Se PIERS ER EEE
The Voice of GE Workers, Local 301, Schenectady, N.Y. July -15, 1955
Toolmakers Adopt 5 Point Program
N 0 T | C E The Toolmakers, members of IUE Local “between Class “B” job rate and reclassi-
301, emp at the Schenectady Works, con- fication to Class A" based on normal work
tend that)their present«rates of wages and - performance.
UNION OFFICE working conditions affecting their trade are .5, Hqual‘pay for equal work vs . proportion of
’ inadequate and urge local management to cor- A, B, C classifications and wotk jurisdic-
_ reet the inequities. in’ their occupation. tion of TRMO i in Toolrooms.
HAS MOVED a cof Toolmakers: oe Jane 16, ¢ ikers elécted the following to act
1955, th s of dissatisfaction were thor-
“ : oar : on a. i Neg ng Committee to present these
oughly d which resulted in the adop- j
po . demands to’ management:
IUE Local 3017's Union Office i Fen Bepoint: program covert the maior .
‘ bipn of aS EOiapragram eovering the major ‘iv: Dilie 28,-G, Mele 46, Jp Whilbedk 40, Ta
is now located at Erie Blvd. | items that ‘the Toolmakers are confronted Combs 37, R. Ellis 278, R. Vitallo 17. H. Me
and Fuller Streets, on the 2nd | with and it was unanimously agreed that these jen Meee <wien ~
i Lea ART, L. Miller 278, R. Robinson 269, J,
Floor of what is known as the | ‘issues-miust be resolved by direct negotia Carey, 8-0 O'Buien 17, r “Alesanpien notin
Old Car Barn. They are as follows: a a 7 Ae MCRAN GET, INNONS.
At a preliminary meeting held last week °
1. 20 cents per hour increasesin wages. lowaley sement refised flatly ¢ as anv
Sica ocal management refused flatly to make any
121 Erie Blvd, Toolmake’s schon WEE aed i concessions in the case. G.IE., which once
" Scioneckodiy, NE. '¥: euparian ane : ze Ok WO cs ae Be Bt a boasted that, its rates were best in a com-
the first opportunity to fill openings before munity now refuses to even consider the 20c
consideration is given to other employees increase warranted to make GE’s rates com-
—— aeg87 on ieled! SCAM or hiring new ap- parable with community and-area rates for the
plicants from the gate. skills called for from Toolmakers.
Establish proper ratio of apprentices to. The Union Negotiations Committee has
the number of journeymen. ~~ ‘ulled a meeting to determine future steps to
Establish a time element for journeyman — be taken in the case.
REMCE LENS
ee TE MOE TET ITE TE FEE LAB BT PTO AE
oa:
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‘Mailing Address:
AVR:
°
Refreshments to‘suit Ponies proved iounilaik
every taste. . all day long. Business Office Phones
Union Attorneys Phone
4-3155 .
iser Notify Congressman Kearney
: Re. «oe ae ee mh. S To Support Minimum Wage
all emergencies. 3 au _ » ' ' | E ens Ol . Gi ~The House Labor Committee is winding up hearings on
“General. Electric, the giant of the _the minimum wage bill. The Senate has already approved in-
elec stalehl ; SG UER 7 is. a vin F ” R f creasing the minimum from 75¢ to $1.00 per hour. The House
oreman e ‘USES has yet to approve the increase. IUE Local 801’s Executive
a fe Board, confirming action taken at the last Membership Meet-
paper ane mangaxine, “ids on ratio Dispensary Pass ing, notified Congressman Pat Kearney by telegrany of their.
‘ ap
ue " ws ee Pr position in the matter as follows:
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BRIELD DAY SCENES
hewrrarn and a ib well doce by the Action ‘Committee adde
to a day’s enjoyment for all who attended.
The money, realized from this. affair will be used toward ¥ :
Local 3801's Annual Christmas Party. Last year over 7,000 children : erat : . Qo Rahs g
Union members received free toys and, candy at the Christmas ‘Part : ‘ i ; vy
When one of foreman’s first
nd, 6 hae’ ik tld of. netions, after ¢ n to responsi- a . .
asize and, wealth, “but “behind. bility, was’ to lise to aevept a Congressman Bernard Kearney
indreds ‘of ‘sin: ler companies. ‘ Written grievance, when .among — House Office Building
: "2 y malpre » attempts. to : :
Compared with” “ather corpora: thet malpri nnbieo he att me 5S Washington, D. C.
tions, GE is almiserable miser. ignore seniority, as in the a
‘GE employes retiring this year, tempted illegal transfer of ure
‘
fénibers af Lodal 30%.
wil wet far less than workers ‘at
Arma, Exide, Du Pont, GM, Bell
Telephone, or ‘Dayton Power, &
Light, to cite a few examples.
“And GE pensioners “Hiaiwe™cons >
tributed to their pensions, - while
the workers in the: other .corpora-
lano, when this same foremiin-now
sets himself up as a medical -au+
yesting that you ass.”
thority by refusing’ to issue a dis- our s epeaertative in: Gong? ress, demand that the. bill on the
pensnry,-pass to an injured em- $1.00 minimum hourly age, be: brought to the floor and voted
ployee,. ib. is nat surprisin s What on: “We strongly-urge t at : é-in-support: of this: bill;
ig surprising is that the Company
will still maintain said foreman, T, Your attention will be greatly appreciated, f
LEELA
tions named above do-not..The ‘em- Kronk, Bldg. 278, in_a position of uo bon
ployer pays the full. gost, °" "esponsibility. i. : JAMES J COGNETTA,
For workers retiring, this -ye Tast June 80th, Nick» . a
Pay President, Local..3 UE-CIO”
PRLS
es
rem (Continued. on Page.
nembers of Rotter
4
Lt
Se
Giant GE Is.
(Continued from Page 1)
after 25 years’ service, now aver-
aging $1.88 an hour, here is the
comparison:
Bell Phone ..
Dayton Power.
* Du Pont
GM
And to get that 7 pension,
GE employes at $1.88 an hour have
heen contributing out of their pay-
checks about $74 a year.
All other firms listed above have
non-contributory pensions,
GE’s minimum pension for 25
years’ service is $125 a month. But
that ineludes Social Security, and
GE's pension system is so arranged
that when Social Security pay-
ments increase, Gh’s.payments de-
crease,
Thus, when the base for old age
pensions under Social Security was
raised to $4200 on Jan. 1, 1954,
GE’s. contribution to its pension
fund was cut by 6% per cent, at a
saving of.between $% and $2 mil-
lion x year—to GE.
In other words, the increase in
Social Security meant not a cent
7 : more. to GE pensioners, It was GE
that benefited by the change in the
law—not its employes. That’s what
GE calls progress. Hy
Because of a complicated form-
ula for past service and a very
poor minimum, GE production
workers get comparatively little
credit for their years of past serv-
ice, And that is why they show up
poorly in comparison with pension-
ers of other companies.
», Other corporations have changed
their pension plans with the years,
but not Gi. While GE merely talks
progress, other corporations have
acted on progress.
DuPont, for instance, modified
its pension plan in 1950 ‘und has
since made substantial modifica-
tions under which a worker averag-
ing $1.88 an hour for 25 years and
retiring now gets $94 a month, out~
side of Social Security,
GM, negotiating its first plan
for production workers in 1950, re-
cently concluded its second sub-
stantial’ improvement in the last
five. years, us ‘a result of nepotia-
tions with the IUE-CIO and the
UAW-CIO, and now grants $2.25. a
month for euch year of service,
outside of social security. Thus
workers with 25 years get $56 a.
month while workers with 40 years
get $90 a month,
Consolidated Edison made two
changes since 1950 and now pro-
vides workers averaging $1.88
hour for 25 years with $76 a mont
Arma, an old IUE-CIO plan, pro-
vides the same worker with $96
month. Exide, a plan originated
1922, but improved in’ 7950 nope
tiations with Local 113 IUE-CIO,
gives pensioners in the same
bracket with a similar background
$78 a month.
A number of pensioners this year
will also suffer because of the poor
minimum in the GE plan. Among.
those who will retire in the next
year, they will need some supple-
mentary pension to bring them to
the $125 x month pension. This
means that these persons will be
getting: a maximum pension, of $8
a month from GE, terardless of |
their yearssof work. |
Papers Praise
New Contracts
The New York Times, the Post
und the Christian “Science Moniter
were among the nation’s influential
papers that praised the guaranteed :
employment contract,
The principle of the guaranteed
annual wage’ was heartily indorsed
us far back ug 1948 in a booklet
approved by Carditial Spellman,
The booklet, “Case for a Guaran-
teed Annual Wage,” was written’
by Mary P. Wagganman, formerly
un economist with the Bureau of
Lubor Statistics and an associates
editor of the Monthly Labor Re-
view.
A. He. Raskin, labor analyst of
the N. Y. Times, said of the Ford-
UAW compact: “Phe performance
_of both sides was a heartening ex-
hibition of industrial maturity.”
Joseph C, Te sch, Washington
vorrespondent of the, Christian
Science Monitor, said. “Phe wage
settlement is one more piece. of
“evidence that the world,in which we ;
are living is evolving. rapidly away
:
from the calculations: Kai
“Marx.
“The Ford. settlement vt
that. labor and, industry are: work+
ing.out a new social system in the
United States.” :
"Phe New York Post) said ‘that
“there will be diehards who call
syoung Mr Ford a ‘traitor? te his
But in the history books he
Hobe vyemembered for a econtribue ,
fan to the sovlal engineering of
this cenlury as momentous as the
mechantoal aw { his grand-
". att ‘ F w
Well, let’s take a closer look.
DAY PRESS
BOTH
SIDES |
Labor Press Is Vitial
‘A rather outmoded idea still persisting around some parts
| Is that newspaper readers are presented with both sides of
all. questions and therefore are:free to make up their minds,
wt Ciler 71M 1,002 «1,002,288
Competition Citien BIAS FRA "B78 94
Jive with Competition 552. 2BB «281 aI
fia
v
1900-19380 IMO. 1958-54
a
DAILY: PRESS DAILY PRESS
DAILY PRESS
DAILY PRESS
ONE SIDE
O°" SIDE
: ONLY. 1 y
ONE SIDE
tising.
920 1930 |
What this means ‘is that readers in most Instances are
not getting both sides of anything! What they are getting
is a steady one-sided diet of the ideas, biases and pet opinions
of a big business operation supported by big-business adver-
From the Clacionatl £9q
Local 901, F art Wayne
Votes No Overtime
‘Like so many other GE. plants,
Pont: Wayne Jints been plagued with
layolls. The iInembers of Local 901
became, Peds up: with: the excessive
and: unnecessiry’ overtime being
scheduled tiider the cireumstances.
Am
men
meeting of the Union's
pany on
nob ask any al the cmployees. to
work overtime.
notify their groups of the
ment, No overtime will bes
after July Yth, ne
ed in an agreement:
overtime, *
duereed’ that they will,
Forgmen were to:
Discharge Committee
Meets Regularly
Local suUs Discharge Committee”
meets regularly with representa-
Uves of) management on diseipli-
nary cases, Miles Moon, Bil, 40,
the Union representatives tv these
“member involved in’ sueh
should contact their ‘Shop
and the Union office tim
A few recent: instances make it
important to note that theft and
“gumbling are cause for immediate
dismissal, ,
New York's
‘Industrial Climate
Commissioner Edward T. Dick-
inson ol the New York State De-
partment of Commeree, in a speech
at Olean this week, revealed the. 3
ed
86 industrial firms had inform
the State Department of Commerce
of plans to build new factories in
New York State this year. In addi-
tion, 97 other firms reported that .
they were expanding their New
York State operations, or would ex-
pind before the year was out, The
estimated cost of the new buildings
and additional equipment and facili-
ties, he said, would probably total
smore than 30 million dollars,
More than 7000: new job oppor-
tunities will be created by the new
factories und expansions of estab-
lished fitms in the first six months
of L955 according to the Commis-
sioner.
Commenting on the reasons for
“such expansion he stated, “Tech-
“nological know-how among man-
“agement and labor, bolstered by
superlative research - facilities, is
the backbone, of New: York State
industry. New York’ management
is alert and, progressive: New York
labor is mature and responsible.”
“The current expansions and
ing nation-wide recognition that
New York State it is possible, as
is_in ‘few other locations, to de-
locations are indicative of a nm ()
i.
ve ..“elop. and produce quality, pre-
and doe Sickinger,. Blas, STA, are ee ! P TYP
cision products, It is recognition
that a’ New York State location
brings the product closer to the
market, industrial or consumer. It
is veeognition: that’ a New York
mansghip,” ae e ;
Who said they had to move to a
nore “favarable’. industrial © eti-
mate —— and why? +
_ State. label:-implies -a~traditionof>
quality, -preeision and fine work:
, pl’s
Oo
dee .
Report on-Audit of
Local's Funds.
~, With the change over of Local
Office Managers, Business
Agent Leo Jandreau, as preseribed
under ‘is Constitutional duties,
called for an audit of Local 3801's .
cush funds.
The audit was nade by the Char-
les L. Marvin & Co, Publie Ac-
countants, 246 State St, Schenee-
tady, N. Y. Their report was veri-
fied in the following letter to Bro.
dandreau: .
“Mr, Leo Jandreau, Business Agent
1.U.E.-C.1.0., Local 301
Liberty St. and Erie Blvd,
Schenectady, N.Y.
Dear Mr. Jandreau:
At your request we audited the
cash funds as of June-J, 1955 in
the presence of Mr. Marshall
White and Mr, Shaffer.
We found the eash funds to be
in agreement with the books and
records of your Union,
Yours very truly,
fs/ Arthur A. Bianchi”
Roy ‘Schaffer, former Assistant,
Biisiness Agent, is the new Office
Manager. He replaces Marshall
White who has returned to the
yosbop after expiration of his five _
ar leave of absence as a Union.
<
af ficial.
Foreman Refuses
Dispensary Pass
(Continued from ‘page 1)
severely injured his hand by strik-
-Inw it against a piece of metal
while extracting -a piece. of pipe.
When he requested a pass to go to
the dispensary for treatment, Fore- |
saman
Kronk callously refused to
issue a pass and insisted he con-
tinue at work, In answer to a
grievance, Kronk, of course, must
admit he is not qualified to make
mmecdienl decisions, yet fn the next
piragraph he states, “IT did not
think that N. Grimato’s request to
voto. the dispensary was of such
an emergency that’ he could not
wiit until his job is finished.”
Bro. Granats: is. still veeciving
treatment for the injury anda
cuse ts. being provesscd at the man-
‘agers level in the matter,
Use Natural Gas?
Natural Gas Bill. of 1938 and leave household-
ers completely at the mercy of profit greedy
owners of a few giant corporations which con-
trol the natural gas of this country.
Passage of the bill is a distinct possibility
unless the voters let their Congressman know
that they oppose the Harris Natural Gas Bill.
A close vote is expected so the vote of every
Congressman is vital. :
Notify your Congressman: at the House
Office Building, Washington 25, D. C.; of your
opposition to the Harris Natural Gas Bill
(HR6645).
If you are a user of natural gas, you face
a sharp increase in your fuel bills unless the
influence of the power lobby is overcome!
Early this month, the House Commerce
Committee approved the Harris Natural Gas-
Bill (HR6645), which would exempt natural °
gas producers from price regulation by the
Federal Government, As the law now stands,
the producers are subject to the regulation
of the Federal Power Commission.
It is estimated that the oi! and gas lobbyists
have spent a million and a half dollars in lobby-
ing activities to force this bill on the public.
If this bill is passed, it would: repeal the
Injured Workers Must Act Prompty Army Snoop Pam-
To Protect Their Interests phiet Is Recalled
Protests by ‘the American Civil
Liberties Union have persuaded the
Army to withdraw a pamphlet _
called “How to Spot x Communist.”
The pamphlet listed such words as
“vanguard,”
“colonialism,” “pro-
gressive”
clues.
The ACLU, in its protest to De-
fense Secretary Wilson, charged
and® “materialist” as,
To help the worker in filing his claim, a form is printed he v _ i :
below which any worker who is injured can fill-out-as soon as *2e pamphict ‘wal ach 8 danger-
. possible after an'injury and give to his shop steward or send 0us precedent in encouraging snoop-
to the Union Hall. As soon as it is received, Local 301 will. ing and brain-washing and could
arrange to have the worker in by appointment to help him to develop. and intensify an ntmo-
fill out.the necessary papers for filing a claim. ; sphere “of dangerous
nmong fellow’ citizens,
distrust
Form to be filled out by Injured Worker, to be given to eee ee
Shop Steward or Mailed to Union Hall. ; The protest ue that pr SIRE
lynching parties,” whether physi-
cal, moral or verhal, must not be
encouraged, and most emphatically
not by a government ageney,
The publication, said the ACLU,
whieh is on record strongly against
the Communist conspiracy, “could
have ‘only one aim—to spur citizens
to spy-upon one another's language,
expressions and. associations.” The
protest said that was. both unwise
and unnecessary. 28
The Army, in withdrawing the
pamphlet, said “it-was not appro-
epeiate for the purpose for which it
was. intended when originally. is-
sued by Intelligence personnel,”
Name...
Address... 0. 0. bo ae a ee ane
Building +. ... Check + 7 Phone No.
Date of Accident. .
Part of Body Injured
Shop Steward. 0.00 01. _
. Briefly State How Accident Happened
THE UNJON WANTS
7 CHETNIKS JOB UP=
GRADED SINCE HE'S
‘OPERATING THAT
by KALLAS
uo
CHETNIK WOULD:LIKE’Y IMPOSSIBLE! we
A MONTH'S LEAVE OF /' COULD NEVER BREAK
ABSENCE T2. TAKE. < IN & NEW MAN ON
HIS SICK WIFE: TO: | THAT COMPLICATED
BRON MACHINE HE'S
UPGRADE? Never / my. >
/ SEVEN YEAR OLD GRAND-
SON COULD OPERATE
THAT MACHINE BLIND
NEW MACHINE! :
ay Z
10,000 New Members:
28 ELECTIONS WON
In the short space of two months, IUE-CIO has won
victories in 28 plants. The fabulous growth of the union rolls
on with 10,000 new mémbers gained since May 5.
Perhaps the most signifigant and
remarkable growth is. that out of
the 28 election victories 23° were
in unorganized shops.
High point of the period was an
important election won in’ the
South. The overwhelming vietory
ab Americin Safety Razor, Staun-
ton, Va., was in reality a fara
victory. .
Aside from being a major blow
at Southern anti-unionism, it stands
as a signpost for Northern manu-
facturers who think they can go to
other areas of ‘the country and
escape paying decent wages and
keep their thumbs down hard on
hon-tinion employes.
This is what ASR had heped to
do in Virwinia but enlightened
workers there fooled the company
but good, Despite a vicious cam-
paign put on by the TAM-APL in
collusion with fhe company, TUM-
CIO won hands down.
ASR had formerly -been in
Brooklyn, N. ¥., where UN had
represented the workers. Ul could
not even get on the ballot in Vir-
ginia, Why? — beeause they had
lost millions of dollars in severance
pay for Brooklyn employees since
they chose lo make a party issue
of it instend of trying to look out
for the workers’ welfare.
~ b two other skirmishes with the
dying UE in Fitchburg, Magss., and
Brockville, Ontario, Canada, TUE
C10 Loeal 290 and 1UE-CIO Local
510 beat off UE’s faltering raid
technique with case.
Workers at a shop in Centratia,
Missouri and at Garl lind, Texas,
in the" rapidly growing Dallas area,
also voled to join TUE-C1O,
IUE-CLO's impressive vielory at
Otis Elevator, Harrison, Ned, a
pliant long unorganized, brings to
anoend the Otis company’s favorite
plot of playing off ils Otis Works
against its Harrison “Works,
Workers in) Canada’s longest
assembly line at RCA, Prescott,
Ontario, though bitterly harassed
by a multitude of fringe? brought
about by eolfision between the
company and TBEW-AFL, stuck to
their guns and are now TUK-CrO
Local 528. Our union now has 10
RCA locals.
Victory at the Sylvania Plant in
Fullerton, California, brings to on
total of cight- the Sylvania shops
TUL-CIO represents.
Two new bargaining units have
been added to the. Westinghouse
chain, thus bringing up oa bigger
gun fo bear during fortheoming
negotiations.
-Another GE service unit, this one
in Appleton, Wisconsin, has. joined
the ranks.
Workers in three plants north
of the border are helping swell the
ranks--one of them having former-
ly been under the thumb of the UE.
And so it goes. Fram Texas and
from Massachusetts, fram Canada
and Virginia, from C:difernia and
New York, fron) Missouri and Min-
nesota, from New Jersey and from
Towa, electrical and machine work-
ers flock under the banner of the
TUE-CIO, birgwest union in the eloc-
(rien! industry cand still. rapidly
growing—doing a job it promisert
to do--organizing the unorganized. oo
High School Students Feel Labor Has.
Done Most for Living Standards —
A reecnt survey condueted for
GA. by the Opinidn Researeh Corp.
of Princeton, .N. Jd. ishowed’ that
despite hig business” propaganda,
high sehool students k ow the facts
of life. ;
Among thet
dents inte
Pl a
WN hich
aii 1
Orr eA
: “busine management
Was tesponsibles id, the
: ent; 14%
2nd Shift—1 00 Pat
(Before Work’).
Ist and 3rd Shifts
KRUEGER’ Ss HA
LIBERTY: cand oe FERRY: aR
Cogneitta Addresses
New Citizens
At the invitation of Mrs. Charles
Lawyer, Ja, of the Advisory Com-
mittee on Americanization, Dept.
of Edueation, President James
Coenetta spoke at a reception for
over 100 new citizens last week.
The reception for the new citi-
zens was held after Naturalization
Court at the Ilks Club, Friday
morning, July 8th,
In his remarks Bro. Cognetta
stressed labor's role in the welfare’
and prosperity af our nation, Num-
erous city, county and: school: of-
fivials extended their greetings: and
congratulations to. the group.
Business Paper
IN TWO MONTHS Lauds Pensions
An unexpected source of support
for company pension plans for ena”
ployes turned up recently when ‘the
Journal of Commerce, business-
man’s daily, reported outcomé of a
survey it had conducted.
The survey concluded that com-
pany pension plans contribute to a
more stable work force by cutting
labor turnover and. job jumping.
Alsa: : i
® Most workers prefer, to work
where there is a pension plan,
® However, employes often are
not kept fully informed about’ con
pany benefit programs.
The average worker who re-
tires plans to get another job or
move to a place where living costs,
ure’ lower. (Thus intimating that
most pension plans are peared too
low.)
Local 329 Thanks 301 For Support
“The following letter was received by Loeal 301 acknowl-
edging their support to TUE Local 329 in their bitter battle
W ith the Dolli inger Corporation of Rochester, N. Y. IUE Local
3 members furnished financial assistance during their.
‘ugele and also lent their support.on the picket line. sz
“LOCAL: No. 329 oo
IUE-CIO.
Dear Brothers and Sisters:
June 27, 19
The long 22 week strike against the union busti 1
linger Corporation of Rochester, New York, has
by “Local #829, [UE-CIO.
Some of the major gains won by the Local
action includes:
12 cents across the board wage increas
Good Friday as the seventhpaid holiday
Maintenance of membership’ clause.
Check-off.
Plant-wide seniority.
Automatic progression.
_t. Improved grievance procedure.
8. Leave of absence clause.
The above settlement. and gains could never have been
vealized without the financial assistance we received from your
organization, -
fp The officers and ezhbous of Local “No. 329, JUE- CIO:
“wish to take this opportunity to express their gratitude and | -
‘thanks for your support in our long struggle with the Del
Corporation.
or tally” and gratefully yours,
Dale Kinton,
Stanley | Aldhous,.”:
thony: Campriello,”
Hildreth, Bldg. 59
han, Bldg. 18,
posito, Bldgs ‘BB:
pS ES
EF
Ere aaaS
Sie e EERE:
we nome ontaw stay.
ire
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