CHARLOTTE LABOR JOURNAL VOL. XVII; NO. 29 CHARLOTTE. N. C., THURSDAY, DECEMBER 4. 1917 Subscriplion §2.00 Per Year 1 Taft-Hartley Law Exposed! By J. ALBERT WOLL and HEPHERT 8. THATCHER / .^Members of the law firm of Padway. Woll, Thatcher, Glenn and Wilson, serving as general counsel for the American Federation of Labor) , Kaf This is the first of a series of articles to l>e published by the AFL Weekly News Service in refutation of an article appearing in the Saturday Evening Post which praised the Taft-Hartley law to the skies. Author of thb Pont article was J. Mack Swi gert, law partner of Senator Robert A. Taft—enough said: AFL President William Green requested the Post to grant him the opportunity of replying to the article but the request was curtly refused by Ben Hibbs. the editor, who frankly ad mitted that his magazine was one-sided on the question of the Taft-Hartley law. At the outset and before commencing a refutation of the specific points made in the Post article, it will be helpful to set forth, in broad outline form, labor’s basic objections to the Taft-Hartley Act. The arguments in support of these objections will appear in the course of refuting Mr. Swigert’s contention, and thus a rounded and whole ap proach to the point at issue—what does the Taft-Hartley Act really do—will result. The favorite device of those who attempt apologies for the act (including the writer of the Post article) is to tell only part of the story, to pick out and play up certain provisions to which no particular exception can be made (and to which labor has taken no exception), or to emphas:ze only* one claimed beneficial result of a provision to which labor does object without indicating the oth er very harmful results of that provision which far outweight any possible good the provision might appear to accomplish. Labor, objects to the Taft Hartley Act for reason^ which go to the fundamental principles of labor and economic philosophy. The act goes far beyond the cor rection of any abuses, real or im aginary; it constitutes a complete reversal of national labor and ec onomic policy. Its operation necessarily will have adverse ef fects upon our entire national economy and will seriously im pair the operation of our free enterprise system. The act reverses national and economic policy in the following respects: 1. It seeks to discourage rfther than to encourage the association of employes in free trade unions and to drive a wedge between the worker and organizations formed by workers for their mu tual aid and protection. 2. It seeks to discourage rather than to encourage the practice of free collective bargaining between parties possessing equality, of bargaining power. S. It foregoes and repudiates reliance on a free trade union movement as a means, through free collective bargaining, not only of settling labor-management difficulties, but of insuring a suf ficiently high wage level to sup ply the purchasing power neces sary for the successful function ing of our greatly productive economy. Instead, it seeks to weaken the trade union movement and thus substitute either man agement difficulties and to main regulation for the settlement of labor disputes and the mainte nance of a balanced economy. The national and economic pol icy which has been repudiated by the Taft-Hartley Act was set forth in part in the Norris-La Guardia Act protecting labor against the' abuses of the labor injunction, and then more com pletely in the Wagner Act of 1936. Under these acts it was declared to be the national policy to rely primarily on free collective bar gaining rather than governmental dictation both to settle labor-man agement difficulties adn to main tain a high level of purchasing poWer. That policy was a sound one consistent not only with the private enterprise syltem in a free society but also consistent with the new universally accepted principle that the maintenance of a wage level sufficiently high to enable the .consuming public to purchase the products of our ex tremely productive capitalist sys-.. tem is indispensable to the suc cessful functioning of that sys tem. But obviously, free and ef fective collective bargaining be tween workers and management could not exist without an equali ty of bargaining power between the parties, with a corresponding duty to bargain in good faith— conditions which did not wholly exist, particularly in the mass production industries, prior to 1935. Accordingly, the framers of the original Wagner ,Act sought to encourage the formation of a strong trade union movement by preventing employer* from d s couraging unionization. In ad dition, a duty was imposed upon employers to bargain in good faith once organisation of a ma jority of employes in a particu ; lar bargaining unit had been achieved. Thus, the Wagner Act, ns originally conceived, was nec essarily one-sided hi the sense ! that' it contained restrictions against employers only. Obvious ly employers, and particularly em» ployers in the mass production industries with their semi-monop oly status and vast resources, needed no safeguards to maintain their bargaining power on the one hand, and on the other hand were almost universally guilty of interfering with the organizational rights of their individual em ployes who could not hope to ne gotiate on their own. CONTRACTOR DECLARES UNION BLAMELESS FOR HI6H PRICES New York City.—In these days when ft is common practice for labor's foe* to biame the building trades unions for the high costs of home building, testimony of a builder refuting these charges comes as striking and telling news. William Levitt, head of a big construction company which has erected hundreds of homes for veterans on Long Island, told a congressional committee headed by Representative Ralph W. Gwinn that practices in the dis tribution of building materials are adding as much as 33 1-3 per Cent to the price of homes. He declared that a $7,500 house could be sold for $5,000 if it were rot necessary to pay profits run !* ?? over 50 per cent to middle men, who frequently never even sed the material. It was important testimony be cause. first, Gwinn, from the be ginning, has been intent on smear ing th** building trades unions j and holding them up as responsi ble for the housing difficulties; and, second, Levitt is a non-union ! contractor who has built probably more houses than any other ope rator in the Long Island area. I When he said that $2,500 could lie knocked off the price by elimi nating the “gravy" of dealers, distributors and wholesalers, he knew what he was talking about —because, to protect himself, he has secured control of two supply houses. Builders don’t stand a chance of breaking down the practice be cause it is followed by such giants as Johns-Manvilie, Kohler, Briggs, Westinghouse and General Elec tric, he said, “It’s a shame and a disgrace," Levitt declared, adding that some practices of the unions are un reasonable, but that it' is grossly unfair to blame the workers when middlemen are principally- re | sponsible. ' l\ S. LABOR LEADERS STUDYING AT HARVARD Cambridge, Mass. — Harvard - University announced that 8 U. S. I labor leaders, including trainmen and bo-lermakers, are studying ! it the university this year. The unum men, designated as i “labor fellows" by the university, j ire studying for 9 months such i subjects as labor law. collective bargaining and human relations. The courses are paid for jointly by Harvard and various unions, to give union leaders a better understanding of labor-managa ment relations.' o - Unlike anyone else at the uni versity, the 28-to-41-year-old la bor leaders are nyt required to "pass" a single course to stay there. The only requirement is | "proVen ability to serve the labor movement and records as union officers.” ROY HORN. AFL MAN. DIES St. Louis—Roy Horn, 75, retired general president of the AFL Brotherhood of Blacksmiths. Drop Forgers and Helpers, died at a hospital here. He was president of the brotherhood from 1926 un til last March and had been a member of the union since 1900. Voluntary Wage Control Is Held Possible If Inflation Is Curbed LOWER TREND IN IDLENESS CAUSED BY WORK STOPPAGES The number of strikes and time lost because of work stoppages continued to decline in October, according to preliminary estimates of the Bureau of Labor Statistics. The BLS report showed that since last April there has j been a continued downward trend in labor-management i disputes resulting in cessation of work. Preliminary estimates indicate that 175 new stoppages, involving 60,000 workers, occurred in October as compared, with 200 stoppages, involving 75.000 workers, beginning in September. Idleness due to work stoppages in plants directly involved was estimated at 1,850,000 man-days in j October as against 2.000.000 in September, i Total stoppages in effect during October, including those which continued from earlier months, numbered 350 and involved approximately 145.000 workers. The lengthy CIO shipyard strike, affecting about 35.000 employes. Continued as the larges* >t>ppage during the month. The Federal Mediation and ConcifSation Service termi nated 83 stoppage cases involving 21,500 workers in Oc tober in addition, the Service settle 405 controversies and threatened strikes, involving 184,000 workers, before work stoppages developed. All known work stoppages, arising out of labor-manage ! ment disputes, involving six or more w-orkers and continu ing as long as a full day or shift are included ir. reports j of the Bureau of Labor Statistics. Figures on “man-davs (idle” and “workers involved" cover all workers made idle in establishments directly involved in a stoppage They do not measure the indirect or secondary effects or other establishments or industries whose employes are i made idle as a result of material or service shortages. \ EMPLOYMENT III CQHSTRUG TIOII UK III 1948 WILL EXCEED OVER 2,000,000 Washington, D. C.—Nearly 2, 150.000 wo,isrs will be employed in the construction industry *« September of 1948, 250,000 more than in the peak month of 1047. according to estimate* of the Bu reau of Labor Statistics. j The estimate is base'i upon a [forecast of construction outlay! j totaling $15,200,000,000 Jn 1943 j prepared jointly by the Lab vr an i j Commerce Departments. It is estimated that private I builders pill start 950,000 new permanent dwellings next year—! an all-time high. This figurei tops the 1025 peak of 937,000 j units, and exceeds the expected i 1947 private total by nearly j 100.000 publicly financed dwellings are expected to be started in 1948, compared with around 5.000 th « year. Considering the pro ductive capacity of the indus try, and anticipated labor and materials supply, there is a good possibility that the number of private units to be started next year will actually exceed 950,00*). In any case, it is unlikely that anything but a severe recession will cause the number of housing starts to fall belo*y this eor.serv aive estimate. Roughly a third of the con traction workers will-be engaged at the site of new housing proj ects in September, 1948, about the same as in tW peak month of this year. Unlike 1947. rel atively little fluctuation in the ! level of residential building is ■ expected in 1948, with the mainte nance of comparatively high lev els throughout the spring and j summer months. Indications now are that the j rising rate of apartment building, which began last May, will con tinue into 1948 but that the in crease in housing for moderate and low - income families will be slight. Should the homebuilders make strides next year in a mod Ierately priced housing program, the possibility for achieving a volume of starts in excess of the estimate would appear very good. The number of permanent homes to be completed in 1948 is expected to reach 986,000. around 160,000 more than the ! estimated figure for 1947. Com ' pletions totaled only about 440,000 dwellings in 1946. IDLENESS DUE OF WORK STOPPAGES IN N. Y. STATE HITS NEW LOW FOR 194T Albany, N. V.—Titllprn because of work stoppages 'Sjr New York State dropped lo 'a'record weekly low for the year during the week ending November 8. Industrial Commissioner Edward Corsi re vealed. i The statewide total of 3,625 persons away from their jobs be-: ■ause of strikes throughout the ’ state was 8 285 below the prev ■ < week'* total and 6.275 less than this year's high, on April j 14, when the nationwide tele-: here strike was in progress. Of the 2,625 idle workers. 2,- ! t*90 were in New York City, in volved in 41 stoppages. The seven other disputes recorded at the weekend, involving 635 workers, were upstate. The November 8 total was the lowest since the State Labor De partment started checking week- | ly total two years ago. The low- ( est tota* in l'.*46 was« 5,100, for the week ending December 28. Major factor in the sharp de-! crease, said Mr. Corsi. was termination of the 136-day CIO Bethlehem Steel Shipyard strike which sent’. 9,500 workers back to their jobs. Five other small disputes were also settled during the week, returning about 320 other persons to work, but five new strikes, involving approxi mately 1.590 wage earners also ■occurred during the week. “This report. declared t on I m.ssioner Oorsi. “reflect* the | vigorous economic an : industrial health of the state, which, stem ming from the maturity and sense of responsibility of both labor and management, has played a large part in the maintenance of New York’s excellent strike rec ord” 'O’BRIEN, SHEET METAL WORKERS OFFICIAL, DIES Washington, D. C.—William M. O’Brien, “nretary-treasurer of the AFL’s International Associa te -n of Sheet Metal Workers. die groups also established new rec i ords for the number of appren tices in training at the end of October, he said, giving the fol lowing break-down: Wood-working trades, 39,92b; electrical trades, 17.2(h); pipe trades, 15.658; trowel trades, 14,799; painting and dec orating trades, 8,560; sheet metal trades, 7,990; other building trades, 4,705. Patterson commended the tile setting industry for taking an im portant step forward recently when it adopted National Stand ards for Tile Setters. These standards are patterns for estab lish ng local apprenticeship pro grams. Yhe standards were form ulated jointly by the Tile Con tractors’ Association of America. Inc., and the Bricklayers'. Masons' and Plasterers' International Un ion of America with the assist ance of the Apprentice-Training Service. The construction industry now has 13 such national apprentice ship standards covering all of the major building trades. All of the standards were set up jointly! by national contractor, organiza tions and unions, he 'declared. Apprenticeship not only devel op* craftsmen, hut helps to. de velop good citizens, Patterson said, stating: " “‘Apprentices* see .democracy at' work for their own welfare in the voluntary ce-operation be tween employers and their em ployes to teach them their crafts. Apprentice-trained craftsmen are self-sufficient workers with h gh earning power They are am bitious individuals -*triv'ng to improve their- economic condition. From their ranks we get not only I f >remert and supervisors for in : duslry, hut many of our union leaders, employer* and ci"ic lead ers. Apprenticeship as it is con ducted in the United States is one of the bulwarks against the ‘isms' rampant in other countries today.” 2.#(K).0fH) ON l . 8. PAY ROLL Leilas Tex. — The number of civilian employes of the Federal government has decreased from a peak of 3,770,0**0 in mid-1945 to j 2,000.000 now, Henry F. Hubbard,! Washington executive vice-chair man of the Federal Personnel Council, said here at the Civil [ Service Assembly of the Unite.! States and Canada. The current civil service payroll averages $500,000,000 a month, hq said. The assembly is composed of civil service agency directors and of other individuals engaged in government personnel administra tion. AM- President William <>reen c'ced -imilar views in a recent adio address commenting upon 'he President’s program. Me de lare.i that the pressure for wage increases would relax if the cost f living is kept in check and suit ires ted a. trial period prior to enactment by the Government of stringent controls over wages. In discussing the controversial question. Mr. Schwellenbach said: *’It is. my belief that the stab ilisation of our economy in such a way as to avo'd further price spirals, as an essential part of the total program, can be achieved through voluntary restraint if the other parts of the program are carried forward. Even if it is decided to control prices of certain industrial products, di rectly rather than through, alloca tions, I am of the belief that it may well be possible through vol untary action, assuming that the cost of living is held, to ensure that wage costs are kept in line with the controlled prices in the same product lines. This will require constant and careful watching of the wage picture, both in the industries where prices are controlled, and in the key in dustries where nationwide wage movements begin.” To accomplish this purpose Sec retary Schwellenbach recommend ed the establishment in the De partment of Labor of a wage board to “watch and report on the course of companion wage questions.” He said: “This board might be composed of Government officials, of public members or might well tripartite and include representatives of la bor, management, and thd public. Such a hoard would also be of direct use to management and labor who are trying, on a vol untary basis, to maintain price wage stability.” oiucn oi air. acnweuennacn a testimony was devoted to an ex planation of the President’s re quest for authority to exercise price and wage controls where necessary to control the threat of further inflation. He declared: “There may be a handful of critical situations within the price pontrol industries where questions of wages will become crucial fac tors that cannot be solved by voluntary action alone. It is for this reason that the President has proposed authority to impose “such wage ceilings a* are nec essary to maintain the necessary price oilrigs." This standard 'detines the area where controls may neecesary, and at the out set restricts their application to a very r:\jall segment of the econ omy. / "In view of the highly selec tive nature of the price controls proposed, and the fact that many of them will affect agricultural prices, it is unlikely that the need for wage controls would arise in more than a ■ ery few cases. Be fore compulsory authority is in voke!, however, every, effort should be made to exhaust voluntary methods. "'Even where wage ‘control* have to be used as a companion to price fontryls. this would not necessarily mean a wage freexe. Here again, there is room for adjustment of inequities in the process of etablihing both wage and price levels. Any action that is likely to be taken in control ing wages—in a few casea that (Continued On Page 4)