Spirited Election Fight In Workmen's Sick And Death Benefit Society
Kalin, Arthur
Spirited Election Fight In Workmen's Sick And Death Benefit Society By Arthur Kalin THERE are two Communist groups In the Workingmen's Sick and Death Benefit Fund striving to obtain...
...In the face of record profits disclosed la the report of the International Harvester Co., the farm machinery trust-is laying oft men by hundreds in its various plants, according to union reports...
...that through the erection of the new office building our office rental win be three times-us high as before...
...Only the salaried men and the bosses w o r k full time...
...enforcement of the provisions in city contracts for payment o f the prevailing rate of wages...
...Wisconsin Law On Yellow Dog Pact In Courts Shoe Company Takes Measure To Supreme Court of The State MILWAUKEE...
...Total assets of Legge's trust rose from 8846,120,488 at the beginning of 1929 to 8348,078,822 at j the beginning of this year...
...By referring to the Feb...
...if they are opposed to expensive experiments, and are in favor that printing be awarded, under otherwise equal conditions, to the lowest union bidder, as required by the constitution, then we advise them t o cast their votes f o r the following candidates: * For president, William Meyer...
...His latest appointee is Circuit Judge Edward T. Fairchild of Milwaukee to succeed Justice Eschweiler, deceased...
...free lunches for school children who may need them...
...does it want in addition to the many unproven innovations new costly experiments...
...If these plans were to be carried out then our members will have to dig deeper into their pockets than at present...
...This unprecedented net profit was just about as large as the entire gross profit In 1927...
...While there he voted-against limiting the tyranny of injunction judges and against the bUl to give the city of Milwaukee home rule...
...They say the old, needy members shall be exempted from the payment of dues...
...that hundreds of members are unable now to pay the monthly dues and are compelled to allow themselves to be stricken from membership in our Society, etc., all these and similar trifles do not cause our "Progressives" any worry...
...Free agencies were first urged before the Board o f Estimate b y the Socialist Party on March 18th, and again in the morning o f March 25th...
...members of the control commitJoseph A Weil, Jacob Muhler...
...Two recent vacancies on the supremo bench of Wisconsin have been fined by Gov...
...for trustees, tary, Walter Bretz...
...Among the newcomers who have volunteered are: Jack Donahue, Lily Damlta, May West, De Wolfe Hopper, Danny Healy, Rudy VaUee, Texas Guinan, Donald Ogden Stewart, a choir of "Green Pastures", Harry Rlr.hman, Bert Lahr, Ben Bernie, the entire burlesque show now playing at the Oity Theatre, etc., etc...
...Conditions are bad...
...The men still on payroll are being worked 9 hours a day and Saturdays...
...Harvester Trust Has Record Profits But Lays Off Men CHICAGO...
...A t that time the "Progressives" were the main group of the German division of the Communist Party...
...for treasurer, Richard Pohle...
...Because this "grab" was voted down, they kept up for months in the Volkszeitung a bitter attack against those members of the National executive and control committees who had voted in favor of the lowest bidder, as distinctly required by our constitution...
...The proposition submitted was that the National officers shall be elected only by the members in Greater New York and vicinity...
...We are not interested in credit, but merely want to set the record straight Since you have found two of our suggestions so good, we ask for consideration of our other proposals: a census of the unemployed and the granting of relief t o the needy, which the city has the power to carry through under Section 2, Chapter 404 of the state laws of 1919...
...Fairchild has been a corporation man all his adult life but his prejudices against human rights and in favor of property rights were particularly evident during his three terms in the Wisconsin senate...
...In the year 1914 they attempted to capture it for the Communist Party...
...The interests of the W. S. & D. B. F. are considered secondary by them...
...hospitals and sanitariums (not one only, but more) are to be erected aU over the country, the creation of reUef and strike funds, etc...
...Where win the money come from...
...Altoona Rail men Hard Hit by Crisis ALTOONA, Pa.—Altoona shops of the Pennsylvania Railroad were reduced in hours from 50 hours per week to 4 days "of 8 hours...
...The lockout was immediately converted into a strike by the men...
...Reactionary Wisconsin Governor Imitates Hoover In Judgeships MADISON, Wis...
...One is known as the Communist Party Group, while the other is the Volkszeitung's or the so-called "Progressive" Group...
...The yeUow dog is the issue on which the federation is vigorously protesting the Hoover appointment of Federal Judge "'Yellow D o g ' Parker of North Carolina to the U. S. Supreme Court...
...On the occasion of the awarding of the printing 'of the "SoUdarity," the "Progressives" voted solidly that' the printing be awarded to the ".Volkszeitung's Cooperative Press," even though it would have cost our Society the sum of $1452 more than what another union printer wanted for the same work...
...The Volkszeitung Contingent— which calls itself "Progressive"— is as much of a menace to the Society as the official Communists...
...Thus a small independent shoe union win be the means of bringing to a decision a law of the utmost importance to the American Federation of Labor and ail other labor organizations...
...1927 issue (page 37) of "Solidarity," it will be seen that the "Progressives" submitted to the convention a proposition' to abolish the general right to vote, in other words to deprive three fourths of the membership of the right to vote (see Section 1 o f their program of action for that year...
...F.P...
...The issue was raised in injunction hearings brought by the Rich-Vogel Shoe Co...
...for national sec reSchmidt...
...The yellow dog angle made itself felt when affidavits by the strikers charged Pres...
...This violation of the 1929 law, a pioneer in labor's.attempts to outlaw the yellow dog, was to be put up to Vogel in court who would then refuse to answer on the ground that the law is unconstitutional...
...One man advertised for a road j o b ; 600 applied, ten received w o r k This happens every day...
...Spirited Election Fight In Workmen's Sick And Death Benefit Society By Arthur Kalin THERE are two Communist groups In the Workingmen's Sick and Death Benefit Fund striving to obtain control over it so as to be able to advance the interests and aims of their respective political organizations...
...Among the provl sions-of the yeUow dog injunction that Parker indorsed on appeal in the West Virginia mixer case was one forbidding the miners union to pay the rent of strikers in order to forestall the eviction of their families by the anti-union operators...
...I f the members, however, wish an efficient and economical administratiod, and the development of our Society so that it serves the membership, if they are against bringing into the Society., politics with aU its bitter quarrels...
...for Arthur Kahn, Karl Zimmermann William Wasaman...
...The trust refused requests from the workers that the work be spread on an 8-hour day, 5-day week basis...
...He voted for lower taxes on banks and favored the railroad lobby in an indefensible bill t o assess sidetrack relocations o n home owners In the neighborhoods affected...
...They don't teU us...
...Give a Job" Benefit A portion of the proceeds for the "Give a Job" benefit sponsored by Heywood Broun, scheduled to be held Saturday midnight April 12th, at the Imperial Theatre, will be devoted to securing employment for members of various theatrical organizations...
...The governor's earner appointee was another reactionary, Chester Fowler who won his election this month by a minority vote because the progressives were split against him...
...If members do vote for the Communists or the "Progressives...
...The crankshaft department has only 16 out of 46 men left and in the piston and sleeve department just three men are working in place of the former shifts of 48...
...Fred Marx, Fritz Lanz, Fred A. Schwarting, L Phillips, G. F. Baeumel, A ugust Deutschmann, tee, Herman Wolter, Andreas Schnell, Otto Kalisch...
...To the innovations now still in a stage of experimentation like the I Women's Sick Fund Class and the Children's Death Benefit, they would -add many n ew experiments, each and every one necessitating an increase in dues...
...Phrases—nowhere do they show h ow it can be done...
...The W. S. & D. B. F. must never become a football for any political party or group, if it is not to meet with the same fate as the above mentioned organiaztions...
...When these "Progressives" were expelled from the Communist Party, they continued the capturing habit and policy on their own account and for their own benefit...
...of Milwaukee against its locked out union employees...
...Theodore Vogel ot the company with firing them because of their union membership...
...for recording secretary, for vice-president, L u d w ig Walker Adopts Two Socialist Suggestions Norman Thomas, Socialist Party leader, has sent the following telegram to Mayor Walker of New York City: "Congratulations on adopting two of the eight suggestions for unemployment relief which the Socialist Party and the Emergency Conference on Unemployment placed before you...
...Both will make special efforts at the April elections to elect only their own membersi What the .Workingmen's Sick and Death Benefit Fund can expect f r om Communist control can best be judged from the Communist undermining of the unions in the needle trades and the unsuccessful attempt to destroy the Workmen's Circle...
...At the Milwaukee division of the harvester half of the men have been laid off and In some departments the employment is in still worse state...
...The subsequent sentence for contempt of court would be appealed by Vogel to the Supreme Court if necessary...
...Kohler, reactionary Republican, in the same bad way that President Hoover followed in naming Charles Evans Hughes and John "YeUow Dog" Parker to the Federal Supreme Court Kohler's appointments are good only to the next judicial election while Hoover's are for life, but the governor gives his appointees a running start for the election because of the sentiment to return sitting judges...
...Judging by present Indications the "Give a J o b " benefit show wttl rival the circus in the number of attractions and of celebrities worthy of glittering adjectives...
...The Wilwaukee Supreme Court win probably have to decide on appeal whether the 1929 state law forbidding yellow dog contracts aad similar prohibition of union membership is constitutional...
...is it willing to pay even higher dues than at present...
...speeding up of other public works beside subways (our researches show that subway construction is still far behind what it should b e ) ; and consideration of a large-scale program of slum clearance and housing construction...
...I s the membership of the Workingmen's Sick and Death Benefit Fund willing t o make this Society the storm center for all sorts of political fights and quarrels...
...I refer t o plans for municipal employment agencies and the speeding up of subway construction...
...The lockout followed refusal of the men to give up membership in their union, an independent organization...
...The 1929 velvet of Alexander Legge's corporation, the presidency of which he resigned to administer farm relief for Hoover, was $36,779,998...
...F.P...
...That the receipts on dues for sick funds have -for years been insufficient to meet the sick relief disbursements (in 1929 the deficit -being $91,000...
...Now the "Progressives" again put forth a program of demands...
...This is proof that they want office in the Workingmen's Sick and Death Benefit Fund so that they may first of all advance, at the expense of the Society, the interests of their newspaper and further the political aims of their group...
Vol. 10 • April 1930 • No. 10
