truman
administration are ready to aban-
don it,
They made 1t clear yesterday
that they would rather leave the
original law as 1t Is for another
year and make 1t a 1850 campaign
issue than accept the substitute
Of q Taft-led coalition, which re-
tains the salient features Of the
Taft Hartley Act.
Will Seek to Defeat Taft.
Labor leaders were already pre-
pairing to 60 after Senator Taft's
scalp when he runs for reelection
next year. and his apparent vic
tory in the current labor bill
fight easily will make Ohio the
main ring in the 1850 congress
sional elections.
Seeking to carry out President
Truman's promise to labor last
year to repeal Taft-Hartley, ad-
ministration Senators started out
with a bill which did just that by
reinstating the Wagner Act with
a few notifications.
Senator Taft offered a substi-
tute in two parts. The battle
was really decided two days ago
when the Senate adopted the first
half, so to 40. That nailed into
the administration measure spe-
cific authority. for the President
to use either injunctions. or plant
seizure, or both, to head off ma
tional emergency strikes.
Soon after 2 o'clock this after
noon the Senate will vote on the
remaining half of the Taft plan,
which put into the administra-
ton bill many other major fea-
lures of the original Taft-Hartley
Law without material changes.
These include: Continuation Of
the ban on closed-shop contracts.
but permitting the union shop;
use of temporary tnjunctions
against unfair labor practices,
ban on mass picketing. keeping
the Federal Mediation Service in
dependent. and exempting man
agement from compulsory bar
gaining with foremen.
Labor Leaders Criticize Bill.
Without waiting for this second
half of the Taft plan to be voted
on, spokesmen for the CIO and
AFL left no doubt yesterday that
Tuesdays adoption Of the injunc-
ton weapon makes the bill un-
acceptable to them.
Assuming the Senate will pass
the Taft version late today. the
administration has two ways Of
letting the bill die. House lead
ers could pigeonhole the Senate
measure, or pass it and let Presi-
dent Truman veto it. The voting |
to date shows the Taft supporters
would not have two-thirds required
to override a veto. Nv |
Senator Taft struck back yes
terday at a letter to Majority
Leader Lucas from AFL President
William Green stating that adop-
ton of the Injunction feature !
made it a waste of time to try to
make the remainder of the bill
more "palatable."
"Mr. Green is undertaking to /
vote the Senate bill before 1t
passes," said Senator Taft.
The Ohioan contended a veto
based on the injunction provision
would be untenable because ad-
ministration spokesmen have
argued that the President already
has general constitutional power
to seek injunctions if strike en-
dangers public health or safety.
3 Senators Sponsor Amendment.
There may. be some last-minute
efforts to modify the Taft plan
before the final vote today. but |
this was not certain.
One Of the pending amend
ments. sponsored by three New |
England Republicans, is designed
to prevent States from enforcing |
stricter right to work" laws than
the Federal law.
The three Senators are Bald
win Of Connecticut. Saltonstall of
Massachusetts and Flanders of
Vermont.
Seventeen States. mostly In the
South and West, have laws re-
stricting contracts that make
union membership a condition of
employment. The Taft bill does
not 60 as far as most of those
LOST.