Electrical Union News, 1949 December 2

GE IS GIVING ACTIVE SUPPORT TO CAREY'S "IMITATION UE"
( A report to the 3U]1 membership - Nov. 29, 149)

i Gs specia ting with Works
ast Friday the 341 executive boerd held a speci i mee lor
Mens eer Lewis J Mele cover the help being given by the compeny tc the

Carey company union

| d s i t. ‘When we
ct no satisfaction from Male, but we did smcke him out. ;
note through, it was clear tc the entire beard that Male was gouang on
orders from top imanegement, and that the company is going all cut to

help the stccges.

Here are the points we raised with Male, and his answers that proves
cur accusation was correct:

ifie ; abe ishcp, board member fcr
1) We -had notified Bldg. 41 that Stanley B ; em .
k i and against UE, was no longer tc be
tock a public stan g ; sete 's office hed
supervisicn in Bldg ®© |

THE VOICE OF LOCAL 301 - - - - UE R&MW.A.

Parl
oy

Vol. 7—No. 47

SCHENECTADY, NEW YORK

December 2, 1949

GE Would Love to-- But Its Quite a Job

will > : i Male was
> management wlll try to tell us how to run our unicn. se 4
Posed to admit that if he found e. foreman working for a rival company,
he would be fired. But he objects to Local 301 prctecting itself
under the contract.

2) As previcusly told yoy, the company is itlegelly va thn seene ene
November check-cff money, cn the request of Kriss end Ficrillc. a

if they were still cfficers of 301, which they are not, they Lea

have no authority to make such a request. Gi is simply supporting
them in itheir efforts to sabotage 301 and the member! grievances.

i a and out ilterature
The company now allows the "Imitation UE" to han
2) company proper ti. That right belcngs to UE only, as the bargain-
ing agent under the contract. Male admitted meeting with Kriss and
Ficrillo on this matter and defended the deal as impartiality . A
It is nothing but giving the Carey boys a right which they have no
got.
: ¥ : 3 ts of foremen
On t of all this, there have been many verified repor on
openly permitting carey stocges to circulate application cards during
working hours. In some cases this was stcpped because the UE members
in ‘the department showed they wouldn't stand for it. But obvious y
the stooges have the company's blessing in trying to enroll pecple.

. A ¢ e 4 as obte d very few
reful check shows that the phony outfit has cbtaine
signature. “GE knows this. The GE is cut to destroy UE because of |
what it has achieved for GE workers. GE is cut to establish a ognPany
union. It is trying to take advantage of the confusicn created 2
2te the contract, as we warned many times

“bétter be prepered bo figh
union, the ccntract end 13 years of gains.

Executive Boerd UE 301

uopwa Local 70

“defend the"

ae

LET'S You AND
ME THrow RIM
Out |

Want Premium Cut

For Night Shift?
Steelworkers in major plants, U.

S. Steel, Bethlehem, ete, under

contracts negotiated by Philip
Murray, receive a premium of 4

* cents an hour for second shift, 6

cents for third shift.

Ford workers, under a contract
negotiated by Walter Reuther,
have pre sents for

nd st i

Chrysler workers, also United
Auto, receive 5 per cent for second
shift and 744 per cent for third,

Under the UE contracts at
both GE and Westinghouse, the
second and third shifts both re-

‘eive a 10 per cent bonus.. This

Amounts to 11 cents) minimum
“and ranges up’ to 20 cents and

more, :

Perhaps “Labor Statesman”
Jimmie Boy Carey will tell you he
ain onegollate letter - than his

301 Membership Votes
To Support National UE

The membership of Local 301
came out in large numbers last
week at meetings by ‘sections at
the union hall: to vote practically
unanimous support for national
UE policy. The members carried
out the union business which Carey
disrupters had made it impossible
to take up at the Nov. 17 meeting.

Nominations were made for,

rs for 1950 and elections were
conducted for an elections com-
mittee and an auditing commit?
tee, As two of the sectional meet-
ings were to take place Wednes-
day night, after EU News went to

tions will not be printed in this
paper until next week.--

bosses who have been negotiating
for many years?. Soon we'll give
the members some hard tacts
about Carey’s “negotiating.”

Stewards to Meet

In Two Groups

First and third shift shop stew-
ards will mect at 7:30 p.m. Tues-
day, Dee. 6, at the union hall.

By membership decision the see-
ond shift stewards should meet at
the same time, but because of the
injunetion, obtained. by Carey
stooges it will be impossible to pay
lost time ta them. So the second

The injunction issued by Su-
preme Court Justice John Alex-
ander limits the membership in
using the union's funds.

Pensioners’ Meeting

The UE-801 Pension Organiza-
tion will meet at 2 p., m. Wednes-
day, Dee. .7, at the union hall.

201 Children’s Christmas Party
Dee. 10 and 11
Mont Pleasant High School

shift stewards will meet-at—L pan
Wednesday, Dee. 7.

GE Openly Aids Carey Stooge Outfit

Male Defends
GE's Stand
Against UE

here came out actively during’ the
past week in support of James B.
Carey’s “Imitation UR,”

The company’s actions showed
that it hoped both to destroy the
contract protecting the workers’
conditions, and to establish a com-
pany union.

The company’s actions also
showed that GE executives realize
the stooge outfit is beaten. In its
effort to save the stooges, GE is
dropping its pretense of neutrality.

Board Meets Male

After the pattern of interference
by the company had developed last
week, the whole ‘Executive Board
held a special mecting with Lewis
J. Male, works manager. The
board got no satisfaction from
Male, but it did smoke him out.
The board was unanimous in re-
porting to the membership that
Male was acting on orders from
top management.in going all out
to support the stooges. Male re-
peated the Boulware line about be-
ing “neutral” but retiained silent
when Leo Jandreau charged he: had
orders to help the Carey outfit.

GE Ignores Bishop’s Removal

Boldest of the company’s actions
was its insistence on recognizing
Stanley Bishop as Executive Board
member for Building 69 after he
had-publiely “taken his” stand tor”
Carey and against UE. The union
had given the company the usual
written notice that Bishop no long.
er was a board member, Male’s
office put through the change, but
Male personally reversed his office
and instructed supervision to con-
tinue to deal with Bishop. In the
grievance meeting Male tried to in-
terfere with the running of the un-
ion, and indicated the company
would seck to interfere with the
selection of shop stewards, Jan-

(Continued ‘on Page 2)

2

ELECTRICAL UNION NEWS | EB

December 2, 1949

GE Openly Aids
Carey Stooges.

(Continued from Page 1)

dreau told Male that it was the
membership’s business, not the
company’s, to run the union. Male
was forced to admit that if he
found a foreman working for a

rival company, the foreman would.

be fired. But he objected to Local
801 protecting itself under the con-
tract. :

The company still is withholding.

the November check-off, _ wholly
without authority to do so, and
“ solely to help Frank Kriss sabo-
tage the union’s work -and_ the
members’ grievances.

‘ Although UE is the only union
recognized under the contract, as
GE admits, the company now al-
lows the “Imitation UE” to distri-
bute literature on company prop-
erty. On Monday, at the 41 gate,
the company even had a sweeper
go out and pick up the stooges’
paper whenever copies piled up be-
cause so many workers threw it
away.

In many buildings supervision
has given the “Imitation UE” free-
dom to campaign openly during
working hours. At the same time
supervision in some buildings pro-
tested when UE board members
went around on legitimate visits
to shop stewards. In Building 69
and at Campbell Avenue Carey
representatives made speeches dur-

ing working hours in full sight of.

foremen. In other buildings Carey
workers roamed at will, and when
stewards protested to
foremen said they could do noth-
ing about it. The Carey activity
was stopped in a numberof build-
ings where the membets. showed
they would not stand for this busi-
ness very long.

The Executive Board report to
the members declared that. GI was
trying to take advantage of the
confusion created by

and that the membership had bet-
ter be prepared. to fight to defend
its gains of 13 years embodied in
the contract,

é

[ELECTRICAL UNION NEWS |

Unirep BLecTricaL, Ravio & MACHINE
Wormers OF AMERICA,

Scuxnectapr GE Locan 301

Pudliahed by Editorial Committee
Mary McCartin, Chairman
‘Arthur R. Bertini, Secretary
William Christman Frank D'Amico
Adam Kolanstensit - Victor Pancho
Troy Snipes

Editorial Office
Burcrarca, Uwion News
301 Liberty St., Schonectady, N. ¥.
Tolophone 3-1386 .

semana’

foremen,

Carey's
stooges to terminate. the contract,

Carey Makes Claims, But Workers Stick to UE Jimmy Boy Stages

Thé Carey clique in GE here has been blowing hard to the newspapers
about enrolling thousands of workers in their “Imitation UE.” How-
ever, a careful check when this paper went to press indicated that they
had signed up less than 2,000, including of course anti-union workers
who had stayed out of Local 801 but recognized the IUE as a union-

busting move.

The membership sentiment was
reflected in the actions of the shop
stewards.
jority of the-stewards signed a re-
newal of their membership pledge
to UE. At the time of going to
press, some shop stewards had not
yet been reached, but it was clear
that at most 10 to 15 percent of
the total would refuse tc sign.
Some of these went over to the

arey stooge outfit, and some just

anted to avoid tuking a stand.

The Executive Board asked all
the stewards to sign the pledge as
a means of coniirming or disprov-
ing reports that certain stewards
were working for the “Imitation
UE.” : ;

Fourteen men who have publicly .-

taken.a stand as leaders of the

‘Carey outfit have been dropped as

representatives, They’ did not re-
ply to registered letters from John
P. Green, acting recording secre-
tary, pointing out that their an-
nouncement meant withdrawal
from UE-301 and giving them an
opportunity to deny the announce-
ment.

Their names were removed from
the membership rolls and the com-
pany was ‘advised that they no
longer represent 801.

Two-of the stewards listed by
the Carey outfit advised the union
office that their names had been
used without their permission, and
that they remained with UE. (See
story in next column.)

Confidentially, Boys,
You Sound Plain Silly

The Carey boys’ stories are be-
coming, so fantastic as to embar-
rass even their best friends, the
Gazette and Union-Star. In the
past these papers have given a big

play to any big brave statement

mide by the little clique.
When Frank Fiorillo and Martin
Stanton came out Nov. 23 with

claims of 7,000 members signed up:

for the “Imitation UE," both local
papers printed it, but modestly far
back, where few readers would no-
tice it, After all, the papers must
remember the claims of the Carey
boys about the 8,000 signattxes to
petitions before the UE conven-
tion. No one has seen those peti-
tions yet! And there’s a limit to
how red an editors face must get
for the sake of dear old GE.

There are a couple of editors
around town whose faces will be
awfully red one of these days. Al-
most Communistic.

An overwhelming ma-

‘and his gang”

Fitzgerald Reports
Majority Backing UE

The overwhelming majority of
UE’s members are supporting the
union “on the basis of gains
they have won during the 14 years
that UE has been organized,” UE
President Albert J. Fitzgerald de-
clared Saturday. :

“Contrary to newspaper and
radio reports, the evidence at hand
shows that UE members are not
being stampeded into the company-
union type of organization which
CIO top officials have set up to
make backdoor deals with employ:
ers,” he said. . i
, Fitzgerald recalled how :“Carey —
prophesied they
would take over UE at the last.na-
tional UE convention, but were de-
cisively repudiated by the dele-
gates.

Steve Ricci Spurns
‘Imitation UE’ Post

One more example-of the man-
ner in which the Carey “Imitation
UE” operates: © ;

Steve Ricci, a UE 301 shop stew-
ard in Building 40, was listed by
the outfit in ‘a newspaper an-
nouncement of their handpicked
temporary executive board mem.~
bers. On Monday he came to the
Local 301 office and signed a state-
ment that his name was used with-
out his authorization, and that he
was not even approached by the
group before they published his
name. He pledged to fight to pre-
serve the UE in the plant,

Previously, another shop stew-
ard, Stephen Matarazzo, had made
a similar statement that -his name
was used without permission and
that he was a UE supporter.

301 Appeal Pending
In Injunction Fight

Newspapers this week gave the
misleading impression that 301 has
lost its appeal from Supreme Court
Justice John Alexander’s injune-
tion limiting the membership’s
right to use its own tinion funds,

The appeal from ‘this injunction,
obtained by the Carey stooges, has
not even been’argued yet. It will
come before the Appellate Division
this month.

What happened in court this
week was that the Appellate Di-
vision refused to suspend:or stay
the injunction pending.its. decision
on the appeal. f ee

“sentativ

Rump Convention

James B,. Carey's “Imitation
UE” held its convention of paper
delegates to set up a paper union
at Philadelphia- this week, in the
hope of raiding UE in collusion
with the electrical companies.
They engaged in several days of
red-baiting.

Carey claimed the “delegates”.
represented 122 locals, out of over
1,000. UE locals. Most of them
were self-appointed “delegates”
from small rump cliques, like the
Kriss-Fiorillo. outfit, :

The Carey stooges attending
from Schenectady included Kath-
leen Herring, who resigned several
months ago from 301. The “dele-
gates” also included members of
other unions and paid CIO repre-

‘December 2, 1949

ELECTRICAL UNION NEWS >

3

CONGRESSMAN DRIPP

Murray’s Role
Newspapers

played up, i
course, a mesage of congratula-

tions from President’ Truman.
Philip Murray is. credited per-
sonally with securing this mes-
sage. He is in high White House
favor for turning over his Steel
dispute .to President Truman’s
fact-finding board and dropping
the Steelworkers’ wage demands
for 1949 and 1960.

Murray ridiculed the $500 pack-
age demand of UE as “a dreamer’s
dream.” His own Steelworkers

‘started out this year with a $600

package demand which he chopped
down without membership vote.

The Murray and Carey stooges
in UE have carried on disruptive
activities which are the chief rea-
sons for the current difficulties in
UE negotiations.

Carey Doubletalk

Carey talked at his “Imitation
UE” convention about fighting for
a wage increase. He of course
didn’t mention that Murray had
given up. his wage demands or that
his friend Emil Rieve of the Tex-
tile Workers, also a_ principal
speaker at the convention, had
done ‘the same thing.

Carey announced he would press
for a $100 pension in addition to
Social Security. Nobody mentioned
the awkward fact that his bosses”
Murray and Reuther had settled
for the difference between social
security and $100,

Fred Kelley, former business
agent of the.Lynn UE local, ob-
viously sulked at the high praise

Murray heaped on Carey. There igey
a bitter fight on between Kelle)

and Carey for presidency of the
“Imitation UE.”
Carey rammed through a motion

to postpone “indefinitely” adopting .

a full constitution or electing per-
manent officers,

"QEAR, | STILL THINK YOU MADE A MISTAKE BY COMING
HERE TO INVESTIGATE THS ISLAND, "

By YOMEN

Prise for Fairy Tales goes to LIFE, CIO News, |

For Fantastic Stories on 301 Armory Meeting

The ClO News of Nov...21 and the notoriously anti-labor LIFE
magazine (Nov, 28 issue) joined to do a job on Local 301 by-fairy tales
written around the Armory meeting of Nov. 17, which Carey’s stooges

broke up.

Obviously “both weeklies got
theiz. stories from Schenectady
Carey stooges, but they didn’t
bother to make sure that their
fairy tales. jibed.

So the LIFE piece had Frank
Kriss knocking Leo Jandreau
down “with a solid right hook.”
The CIO News says Jandreau “took
a punch at Kriss,” and “fell off
the platform.” Tallest tale of all,
on top of many imaginary twists

_in the CIO NEWS piece, was that

Jandreau was a “non-member of
the local.”

Both weeklies agreed on-one of
their untruths, that the meeting
“voted CIO." The CIO News said
“7,000 to 2,000.”

The facts of the meeting are

G)vell-established. By actual count

of available seats, the attendance
was slightly under 4,000. Not a
single legal vote was taken, as
Kriss and his followers kept the
meeting in chaos. But on Kriss’
call for a vote on a motion to leave

UE, the great majority of those
present first shouted their ‘No’”
and then stood to back it up. The
picture in last week’s EU: News
showed that.

The LIFE piece quite uninten-
tionally proved the truth of what
the EU News reported about the
second shift meeting. The picture
in LIFE of about 100 to 150 work-
ers outside the union hall is the
picture of those second shifters
who followed Kriss and Frank Tio-
rillo out of the hall. Over 400
stayed behind to hear Leo Jan-
dreau, i

Gains for Radio Workers

UE has just negotiated wage
ttises and welfare benefits total-
ing 7% cents an hour for 5,000
workers in 23 New York radio and
television. plants. The workers rat-
ified ‘the contract at an overflow
membership meeting of Local 480
which voted full support.of UE
and condemned James Carey who
had tried to disrupt negotiations.

Un-American Committee

Seeks New Headlines —
The Un-American ‘Activities

Committee has postponed until

_Monday its new investigation of

Ul. Secretary-Treasurer - Julius
Emspak and Director of Organiza-
tion James J. Matles have been
subpoenaed to appear then in
Washington in this new smear
move of the anti-labor committee
instead of on Thursday of the
present week.

Maybe the committee realized
that it was a little too obvious to
do its dirty work the very week
the Carey company union was hav-
ing its so-called. convention. Or
maybe it expects bigger headlines
next week. But nothing can dis-
guise the fact that the hearing is
just another attempt to help
Philip Murray and James B, Carey

.- General Blectric-Company—

rere mpany
in their anti-UE campaign.

This committee and the Hart-
ley Committee have been used four
years in a row to smear UE and
they always rehash the same
slander at their hearings.

Santa Claus to Appear

Afternoons, Not in A.M. >

Almost everyone who has re-
quested tickets for the 801 child-
ren’s party Dec. 10 and 11 at Mont
Pleasant High School has. signed
up for afternoon tickets, rather
than morning ones. Therefore the
Activities Committee has dropped
plans for the 10 a.m. programs and
will stage the entertainments at 2
p.m. only, both days.

Replacement tickets and letters
of explanation are being mailed to
the people who obtained morning
tickets.

Smell Something Fishy
In Kersten Message?

Something smells rather odd
about that telegram that former
Congressman Charles J. Kersten
sent the General Electric Company
recently demanding that GE serap
its contract with UE.

Was it just Kersten’s way of
giving another. boost: to his pal,
James B. Carey? Or could GE.
have encouraged the ex-Congress-
man. to send the message?

The telegram from Kersten and
a reply by GE Vice-President L. R.
Boulware were printed in the
Nov. 16 Employee Relations News
Letter, confidential bulletin from
top GE management to supervi-
sors.

Kersten was chairman of the
sub-committee of the Hartley La-
bor Committee that specialized in
altacks
vestigation” of Local 301 in 1948,

The UE--convention of 1948
charged Carey with collusion -with
Kersten against UE and Carey de-
nied the charge. But Kersten re-
cently telegraphed Philip Murray
congratulating him on the expul-
sion of UE from CIO,

“Was glad to. cooperate with
Mr.- James B. Carey and other
members of your union in October,
1949,” Kersten stated. .

In November 1948 the labor
unions of Wisconsin, in a drive
spear-headed by UE, defeated
Kersten for reelection to Congress.
He promptly became employed by
a lobbyist for the National Asso-
ciation of Electrical Companies.

Boulware explained that UE is
still certified bargaining agent for
GE employees, but invited more
advice from Kersten,

Get Your Children’s Xmas Party Tickets

Fill out the form printed below to obtain free tickets for the 301
children’s party Dee. 10 and 11 at Mont Pleasant High School. The

age limit is 10 years.

Give the form to your shop steward to turn in

at the union office, or mail the form to the union or hand it in at the

union office yourself.

| want_
mas party.

Name of child (or children)

tickets for my child (or children) for the 301 .Christ- |

My Name is.

Address

| prefer to have the tickets for the following time: {Place X
in square opposite the time you prefer.}

Saturday, Dec. 10 at 2 Pm.....-.-------00
Sunday, Dec. I! at 2 p.m.

cater nt

AT Efe Hep rete,