January Rallies Will Start
Gompers Memorial Campaign
St. Paul.— The American Fed
eration of Labor ordered a two
pronged drive for 1950 to organize
* million new members and to re
peal the Taft-Hartley law by elect
ing a liberal Congress.
Winding up its 68th annual con
vention, the AFL welded this strong
platform of action on the domestic
front to a program of world ac
tion backing up the formation of
a new democratic free international
trade union organisation and sup
porting a firm United States for
- eign policy to repel communism
. and fascism in Asia, Europe and
Latin America.
The convention sounded a cry
for a new battle against the Taft
Hartley law. Its repeal was listed
as the paramount issue of a broad
1950 platform. The convention’s
closing sessions brought these out
standing developments:
1. Plans to start in January
a drive for a million new members
as a tribute to Samuel Gompers,
First AFL president, and to co
ordinate it with the political edu
cation campaign for repeal of Taft
Hartley and election of a liberal
Congress.
2. Adoption of an international
relations program supporting for
mation of a new free democratic
world labor organisation next
month in London and urging
against appeasement or commun
ism and fascism anywhere.
3. Unanimous reelection of AFL
President William Green, Secre
tary-Treasurer George Meany and
all other members of the Executive
Council.
4. Adoption of proposals to gel
the Senate to liberalise the social
security bill passed by the House
of Representatives; to get congres
sional enactment of a broad na
tional health program, and repeal
of taxes on sales, pay rolls, amuse
ments.
5. A change in the convention
meeting time to the third Monday
in September annually and receipt
of invitations to go to Houston,
Texas; Cleveland, or Miami in 1950.
6. Speeches by Secretary of
Defense Louis A. Johnson and
Maritime Commission Chairman
Philip Fleming, praising AFL co
operation in building the national
defense. Both pledged continued
cooperation with the AFL.
7. Endorsement of a shorter
work week to spread jobs and re
duce unemployment.
8. Further moves to induce the
International Association of Ma
chinists to reaffiliate with the
:AFL and to merge all organised
labor under the AFL banner.
Link Drives as Memorial
The convention undertook a drive
for a million new members next
year as a means of paying tribute
to the memory of Mr. Gompers on
the 100th anniversary of hie birth
in 1850. It directed “complete co
ordination of political activity with
the expansion of organisation
among the unorganised.”
“These two gigantic efforts," the
convention said, “cannot help but
increase the prestige and member
ship of the AFL and at the same
time protect the welfare and de
mocracy of all organised workers.”
The AFL expressed disappoint
ment with the filure of the 81st
Congress to repeal the Taft-Hart
ley law in accordance with the
mandate given by the 1948 elec
tions.
"If the 81st Congress persists'
in its refusal to act affirmatively,”
the convention said, "we are pre
pared again to take our appeal to
the people of this country and to
make Taft-Hartley repeal the para
70 YEARS
PROGRESS'
Seventy years oqo this
1 month Edison invented
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the first of his hundreds
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With Edison's great dis
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growth of Business Man
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which have contributed
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During these years the
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mount issue of the 1950 congres
sional election campaign.
"Though defeated in our first
attempt because our adversaries
had a few more votes in Congress
than we, it is our determination
to redouble our efforts in wiping
out this majority and elect to Con
gress men who will heed and carry
out the will of the people. Bor
rowing a phrase from President
Truman’s message to this conven
tion, ‘Taft-Hartley repeal is Amer
ica’s unfinished business now, not
the business alone of the labor
movement, but that of every fair
minded citizen of our land’.”
All Officers Reelected
President Willian Green, Secre
tary-Treasurer Geojrge Meany and
the 13 vice presidents were unani
mously reelected by acclamation.
In accepting election for the 26th
time, Mr. Green recalled that when
he first was called to head the
AFL there were less than 2,000.000
members. He recounted the na
tion's cycle of wars and economic
changes during which the AFL
grew steadily to 8,000,000 mem
bers.
i nc caune ui moor is a religion |
to me,” Mr. Green said. "I shall
give in the future as in the part
ail I have, the best I have, all
my service for the good of labor.”
The 700 delegates gave him a
standing ovation.
The election climaxed the highly
successful convention featured by
a succession of important speakers
and a round of social affairs that
took union officials into many af
fairs in St. Paul, Minneapolis and
surrounding cities.
Weary delegates held a final
night session to hammer out the
final planks in the AFL’s progress
ive 1960 platform. Here is a
thumbnail summary of some of the
more Important actions:
Economic developments—Deval
uation of the pound sterling by
Great Britain and concurrent work
stoppages in coal and steel indus
tries in this country have occurred
with unpredictable consequences
but our free enterprise system can
absorb shocks if free to readjust
and plan new expansion.
National health insurance — It
now appears that Congress may
adopt certain portions of this pro
gram, such as extended federal aid
for hospital construction, school
health and local health units. The
AFL must continue to emphasise
its long-standing position that the
health problem of working people
will not be adequately met except
through a comprehensive and all
inclusive system of prepaid health
insurance so that the economic
barrier between patient and doctor
is removed.
Taxation—Wartime excise taxe-i
should be repealed. Federal, state
and local tax systems should be
integrated. Taxes on sales, pay
rolls and amusements should be
repealed and progressive tax pro
grams adopted at all levels based
on the ability-to-pay principle.
Radio and press public relations
—All members are urged to tell
neighbors, friends and associates
and the labor press to publicize
the AFL’s 6 nights a week radio
broadcast to begin January 1, I960,
over 147 stations of the Mutual
Broadcasting System.
Labor unity—Issues which for
merly divided the labor movement
have largely disappeared and what
ever of conflict may remain is
overshadowed by far the more fun
damental and serious problem con
fronting labor not only here at
home but in other lands as well.
The road is considerably smoother
• v.
i a n o s
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ua w.
snd should lead to the ultimate
unionism and merging of all or
ganized labor under the banner of
the AFL. The AFL should con
tinue its efforts toward achieving
this goal.
Israel—The State of Israel was
greeted upon its arrival among the
family of nations, and its people
and Histadrut trade anion move
ment praised for the tremendous
obstacles overcome in the past year.
The American people can be proud
of its contributions to the world’s
youngest democracy.
World Federation of Trade Un
ions—Not the slightest excuse ex
ists for any self-respecting trade
union organization to remain af
filiated with the discredited Com
munist-controlled World Federation
of Trade Unions. An appeal is
made, particularly to the free dem
ocratic trade unions of France
Italy and Israel to lose no time
in severing themselves from the
WFTU. AFL pledges moral and
material support to a new demo
cratic federation of trade union?
to make it a powerful instrument
for lasting peace.
GREEN TELLS LEWIS
LABOR MUST UNITE
(Continued From Page 1)
eration of Labor or of organisa
tions affiliated with it for finan
cial help.
“Please send me an answer to
this inquiry so that I can, in the
event it seems necessary, transmit
it to the members of the Execu
tive Council and of national and
international unions when your
suggestion and proposal may be
brought to their attention.
“In transmitting this answer to
your communication, it seems fit
ting and appropriate for me to
make the following comments:
“Experience is a great teacher.
It has taught the officers and
members of organized labor many
valuable lessons. It is teaching
us one now. The crying need for
the establishment and maintenance
of a united labor movement in our
country is being emphasized over
and over again. The establishment
of organic unity within the ranks
of labor is a basic primary require
ment. Through such a united labor
movement, the economic power of
all the workers of the nation could
be mobilised. Their finances could
be united and centralized. The ob
ligation of each worker to the
other could be successfully dis
charged. The moral, financial,
economic and psychological power
of the millions of workers in our
country could be united and blended
into one common purpose and for
the realization of one common ob
jective.
“The question is and should be
answered—Shall we have a united
labor movement or shall we con
tinue divided and discordant?
“The pooling of labor’s resources
while divided, as it is today, is im
possible and impracticable. At best
it would be but a shadow without
substance. The cross-currents of
division, competition and discord
which run through the labor move
ment of our nation at the present
time make it increasingly difficult
for workers to achieve their com
mendable aims, purposes and ob
jectives.
“I have appealed repeatedly over
all the years since division took
place within the ranks of labor to
the workers of the nation to re
turn to the house of labor where
they could live together, plan to
gether, work together and unite
together in the promotion of a
common purpose. I hope and trust
that the day will come ere long
when a favorable response will be
made to this appeal.”
KMVUBS SAYS POLITICS
NOW AN EVERY DAY JOB
St. Paul.—Congressman George
M. Rhodes, an AFL organiser in
Reading, Pa., told the 08th AFL
convention:
“Politics is a job dag in and dag
out throughout the gear. It isn't
only a job for a few weeks before
election dag.”
WINS NEW WAGE GAINS
Cincinnati—The 6-day-old stero
typers’ strike against the three
daily Cincinnati newspaper ended
under a compromise wage settle
ment.
Strike Benefits
Increase Voted
St. Paul. — Strike benefits for
members of federal labor unions
were boosted to 910 per week for
a period of 10 weeks.
This constitutional change was
voted unanimously by the 68th
AFL convention on recommenda
tion of the committee on laws.
The new section provides that
when • strike has been initiated
under sections 2 and 3 or Article
13 of the constitution the AFL
shall pay for a period of 10 weeks
110 per week for each member to
the bonded officer of the striking
federal union.
No benefit shall be paid for the
first two weeks of the strike. The
Executive Council is given author
ity to pay strike benefits for a
period longer than 10 weeks.
The present benefits are |7 per
week for six weeks.
Irving Brown Sees
World Situation
Worsening
(ContinFrom Pago 1;
tarian system, and once again it
is my opinion that in the world
the labor movement must speak
up and act now or face the inevi
tability of a new and more hor
rible world conflict."
Brown said that despite the
gloomy situation, some progress
was made in the past year in the
fight against totalitarianism. He
said communism has been hit hard
and suffered defeats on every front i
in western Europe.
"But let no one have any illusions
in the light of the world political
situation and in the light of Com
munist strength on the western
labor movement," Brown said. "A
rocky road lies ahead. The road
is mined at every tom, since Com
inform’s strength, although dimin
ished, remains a serious menace
in western Europe with grave eco
nomic problems.”
He said that specifically the new
world labor movement must help
France and Italy to keep their
unions out of Communist control;
work against an alliance of Ger
men nationalism and Soviet com
munism; assist trade union leaders
in exile from countries behind the
iron curtain; work for an econom
ically unified western Europe, and
battle communism in the Far East.
MINISTERS WELCOMED
St Paul.—Ministers represent
ing the Federal Council of Churches
of .Christ in America attended, ses
sions of the 68th convention and
were welcomed by AFL Preaidant
William Green.
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