Show Bruc Bru karls charts washington digest signs of impending trouble for national labor relations board advocates of amendment of wagner act grow more vociferous law itself and its administration cause widespread criticism sonic some expert stalling by WILLIAM BRUCKART service national press washington D C washington it was only a few years ago that any politician seeking a harvest of votes would rather have cut oft off his right arm than offend organized labor in a close fight the labor vote held the balance ot of power labor unions forged ahead with remarkable force but labor started fighting within its own ranks and there come came the C 1 I 0 rather john lewis the leader of the mine workers got ambitious and broke away from the old established and respected american federation of labor and gave birth to the congress of industrial organizations so many politicians including president roosevelt turned to C I 1 0 because it was modem streamlined aggressive it appeared for a time that C 1 I 0 was going to be the big power among the workers having that advantage C 1 I 0 went to town as the football players say its strength was manifest in congress and under the impetus of C 1 I 0 force senator wagner the now new york democrat brought forth the national labor relations act un der which the national labor relations board was appointed and began functioning that much is history dut but now there are arc signs of impending trouble for the national labor relations board with its main support the C 1 I 0 having its troubles in collecting dues and with the peace efforts of president roosevelt who sought to get union men of the united states back in one organization having failed dismally the labor board Is up against it in fact to summarize the situation in the homely expression of my boyhood home it looks like the swashbuckling defiant calf Is just about ready to choke choice itself because of too much rope it may not happen in this session of congress but it will happen before long why the answer Is that organized labor as represented by the lewis faction made the same mistake as greedy big business bd siness frequently makes it became arrogant it bit off more than it could chew the reaction has now set in demands for amendment of labor act grow noisier advocates of amendment of the wagner labor act have been knock ing at the door a long time recently the knocking has resembled sledge hammer pounding A very largo large number of senators and representatives senta tives have heard it As a matter of fact it was mr Roosevel ts efforts to get A AF F of L and ana C 1 I 0 back into a single national dional union that has delayed the moves in congress looking to amend amendment of the labor law C I 1 L 0 having stood by the pr president when he was n candidate and having fought for his cause time after time was entitled to the presidents services as a pence peace negotiator many persons thought there would be a happy reunion but th thre re was no chance at all from the very outset ot of the negotiations and the affair did nothing to lift mr Roosevel ts prestige especially in tho the rural oreas areas where C 1 I 0 and sit down strikes have much the same meaning while tho the administrations plans for a union reunion were slipping there come came that sensational verdict by a federal court jury in philadelphia which assessed damages against the sit down strikers in i n a hosiery t the damages were as assessed directly against the men who did the job and thus tor for the first time a responsibility as well spot da a right wp was alven given to labor the right to strike long has been established and labor must guard it never before however had chere then been a court determination that liability also exists 1 it damage is done it Is unnecessary here to review what the labor relations board has been doing time after time it has been accused of dancing to the bagpipes played by C 1 I 0 the amerlean american federation of labor among other critics his has charged it with rank C 1 I 0 favoritism the board does not consist of persons capable of winning very much respect true I 1 believe they have very alert and fast moving minds but I 1 cannot help regarding them as without any trace of judicial temperament without doubt the country would be better belter off had all three members been ousted months ago act and its administration causes widespread criticism it ts is perhaps as 03 much because of the terrible administration of the law as from the inequities of the loosely drawn law itself that the criticism has been so widespread hundreds of cases coming before the board have left employers with personal losses as a result of one sided aided determinations labor unions affiliated with the american federa tion of labor have repeatedly as exerted they could not obtain justice if the C 1 I 0 figured in the situa alon in any event there ore are now senators and representatives sponsoring a hatfull of amendments to the law and a large number of these amendments are being promoted by the A F of L lobby at the capitol there Is one amendment for instance that proposes to disband the present three man board and supplant it with a five man board th that a t of course Is the political maneuver to get rid of people with whom congi gicas ess Is disgusted the amendment Is by senator walsh massachusetts democrat senator walsh also has introduced several other amendments one of which in particular is worth noting it would attempt at least to eliminate prejudicial delays that sounds rather miner academic it Is however important because according to the A F of L explanation delays by the board have worked or have been used to the advantage of C 1 I 0 it if the C 1 I 0 was not sure that it had a majority according to the other union rather thinly dis guised reasons for delays were brought up then C 1 I 0 organizers would start their drives whether the A F of L charges are true and whether the criticisms of employers have been justified it remains as fact that C 1 I 0 Is now opposing amendment to the act hearings are delayed by various stalling maneuvers supporters of the law in its present form and defenders of the board as it Is now made up succeeded for example in delaying hearings on amendments to the act tor for more than a month thea the urged senator thomas of utah committee chairman not to hold hearings while pence negotiations were in progress they insisted that it was unfair to embarrass the president in his attempts to restore unity in the labor movement and argued that hearings would bring bitter statements into print mr thomas yielded to the plea tor for delay but eventually the pressure for action become became too strong even for the utah senator to resist and the friends of the law were right when they anticipated bitter words senator wagner in his testimony mony spoke rather blatantly about critics being unacquainted with the purposes of the low law he felt too that there was no need for or haste about changes ile he rather hinted that there were some ethiopian gentlemen in the woodpile but tailed failed to put his linger finger on them ile he simply was standing pat about the whole thing A little later however the C 1 I 0 people named the terrible conspirators who wanted the act changed the american federation of labor had conspired with the chamber of commerce of the united states there was the fine unseen hand th the e chamber of commerce big business personified it was the guilty party ty it was speaking for the employers who want to grind poor workmen into the dust destroy unionism wreck the families of the wage earners or so the C 1 I 0 ili shouted well as tarns faras I 1 am concerned I 1 tall fall to see why the C 1 I 0 picked the chamber of commerce it Is so thoroughly discredited that it had any influence at the capitol in 10 years why anyone should think that the chamber of commerce could have started a movement as strong as the present demand tor for change of the labor act Is s quite beyond me but that was what the C 1 I 0 charged it may have been what senator wagner m meant cant say changes would benefit neither labor nor industry finally the labor board itself ap feared beffre tho the senate committee and announced it had an open mind its mind was so open that it submitted a document of typewritten pages analyzing the proposals tor for changes and arriving generally at the conclusion that the proposed changes chonge were no good in substance the board said that the bulk built of the changes being pressed would benefit neither labor group nor would they be of help to industry most of all in the labor boards mind the amendments would conflict with the basc purposes of the act thus ok as the hearings were concluded and the committee seeks to do some deliberating on its own account labor finds ands itself still fighting within itself locking lacking direction and one could almost say lacking purpose it Is too bad that there must be the same greed the some same thirst tot toi power within the ranks of workers as there Is among political lenders leaders and heads of govern ments those fellows who play the game of politics can to tose loae se their jobs and the country Is none the worse but when political labor leaders play their games and lose the pawn are the workers who havi have aci nci no rn mean eana of protection 0 western union |