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“IN UNION THERE IS STRENGTH”
issues
AN’ INVATSEION AND A PLEDGE
— Schenectady GE siviviten must he. ‘aware. by now that edtthin, events of veteiit days are going
to have a vital effect on those of us who work for GE and on the welfare of. our families.
Because the IUE-CIO liad the foresight and wisdom to write a ‘cost-of-living clause into its
GE contract, 65, 000 GE workers in plants throughout America are now eligible to receive -
an eight to 10-cent per hour cost of living wage increase, based on Bureau of Labor .
Statistics figuers for March 15, 1951.
This victory was won, despite organized sitet on the part of big Business 4 to make cost of
living adjustment illegal under the current wage freeze,
Big business, led by GE, wanted to enforce a ten per cant formals, with no exceptions.” But
the American labor movement, the CIO; AFL and major independent unions, through the’
United Labor Policy Committee ‘waged a successful battle and forced. the Wage Stabiliza-
tion Board to issue an order allowing cost of living increases above the 10 per cent formula.
But GE. workers ‘in Schenectady are not among the 65,000 who will receive the cost of living in-
. crease. The UE at its convention last September, went on record condeming such cost of living in-
creases, The most we-in Schenectady can hope to receive under the UE-GE agreement is five cents
per hour, as allowed under the 10 per cent formula.
And the reason.is plain. UE stands alone, unwanted by the rest of organized labor. While
all other unions were doing a real tradé union job, UE was, and still is, spending money in
the defense of ‘Julius*Empspak, James Matles, and the other UE staff members who are
being tried because they refused to answer the question, “Are you a Communist? ”
This is the reason our families will suffer - = - and it’s the reason why. UE does stand alone
today. All the rest of organized. labor shuns UE, When UE made application for member-
ship: on the United. Labor Pola) Comnntttee, all the cio, AFL and independent unions”
voted ‘“‘No.”
BUT WE, THE WORKERS AT GE, CAN DO SOMETHING ABOUT THIS SITUATION!
IUE-CIO, AT ITS GE CONFERENCE BOARD MEETING MARCH 3 AND 4, MADE A PLEDGE —
TO ALL GE WORKERS AND ISSUED AN INVITATION AS WELL. .
“It is our intention in IUE-CIO to fight to see that all GE workers enjoy the same benefits
as will be obtained by workers.led by IUE-ClO.” This is the time for all GE workers to
realize that as a force in the GE chain, UE is finished. It stands isolated, helpless, discred-
ited, while the main stream of organized labor makes the fight for American labor and
American ‘democracy. Those workers chained to UE now have an opportunity to make
their bid for freedom and alliance with IUE-CIO.” .
QUR BROTHER AND SISTER GE WORKERS THROUGHOUT THE NATION HAVE Is.
SUED THIS INVITATION TO US - - - AND IT CONSTITUTES A CHALLANGE TO EVERY
RIGHT THINKING MEMBER AND. OFFICER OF LOCAL-301, AND TO EVERYONE WHO
WORKS AT THE GE SCHENECTADY PLANT.
We have the opportunity to rebuild Local 301 within the framework of CIO, to join the
vast majority of GE workers throughout the country in the fight for economic justice. We
have this opportunity to unite the now divided house of GE workers - - - to take our right-
ful place in the ranks of American labor under the banner of CIO.
* We can do this by signing [UE-CIO applications for membership cards today, so that IUE-CIO
will be able to petition the National Labor Relations Board for an election..
All of us must resolve now to stand firm in our beliefs, for we can femémber the vicious
lies UE spread last year when we were told UE would win the majority of GE workers. The
record has proved this. a lie.
Now UE has already begun its lying campaign, claimed that AFL and CIO leaders signed
the wage freeze order. This statement appears in a recent UE District Three publication,
but the record shows. UE lied, because it is a matter of history that labor representatives
walked out of the meeting without signing the vicious 10 per cent order. 2
jae » THROUGHOUT: THE STRUGGLE WHICH IS BOUND-TO. ENSUE, WE MUST KEEP UP-
PERMOST IN OUR MINDS THAT OUR FIRST PURPOSE IN HAVING & UNION IS ‘TO WIN .
’ BETTER WAGES, HOURS AND CONDITIONS OF WORK - - - NOT TO SPEND A FORTUNE IN
THE DEFENSE OF THOSE WHO ARE ENEMIES TO OUR NATION!
UE. C10" Organization Committee . 202 Clinton Street . Schenectady, N.Y.
<BR>
5. ESET ROSSER EL EN - — pve oe —— se eT Eee 2
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BIC COrst en
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"IN UNION
THERE IS
STRENGTH”
Volume I No. 1
March 22, 1951
|
ES
2 Cope PECTS
Ene
UNITY IN CIO MEANS HIGHER WAGES
When IUE-CIO was chartered in Nov-
ember, 1949, the average wage in the.
GE chain was $1.44 per hour,
Today, through the efforts of IUE-CIO
that ‘average stands at $1.63 per hour,
The cost of living ‘increase guaranteed
to all GE workers under [U£-CIO con-
tract will bring the hourly average up
another eight to 10 cents.
Thus, after three years of nothing but
promises under UE, GE workers are. .
finally. beginning to make ‘gains. Some
65,000 GE workers are under .IUE con-
tracts, while UE. still -holds bargaining
rights for 35,000. .
Until, there is unity among. all. GE
workers in CIO, the GE workers can
f “yerer hope to reach the averige wages
_Jstablished by CIO in comparable in-
dustries,
Bureau of Labor Statisties . figures
show that the average. wage of the CIO
Steelworkers is $1.86 per hour, and of
the Auto Workers, $1.81 per’ hour.
Workers in the steel and auto indus-
tries made these gains through unity
in CIO.
Workers in the electrical industry
suffered because UE failed to work with
the rest.of labor, but through IUE-CIO,
this condition is changing.
WELDERS RECOGNIZED AS
"SKILLED" AT AEC, OTHER
PLANTS UNDER IVE
Welders in IUE-CIO plants: through-
out the country have received skilled.
trade recognition during the past year.
In GE plants, IUE-C10 has been suc-
cessful in winning the 5%-cent skilled
trade increase for welders. Welders at
the AEC plant here received this increase
in October, 1950.
wei’ Skilled ‘Ivades Council,
A
‘which takes up the problems of skilled
workmen, holds that all welders “must
he. recognized “.as_.skilled, ..since... their... —. .- -
training period is at least {wo years.
according to government standards, and
their knowledge must be greater than
that required on most jobs.
IUE-CIO COST OF LIVING
INCREASE RETROACTIVE
TO MARCH 15
The cost of living increase due to GE
workers under IUE-CIO contract will
._ be retroactive to March 15, although the
Bureau of Labor Statistics’ fizures on
the increase will not he ready until the
middle of April,
IUE-CIO has pledged itself to try to
win this increase for all GE workers,
but it is doubtful that the increase for’
those.’ ‘not under IUE contract will be
retroactive,
Management has claimed that it will
attempt to. receive permission from the
government to grant the cost of living
increase universally, since [UE-CIO was
victorious in its fight to win such in-
creases for its members, .
Previous to that, GE fought against
cost of living increase in every way pos-
sible, including using Charles E. Wilson,
head of mobilization as their tool.
MESSAGE FROM LYNN
Lynn Local 201, [UE-CIO, .wishes to
report to Schenectady GE workers that
of the 44 whose names appeared on the
leaflet which UE reproduced in its
newspaper last Friday, 37 were active
UE campaigners who: have nut as yet
joined IUE-CIO in Lynn.
Lynn Local 201 condemns the UF. for
hiding their evil ways by putting out a
UE handbill and claiming it is. publi-
shed by IUE-CIO members. The few IUE
members who. signed the leaflet now
regret their action, and have stated pub-
licly that they were tricked into sign-
‘ing it,
Lynn Local 201, despite continual
harassment from UE and Comuunist
organizers, is a strong local union with
almost’ 12,000 members, and is growing
stronger every day.
[UE-ClO
WISHES EVERY.
“GE WORKER
. A E
HAPPY EASTER
IUE-CIO LOCAL 30!
WINS RAISE FOR 12.
Atomic Local 301’s. most recent vie-
tory brought wage increases to 12 men, _
bringing all those in the Spru Depart-
ment at the Knolls up to the top of their
classification.
Increases ranged from one to three
steps, and were retroactive to Febru-
ary 26, °
The local is engaged now in an effort
to win a. general increase for..all AEC
workers, above the vost of living increase,
hecause: of the’ nature of the work in
_which they are engaged.
WE APPRECIATE THE
COMPLIMENT
IUE-CIO wishes to go on record as
gratefully accepting the compliment paid
to this union on page one of Fridiy’s.
Electrical Union News. +
Kirst UE claims the IUE-CIO contract
with GE contains “sell-out” provisions.
And UE uses an example. The strange
part is that the example’ UE uses re-
gards piece work prices, and the sec-
tion in both the IUE-CIO and the UE
contracts are so similar that it is dif-
ficult to find any difference, except,
perhaps, in the wording,
Now even the UE must admit that
the English language provides many
means:of expressing the same idea in
different words,
But there is a slight difference in the
two clauses, In. the, UE contract, the
company is allowed to re-time the whole
job if a change in manufacturing is
introduced.
‘In the FVE-CIO contract, only that
part of the job affected by the change
may be re-timed. This provision pro-
tects the worker’s job rate, in the event
that management would attempt to
lower it. |
In both contracts the worker is guar-
anteed that his former "earnings will be
maintained.
IUE-CIO considers it a compliment
that UE could find no clause in the
_1UE-CIO contract with GE to substan-
tiate its lie about “sell-outs”.
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