Newspapers / The Charlotte labor journal … / Nov. 30, 1944, edition 1 / Page 1
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Che Charlotte labor Journal ~~ EndF7dtritu^eoff'l^UUt ' AND DIXIE FARM NEWS Offieialfrgan of Control Labor Uni*;^Standing _ ’ for tho A. F. L. _^_ ____ . VOL. XIV. NO. 29 *“v”T,'“‘",TJlr!lLr',"*t * ‘ *°°* CHARLOTTE, N. C, THURSDAY, NOVEMBER 30, 1944 ▼W9t Rkaoki i ■ u i n m ■■ mm—mm———————— BacK Up The, Boys — With Bonds Free Labor Will Out-Produce Nazi Slaves--' THE A. F. OF L SLOGAN FOR 1944 Tk9 ONLY REALLY INDEPENDENT WEEKLY to MochhatHgf C—aty For a Weekly Its Roadero Repreaent thm LARGEST BUYING POWER in Chariot* PRES. GREEN OFFERS TO RESIGN FOR SAKE OF LABOR UNITY; KILLS POLITICAL ACTION GROUP NEW ORLEANS, Nov. 28.—President William Green, in a fervent bid for union with the CIO and United Mine workers, of fered today to quit the helm of the American Federation of Labor if it would lead to labor solidarity. Green, deploring the reception accorded to his other pleas for unity by CIO President Philip Mur ray. and asserting he had been subjected to unprecedented attack by UMWA President John L. Lewis, told the AFL convention he would be “willing to go” as president after 20 years in office, if it would bring about a combination of forces. The convention voted to reopen ne gotiation*, if possible, with the CIO and miners, which collapsed during 1943. Combined membership of the big three groups would total about 18 million workers. The convention took the step over the protest of John Marchiando, pres ident-elect of the APL Progressive Miners, who said Lewis “hasn't changed his spots'' and that the 38, 000 mebers of that AFL group “won’t stop fighting” against absorption by the Lewis-doinated union. The AFL in effect “buried” reso lutions which would have set up a “political action group” similar to CIO’s PAC. It sent to its executive Committee, without a word of debate, the proposals that AFL organize to get out the labor vote. On the controversial wage stabili sation question, the convention ap proved the naming of a committee to call upon President Roosevelt and re quest that he immediately revise pol icy to allow for increased living costs. The convention asked for an exec utive order “to realistically adjust the Little Steel formula” to permit employers and workers to make vol untary wage adjustments without submission to the National War La bor board. George Meany, an AFL member of the WLB, said the CIO had refused to go along with AFL members in a joint effort to break the Little Steel formula, on which the administration stabilization policy is built. Referring to the WLB decision ir. the CIO-Steel Workers cases last Saturday, Meany said, “The CIO also failed to break the formula but did get a few crumbs from the board in the form of a few cents here and there.” Meany, while he did not clarify to whom he referred, said further: "We call it the refinement of cru elty when we hear some public offi cial talk Ibout * 60,000,000 postwar jobs and at the same time doesn’t see that this evil (wage policy) is cor rected. “Anyone who says this can be done without providing for postwar wages and purchasing power is telling the people of the country a damnable un truth.” CIG. SHORTAGE IS NOT DUE TO ~ NEED OF LABOR —V— RALEIGH. — Failing fags in the United States and with the Soya over there cannot be charged to manpow er policies, regulations or shortages. While every industry is plagued with manpower “shortages in trying to keep up with production schedules, cigarette manufacturing firms in North Carolina, not only have held their own, but have actually increas ed the numbers of workers during the past two and one-half years, It is revealed by Dr. J. S. Dorton, State director of the War Manpower Com mission. “Our records show that in May, 1942, the three big cigarette manu facturers with four groups of plants in North Carolina, employed 16,469 workers," said Dr. Dorton. “One year later, in May, 1943, the number employed was 17,187, an increase of 728 workers. In March, 1944, the number had increased to 18,176, and in May the number dropped 40 to 18,136 workers. “In July of this year, the first WeUMWMMMNWUMMMMHH month of the Priorities Referral Plan, these same tobacco firms had 18,259 workers, a slight increase from the previous March and May, and this month, November, the numbers of workers had increased to 18,482, or 223 more than in July of this year and 2,023 more than in May, 1942. -V LOCALS HOLD BONDS WASHINGTON. —Reports to the Treasury indicate that more than 7,500 international and local unions of the CIO now have substantial por tions of their funds invested in war bonds. These investments range from a few hundred dollars for the smaller local unions to more than 3500,000 representing purchases of the United Steel Workers of America. -y TRAINING FILMS RELEASED WASHINGTON — The United States Office of Education announce; the release of 14 new motion pic tures to aid in training war produc tion workers in vocational schools and war industries. Topics covered include aircraft maintenance, pipe fitting, welding and engineering. ITS LABOR'S WAR — LETS FIGHT—WITH PAT DOLLARS IN WAR BONDS. ■MMMmSWWWWNWWMWVMI f American Hepoes .. _by JULIAN OUL6NDOT2TF — ■ II II — 111 II ■ 11 I I— tank ha was driving when water in the fuel line caused it to stall, rvt. Abe Partner at Livermore, Kjr., later returned, cleaned the fud sedi ment bowl and got the machine in operation, while still under heavy fire. The tank, repeatedly hit, stalled and Fortner repeated his cleaning I until it finally went up in a Maze. The private has a bronze medal for 1 his feat hot War Bonds must be sold to replace the tank. 1 V. S. Trmtmry Dtpflmtnt Free Labor Will Out-Prodace Nazi Slaves "FIGHT - WORK - SAVE” SOLID FRONT SOUGHT BY AJ\L; RESOLUTIONS ASKING RENEWAL OF NEGOTIATIONS SUBMITTED NEW ORLEANS, Nov. 21. — The American Federation of Labor reached oat for the elusive thread of labor solidarity at home and abroad yesterday in resolutions submitted to the annual convention and expressions of President William Green. In the national field, union with the CIO—which walked out of the AFL fold in 1937—appeared still to be a dream of the parent organisa tion, whose executive council urged that the negotiations abandoned in 1943 be picked up again, if possible. CIO President Philip Murray, in convention in Chicago last week, held out his hand to the rank and file of the AFL but made clear he had little intention of accepting overtures of the leaders. Despite this, resolutions calling for resumption of negotiations were to be submitted to the AFL Convention for action. These included mainly those offered by David Dubinslcy and his Ladies Garment Workers. In addi tion to peace with the CIO, Dubin sky had offered one authorising re newal of talks with John L. Lewis and the now Independent United Mine W'orkers about returning to the 4UPIj. The Resolutions Committee’s rec ommendations on these subjects were expected to carry considerable weight with the 600 delegates. In the international field, Pres ident Green extended an invitation to all world-wide labor groups to join with the AFL in battling for an en during peace. He said the AFL would demand a place at the peace table. He made this appeal after a talk yesterday by Arthur Horner, sent to the convention as a fraternal dele gate from the British Trades Union Congress. Horner says he is a mem ber of the Central Committee of the British Communist Party. Horner was outspoken in praise of Russian contribution to the winning of the war, referred to the prevailing unity of trade unions in America and Britain brought about by the pro ductive burdens of the war, and ask ed that this unity be broadened to include the Soviets in the post-war period. COL A. L FLETCHER COMMENTS ON N. C. WAGE RATE; NEXT TO THE LOWEST IN UNITED STATES RALEIGH, Nov. 28—Using figures which have just recent ly become available on war-time employment and wages, the Un employment Compensation Commission has issued a bulletin which shows, among other things, that average weekly wages in North Carolina are next to the lowest in the country. Only South Caro Una shows a lower average wage. The average weekly wage for North Carolina is given as $26.51. For the United States as a whole, the average is $40.77. In commenting on this report, Col. A. L. Fletcher, U. C* C. Chairman, said “the low wage scale in North Carolina partly accounts for the fact that this state pays the lowest aver age weekly benefit amount in unem ployment compensation, since the size of the benefit check is determined by the amount of previous earning.. The present benefit schedule in the law is also partly accountable for the rela (tively small amounts of benefits that are payable in North Carolina,' Fletcher said. “On the other hand, in proportion to the number of workers it protects, this state's unemployment fund is thought to be one of the most substantial state reserves." The bulletin analyzing state and national wage data which has been prepared by S. F. Campbell, head of the Commission s Bureau of Research and Statistics, makes use of figures reported for 1943 to the Social Secur lty Board from the various state em ployment security agencies. wages in Alaska and Michigan averaged more than |50; those for California, Con necticut, Nevada, New Jersey, Ohio, Oregon and _ Washington averaged more than |45. At the other end of the scale is North Carolina with ?u*raP week,y wages of $26.51. Al £°U?h JEW ,n Arkans*s appear to bs sightly lower, the difference is ^y.Mr- CampbeU to be more *h*" real- The wage figure of $34.21 for South Carolina alone is clearly below that for this state. Comparisons between North Caro lina industries and those for the Uni ted States as a whole may be drawn from the data. Mr. Campbell's analy sis states that notwithstanding wage increases of more than half in North Carolina daring the past three years, the state average wage in manufac turing is still 39 per cent below the national level. In the manufacture of paper, the production of which on a large scale is of recent origin in this state, the wage scale compares favorably with that of the nation, due possibly to the employment of skilled labor of a special type. The average weekly wage in the manufacture of tobacco appears higher for North Carolina than for tee nation. This may be accounted for by the fact that in the statistical records of this state, the lower wages paid for leaf processing carried on by independent tobacco dealers is not included with tobacco manufacturing. Except for these two industrial categories of paper and tobacco, the nearest approach in this state to the national average in wages is shown ! for the manufacture of transporta tion equipment, in which the state wage level is only eight per cent be low the national. The greatest con trast between state and national wage levels is found in the manufac ture of stone and clay products. These are largely brick, tile and ce ment products. In the manufacture of textile prod ucts* which accounts for more than 40 per cent of all North Carolina em ployment reported to the Unemploy ment Compensation Commission, average weekly wages are almost four per cent above the average for'all of labor. However, these state textile wages are 12 per cent below the national average in textile prod ucts manufacturing; and are 55 per W"; the national average for labor in all manufacturing industries. USE THE PAYROLL PLAN— 10% EACH WEEK FOR WAR BONDS ——--- - FUND OF MILLION DOLLARS STARTS OFF WITH $100.00 —V— NEW YORK.—Six weeks before the official opening of its campaign for a minimum of $1,000,000, the Free Trade Union Committee has al ready received a contribution of $100 from A. Philip Randolph, preaident of the rBotherhood of Sleeping Car Porters, announced Matthew Woll, president of the Committee. The Brotherhood of Sleeping Car Porters thus becomes the first of the hundreds of national and interna tional AFL unions to extend its con crete support to the work of the Com mittee. The Committee was set up by the Lubor League for Human Rights in order to strengthen and re-establish democratic trade unions abroad. . -V PitrwiM Journal Advert bora. —V—~ “What kind of a dress did Peinrv "«ar last night?” **** ^1 don’t remember, it was checked.” beenr' What * P*rty jt “U8t have —V— And then there was the eager at torney who stayed up all night try »ng to break the widow’s will * TO WIN THE WAR SOONER let us all work HARDER THERE ARE NO UNIONS OR ANT OTHER FREE INSTITUTIONS |JNDEB NAZI OR JAP RULE. A WARNING TO MEMBERS OF LABOR ORGANIZATIONS IN THIS SECTION AS TO CONSTITUTIONAL AMENDMENTS By J. A. MOORE, President Charlotte Central Labor Union In recent months the states of California, Arkansas and Florida have been in the midst of heated campaigns on the ques tion of the adoption of amendments to the state constitution in each state which outlaws the union shop agreement between em ployers an dtheir employes. The amendment was defeated in California. It was adopted in Florida by less than 14,000 major ity, and adopted in Arkansas by 7,000 majority. inese amendments ware introduced into the above states and sponsored by» Texas aggregation known as The Christian American Associa tion." The leader in this aggrega t*?n *. ?*“* to be U. S. Senator Lee O Daniels, who tried so desperately hard to defeat Roosevelt in the recent campaign. His henchmen who direct the campaigns for the amendments •5* V*n Muse and Val Sherman, both of Port Worth, Texas. These men are recognised as high-pressure men, and it Is known that they obtain great sums of money from rich cor porations and monopolies with which *® c*rry on their campaigns against the Trade Union Movement. It now appears from recent devel opments that this crowd is coming into North Carolina for the purpose of agitating the adoption of such an amendment by this state. -These men are shrewd workers, and are suc cessful in deceiving many good men and women and getting them interest ed in the promotion and support of this so-called “right-to-work” amend ment. It, is the duty of our organi sations in this city and state to fully acquaint our friends among the pub lic as to the evils of such proposals. Of course, there are some people who will welcome an opportunity to do all they can hgainst Organised Labor, and we can expect no aid from them. We can, however, min much sup port from men in business and public life by making known to them the hypocrisy and mean intent of any amendment which destroys the right of contract. We must get busy. SHOWS TIRES , WIN BATTLES —V— WASHINGTON.—'“Highballing to Victory,” new 20-minute Army film made op of combat footage taken on the world-wide fighting fronts, will be available for union showings on November 26. Dramatising the war time importance of tires, the movie points out that battles would and dis astrously for the nation that no long er had them. Like all War Depart ment films, "Highballing to Victory” is a sound Him, available in 16-mm or 86-mm sise. Inquiries should be addressed to: Motion Picture Branch, Industrial Services Division, Room 1818, 1501 Broadway, New York 18, New York. -V Patronise Journal Advertisers THE A. F. OF L. STANDS WITH AND FOR THE FLAG —-y THE MARCH OF LABOR NACftOA MINIMUM WAG€ LAh/ M 1909. 1 « i
Nov. 30, 1944, edition 1
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