RELATIONS BETWEEN EMPLOYERS AND EMPLOYED

Bureau of Labor Statistics, U.S. Department of Labor

RELATIONS BETWEEN EMPLOYERS AND EMPLOYEDSource: Monthly Labor Review, Vol. 12, No. 3 (MARCH, 1921), pp. 122-136Published by: Bureau of Labor Statistics, U.S. Department of LaborStable URL: http://www.jstor.org/stable/41827989 .

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RELATIONS BETWEEN EMPLOYERS AND EMPLOYED.

Joint Reviewing Committee of the Pennsylvania Railroad System.

ON of JANUARY

understanding 1, 1921,

between there came

the management into operation

of a the new

Penn- basis

of understanding between the management of the Penn- sylvania Railroad System u and the 51,000 employees in its

engine and train services, u which constitutes probably the most important single step yet taken toward the permanent "banishment of the causes of railroad strikes." About 20 per cent of the entire number of employees of the Pennsylvania Railroad are affected by the agreement, which covers the enginemen, conductors, firemen, hostlers, trainmen, and switch tenders, embracing practically all employees directly engaged in the movement of freignt and passenger traffic. This new plan was adopted at a meeting held on December 29, 1920, and is signed by the general managers of the four regions of the system and by the Altoona works manager, representing the administrative forces of the railroad, and by representatives of the employees, namely, the general chairmen of the Brotherhood of Locomotive Engineers, the Order of Railway Conductors of America, the Brotherhood of Locomotive Firemen and Enginemen, and the Brotherhood of Railroad Trainmen. The announcement of the plan put out by the railroad company states :

In reaching this understanding, the employees have accorded full recognition to the principle that all labor differences ought to be, and are, capable of peaceful and rational adjustment.

On its part, the management has, for the first time in the. history of American railroads, given affirmative recognition to the right of emplovees to participate, on equal terms with the management» in decisions affecting their welfare and working conditions.

A joint reviewing committee is provided, its duties being the " amicable settlement, by joint conference, of all controversial questions affecting the engine and train service men." It will constitute a court of review upon all questions that may arise between the management and the employees affected, involving grievances, rules or working conditions, including the administration of discipline.

This action by the management and employees of the Pennsylvania Railroad System, it is stated, was hastened somewhat by the decision of the Railroad Labor Board that it has no jurisdiction in regard to boards of adjustment - that boards of adjustment can only be iormed by the voluntary action of the management and its employees.

Memorandum of Understanding.

"THE following is the text of the memorandum of understanding * covering the method to be followed in the handling of questions between the Pennsylvania System management and its employees in the engine and train service, effective January 1, 1921:

122 [606]



RELATIONS BETWEEN EMPLOYERS AND EMPLOYED. 123

Preamble . 1. The outline of the method in which controversial matters are to be handled

as given below is for the purpose of expeditious adjustment of matters presented, to the end that there may be a satisfied spirit among the officers and employees, and it is important, therefore, that so far as is possible, decisions will be reached at the time of meeting, such decision to be confirmed in writing as promptly thereafter as is possible.

2. This plan for handling schedule and other matters can be successful only by full and conscientious cooperation on the part of both the management and the employees, and it is expected that when questions are presented fox disposition that the spirit of absolute fairness will be the factor in adjusting these matters.

Divisional handling .

Monthly meetings - Superintendent and local chairmen. 3. Each division superintendent will hold joint monthly meetings with the local

chairmen representing the engineers, firemen, hostlers, conductors, trainmen, and switch tenders, for the purpose of disposing, if possible, of all controversial matters arising on the division, and these matters may be placed before the meeting by either the employees or the superintendent.

4. The local chairmen will furnish the superintendent not less than five days in advance of the meeting a list of the questions they desire to discuss and the superintendent will likewise advise all local chairmen not less than five days in advance of the meeting of the questions he desires to have discussed.

Schedule - Method of handling ivhen there is no disagreement. 5. Questions relating to schedule matters which are discussed and agreed upon

between the superintendent and local chairmen will be placed in effect at once and referred by them to the joint reviewing committee immediately for review with a joint statement prepared by the superintendent and local committee stating the case at hand and giving their reasons for such agreement. Copies of this joint submission will be furnished the local chairman, the general superintendent and the general manager. Schedule - Method of handling when there is disagreement .

6. In cases where the superintendent and local committee are not agreed that the language of a schedule rule exactly covers the# situation at hand, and there having been no interpretation placed on same by the joint reviewing committee, they will at once prepare and refer to the joint reviewing committee for decision, a joint submission showing (1) joint statement of agreed upon facts; (2) position of committee; (3) position of superintendent. Copies will be furnished the local chairman, general superintendent, and general manager.

Interpretations of schedule - Method of handling when there is disagreement. 7. In cases where the superintendent and local committee are not agreed that an

interpretation that has been placed on a rule by the joint reviewing committee exactly covers the situation at hand a joint statement will at once be prepared by the superintendent and the local chairman showing: (1) Joint statement of agreed upon facts; (2) position of local chairman or committee; (3) position of superintendent. Copies of this joint submission will be furnished the superintendent and local chairman. If further action is taken on the case it will be with the general superintendent.

Discipline appeals - Method of handling. 8. Discipline matters subject of appeal by local chairman will be handled in

accordance with schedule regulations, or may be handled at the monthly meetings providing the employee involved has complied with the regulations covering the method of appeal from discipline.

9. In the event the local chairman is not satisfied with the decision of the superintendent on a discipline case, joint statement will at once be prepared by the superintendent and the local chairman showing: (1) Joint statement of agreed upon facts; (2) position of local chairman or committee; (3) position of superintendent. Copies of this joint submission will be furnished the superintendent and local chairman. If further action is taken on the case it will be with the general superintendent.

[6071



124 MONTHLY LABOR REVIEW.

Note. - In discipline cases arising on the Philadelphia Terminal Division and the Pittsburgh Terminal Division appeal from the decision of the superintendent will be made by the general chairman to the general manager. In discipline cases arising at Altoona Works, appeals from the decision of the works manager will be made to the works manager as general manager by the general chairman.

Other than schedule and discipline matters - Method of handling, 10. In addition to schedule and discipline matters, all other controversial ques-

tions will be handled at the superintendent's monthly meeting. In case the local chairman or committee is not satisfied with the superintendent's decision joint submission will be made in the same form as outlined in paragraph 9.

General divisional handling .

Monthly meetings - General superintendent and general chairmen. 11. Each general superintendent will hold joint monthly meetings with the general

chairmen representing the engineers, firemen, hostlers, conductors, trainmen, and switch tenders for the purpose of disposing, if possible, of all controversial matters referred to him by the general chairmen and upon which the superintendent and the local chairmen have been unable to agree. Questions for discussion will be referred to the general superintendent by the general chairmen not less than five days in advance of meeting and the general superintendent will likewise furnish the general chairmen a list of questions he desires to discuss not less than five days in advance of meeting. Other than schedule matters - Method of handling .

12. In the event the general chairman is not satisfied with the decision of the general superintendent on any controversial matters, other than schedule matters, referred to the general superintendent by the general chairman, such cases will at once be jointly referred by the general superintendent and the general chairman to the general manager giving (1) joint statement of agreed upon facts; (2) position of committee; (3) position of general superintendent. Copies of this joint submission will be furnished the general chairman.

Schedule - Method of handling when there is no disagreement. 13. Questions relating to schedule matters which are discussed and agreed upon

between the general superintendent and the general chairmen will be placea in effect at once and referred by them to the joint reviewing committee immediately for review with a joint statement prepared by the general superintendent and general committee, stating the case and giving their reasons for such agreement. Copies of this joint submission will be furnished the general chairman and the general manager.

Interpretations of schedule - Method of handling when there is disagreement. 14. In cases where the general superintendent and general committee are not

agreed that an interpretation that has been placed on a rule by the joint reviewing committee exactly covers the situation, a joint statement will at once be prepared by the general superintendent and the general chairman and referred to the general manager giving (1) a joint statement of agreed upon facts; (2) position of committee; (3) position of general superintendent. Copy of this joint submission will be furnished the general chairman.

Regional handling .

Monthly meetings - General manager and general chairmen. 15. Each general manager will hold joint monthly meetings with the general chair-

men representing the engineers, firemen, hostlers, conductors, trainmen, and switch tenders for the purpose of disposing, if possible, of all questions which have been submitted to hi™ by the general chairmen as a result of disagreeing with decisions of the general superintendent.. General chairmen will furnish the general manager, not less than five days before meeting, a list of subjects to be discussed and the general manager will likewise furnish list to the general chairmen, not less than five days before meeting, of questions he desires to discuss.

[608]




Schedule and other matters - Method of handling when there is disagreement. 16. All controversial matters, including those referred to in paragraph 7, which

have been appealed to the general manager as a result of the general superintendent and general committee not being able to arrive at a common understanding will, if not disposed of between the general manager and the general chairmen, be referred by them to the joint reviewing committee for decision, giving (1) joint statement of agreed upon facts; (2) position of committee; (3) position of general manager. Copies oi this joint submission will be furnished the general chairman.

Schedule - Method of handling wh*n there is no disagreement. 17. Questions relating to schedule matters, which are discussed and agreed upon

between the general manager and the general chairmen will be placed in effect at once and be referred by them immediately to the joint reviewing committee for review with a joint statement prepared by the general manager and the general committee stating the case and giving their reasons for such agreement. Copies of this joint submission will be furnished the general chairman.

Joint reviewing committee .

Inter pretatio ns - pro m u bja t io n of. 18. Interpretations of schedule matters made by the joint reviewing committee

will be promulgated to all interested railroad officers. A sufficient number of copies of these interpretations will be furnished the general chairmen for distribution to their local chairmen.

Schedule of monthly meetings. 19. The schedule of monthly meetings for the purpose of caiTying out the provisions

set forth above will be arranged so as to afford the general chairmen sufficient latitude to satisfactorily cover the schedule of meetings and to the end that the cases may be carried through monthly meetings to the joint reviewing committee, if necessary, without delay.

Make-up of joint reviewing committee. 20. The joint reviewing committee shall consist, for the management, of two

representatives from each region of the system. For the employees, the general chairmen of the engine and train service employees, which, as at present constituted, consists of nine members.

Method to be followed by joint reviewing committee. 21. In all matters other tlian discipline the entire committee will sit. 22. In cases of discipline the representatives oí the management in the region

where the case arises, together with the representatives of the employee involved in that region where the case arises will not sit on the committee, but will present the case to the remaining members of the committee, who will hear and determine the matter at issue.

23. The management and the employees will have equal voting power and not less than a two-thirds vote will be necessary to reach a decision.

24. In case a decision is not reached by the joint reviewing committee not later than subsequent monthly meeting at which the case was first brought up, further procedure will be had as determined upon at the time of such disagreement.

25. Meeting place of the joint reviewing committee will be fixed from time to time by the committee. The joint reviewing committee will begin at once to function on all questions

submitted except interpretations of schedules, and will function on schedule interpretations when the system schedules are completed.

The foregoing becomes effective January 1, 1921, and shall remain in full force and effect until after 30 days' notice lias been given by either party to the oilier of a desire to change.

34172°- 21 9 [609]




National Labor Council for the Electrical Construction Industry.

AS A National

result of Association

joint meetings of Electrical

of five Contractors representatives

and Dealers each of

and the

National Association of Electrical Contractors and Dealers and of the National Brotherhood of Electrical Workers, the follow-

ing plan was drawn up early in 1920 and adopted in April following, providing for the creation of a council on industrial relations for the electrical construction industry in the United States and Canada. The purposes of this council are stated to be the "promotion of peace and harmony in the electrical industry, the adjudication of disputes between employers and employees, the establishment of friendly relations between all parties interested, which should ultimately result in the elimination of distrust, suspicion, and the wasteful methods of the old-fashioned strikes and lockouts." The plan is voluntary, no local union or employer being compelled to refer a case to the council

Text of the Plan . 1 . That the name of this body, created by the joint action of the National Association

of Electrical Contractors and Dealers and the International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers (hereinafter called the member organizations) shall be The Council on Indus- trial Relations for the Electrical Construction Industry in the United States and Canada, hereinafter referred to as the "Council."

2. That whereas it is the primary purpose -of the two member organizations to remove the causes of friction and dispute, the council conceives its principal function to be that of study and research to the end that it may act with the fullest knowledge of these causes, and that it may secure the largèst possible measure of genuine cooperation between the member organizations and generally between employers ana employees, for the development of the industry as a servant to society and for the improvement of the conditions of all engaged in the industry.

That the council earnestly urge upon the member^ organizations and each body of them, reasonableness, patience, good will and a serious endeavor to see the merits and justice of claims put forward by the other party, which in this, as in all other efforts of men to substitute harmony for strife, are an indispensable foundation for cooperative effort, without which the council can not achieve success in its purpose.

3. That the council shall consist of five representatives appointed by each of the member organizations. 4. That two of the present representatives of each of the member organizations shall serve for one year and until their successors are appointed; that three of the present representatives of the member organizations shall serve for two years, and until their successors are appointed; and that thereafter each member organization shall appoint alternately each year two representatives and three representatives, all to serve two years and until their successors are appointed. The member organizations shall appoint representatives to fill vacancies in the council caused by the death or resignation of representatives.

Representatives shall serve without compensation from the council. Either member organization may withdraw its representatives from the council on four months' written notice to the other member organization. 5. That the council shall meet upon call of the chair, or on written request to the chair by three members. That all meetings of the council shall be open to the public. That a quorum shall consist of three of the representatives of each member organization. The representatives of each member organization present at any meeting shall have the right to cast the votes of absent representatives, and in the absence of a quorum shall appoint one alternate to take the place of an absent representative. That the council shall hold an annual meeting for the election of officers in April of each year. (5. That the council shall elect at its annual meeting a chairman, a vice-chairman, an executive secretary, a treasurer and two members of the executive committee. The executive secretary and treasurer may be the same person. All officers shall serve one year or until their successors are elected. An officer may succeed himself. 1 Data taken from the Journal of Electrical Workers and Operators for December, 1920, pp. 242-244.

Springfield, 111. [610]




7. That the chairman, the vice chairman and the two other council members elected by the council at its annual meeting shall constitute the executive committee. When the council is not in session, the executive committee may exercise any and all powers of the council.

8. That the council may appoint such committees from time to time as may be considered advantageous by tne council in promoting the purposes of the member organization in creating the council. The council may delegate special powers to any committee it appoints. The council may appoint on committee or may allow committees to select such persons of special knowledge, not members of the council, to serve in a consulting capacity, as may best serve the council's purposes. The council may appoint from time to time committees for special study and research. The chairman ot each such committee shall be a member of the council but the members of any of them may be persons not members of the council who have special knowledge of the matter or subject to be studied. All such committees shall report their finàings and recommendations to the council.

9. All officers shall serv e without compensation. The council mav rent a suitable office and purchase or otherwise acouire equipment for it; and it may hire such persons as may be needed to perform the office work incident to the operations of the council. The expenses incurred by the council shall be borne equally by the member organizations. .10. That the council shall interpret the declaration of principles adopted by the

member organizations. 11. That the council shall adopt the following procedure in the adjustment of disputes: When a dispute arises which can not be adjusted by the existing local machinery, and notice to that effect is received by the secretary of the council, from either of the parties to the dispute, the secretary of the council after investigation, may, if circumstances warrant, request each side to submit the dispute to a board of conciliation to be composed of two representatives from each side, parties to the dispute, and one representative to be selected by the council who shall act as chairman but cast no vote.

The appointment of representatives by the parties to the dispute to act for them on the board of conciliation shall constitute a voluntary agreement between the parties to accept as an effective agreement between them the unanimous decision of the board of conciliation.

If the board of conciliation does not reach an agreement it shall make a finding of the material facts and state the reasons why it has been unable to reach an agreement. The chairman shall report such finding and statement to the council and the council shall determine the matters so submitted as arbitrator. If the council reaches a unanimous agreement, it shall report its decision back to the board of conciliation through its chairman, and the board shall then state the agreement between the parties to the dispute the same as if the board itself had reached a unanimous decision. If the council shall fail to reach a unanimous decision it shall make majority and minority reports and transmit them to the chairman of the board of conciliation who shall immediately publish them in order to inform the public of the material facts and the reasons why tne council has been unable to reach an agreement.

New Working Agreement Between Clothing Firm in Baltimore and its Employees.

ANEW Henry working

Sonneborn agreement

members & Co.

has

of (Inc.),

the

recently of Baltimore,

been negotiated Md., and

between

Work- em- Henry Sonneborn & Co. (Inc.), of Baltimore, Md., and em-

ployees, who are members of the Amalgamated Clothing Work- ers of America. The principal differences between this new agreement and the old may be noted: (1) Modification of the clause relating to discipline and discharge, giving the company greater power to discipline and discharge, with the understanding that any wrongful action on the part of the company will be subject to review; (2) the inclusion of a clause which specifies that all workers in all departments shall be held individually responsible for their output, there being a set standard of output for all persons receiving a specified wage; and k 0 [611]




(3) substitution of the ' preferential shop" for the closed shop, which was a feature of the old agreement. This gives the company the right to hire nonunion help when no union help is available. The agreement is effective from January 12, 1921 to May 31, 1922.

New Arbitration Agreement Affecting Building Trades in San Fran- cisco.1

ALL working present

conditions and future

in the disputes

building relating

trades to in

wages, San ÏVancisco

hours, and will working conditions in the building trades in San ÏVancisco will

be submitted to a permanent arbitration board for adjustment under an agreement recently signed by the San Francisco Building Trades Council representing the workers and the San Francisco Build- ers' Exchange representing employers. The board consists of three members, the Most Rev. Edward J. Hanna, Archbishop of San Francisco; Mac C. Sloss, former justice of the Supreme Court of California, and George L. Bell, consultant in industrial relations and management. The findings and decision of the board in each case will be accepted as final by the parties to the agreement. The board may initiate investigations into all conditions affecting the building trades and is empowered to call for contracts or agreements per- taining to any phase of the building situation. The hearings are to be public unless the board decides otherwise and the expense of operation is to be borne equally by each party. The agreement in full is as follows : 1. In the matter of arbitration between the Builders' Exchange and the Building

Trades Council, we hereby accept the following three arbitrators, to wit: Archbishop E. J. Hanna; Max C. Sloss, ex-associate justice of the Supreme Court of California; and George I.. Bell, consultant in industrial relations and management.

2. It is understood that all three arbitrators to be deemed impartial arbitrators of all controversies, and under no circumstances is any one of them to be considered a representative on the board of arbitration of either of the contending parties.

3. It is agreed that this board shall sit as a continuing board of arbitration, to which shall be submitted all disputes as to hours, wages, and working conditions in building trades where there are no disputes now, as well as in those where there are, when and as such disputes arise between the signatory parties, and that the decisions of the board shall be accepted as final and carried out by all parties. This step is taken in order to provide a permanent method of settling amicably, and in a reasonable manner, labor disputes in this çity affecting the building trades, and with the hope that building operations henceforth may be put on a certain and stable basis- a result which will be of advantage to the workers, to the employers, and to the public.

4. It is agreed also that the board of arbitration may go into all questions concerning the general building situation, and call upon the signatory parties for information and copies of contracts or agreements concerning any phases which the board desires to investigate. 5. It is further agreed that thé board of arbitration may incur such expense as it deems necessary for the employment of investigators and clerical assistance; and that the entire incurred expense by the board will be shared equally by the signatory parties. 6. It is understood that all hearings of the board of arbitration are to be conducted as public sessions, save, and except, such special hearings as in the judgment of thè board should be held in executive session.

7. It is understood that the trades in which there are now disputes concerning hours, wages, and working conditions, which disputes will be immediately submitted to the board, are as follows: Painters, glassworkers, varnishers and polishers, cement > Based on an article published in Building and Engineering News, San Francisco, for Jan. 29, 1921, p. 3.

[612]



RELATIONS BETWEEN EMPLOYEES AND EMPLOYED. 129

finishers, cement laborers, hod earners, tending plasterers, marble rubbers and sawyers, marble finishers and polishers, marble masons, marble masons' helpers, hoisting and portable engineers, roofers, -elevator constructors, elevator constructors' helpers, reinforced iron workers, team and auto truck drivers, plasterers.

Organization of Employers and Workers in Germany.

Employers' Organizations.

THE even employers

m prewar in

days. German

The industry

auxiliary were

service extensively

law 1 its ( Hilfsdienst

organized

the - even m prewar days. The auxiliary service law 1 ( Hilfsdienst -

gesetz), .enacted at the end of 1916, which had for its scope the greatest possible exploitation of all the economic forces of Germany, was responsible for tne creation of additional large employers' organizations. Since the termination of the war, organization of the workers and salaried employees has made phenomenal progress and the solidarity of the workers is pushing the employers toward the utmost limits of financial concessions without securing afterwards any com-

fK'nsation ore, not to by be

way wondered

of increased at if employers'

or improved organizations

production. have

It increased is, there-

ore, not to be wondered at if employers' organizations have increased in numbers during the last two years and show a great tendency tò combine in powerful national central organizations ( Reichsverbände ) so as to be aole to resist in closed ranks the ever-increasing demands of the worker. Constantly repeated wage fights have created an atmosphere of bitterness, and since the fight has been transferred exclusively into the material domain employers' and workers' organizations face each other with an alarming incapacity for comprehend- ing the true nature of problems for which a solution ought to be searched in common.

German employers' organizations may be divided into four groups, according to whether they chiefly concern themselves: (1) With general economic and political problems; (2) with general socio- political problems; (3) with the regulation of special business interests (regulation of production, sales, or prices) ; or (4) with the safeguarding of the special interests of the employers in their relations with the workers (regulation of working conditions, especially of wages and hours of labor). Some empio vers' organizations include among their activities several or all of the four tasks enumerated. Employers' organizations are organized by industry groups as national, State, district, or local organizations. The latest official statistics on employers' organizations published by the German statistical office cover the year 1918 and are very incomplete owing to conditions prevailing during the war.

Statistics covering the year 1915 show that 3,683 employers' organizations were in existence in Germany in that year. Of these, 125 were national organizations, 499 were State or district organizations, and 3,059 were local organizations. Of the total number of organizations 1,920 reported a total of 156,938 members and 1,366 organizations reported the number of workers employed by their members, the tabulation of which resulted in a total of 4,281,477 workers. 1 See Monthly Labor Review, April, 1918, pp. 89-103.

[613]




By the end of 1918 the number of national employers' organizations had increased to 839, the following industry groups having the largest number : Commerce, 149; metal-working industries, 141; tex- tile industry, 86; clothing industry, 56; quarrying, stonecutting, exca- vating, etc., 51 ; chemical industry, 51 ; paper industry, 51.

The strongest national organizations are the National Federation of German Industry ( Reichsverband der Deutschen Industrie), founded in Jena on January 12, 1919, through the consolidation of several large organizations covering various industry groups and intended as a solidary central organization of German industry for the representation of its political and economic interests, and its counter-

Í)art, Deutschen the Union

Arbeitgeberverbände of German Employers'

), which deals Federations

with all social ( Yereinifjuny

and socio- der

Deutschen Arbeitgeberverbände ), which deals with all social and socio- political problems of the German industry. One hundred and thirty national federations were affiliated with the latter organization in January, 1920. The number of workers employed by the members of tnese affiliated organizations is given as exceeding 4,000,000. The Union has strongly opposed all attempts of workers? organizations to secure for the workers a share in the management of the establishments and was largely responsible for the mild form given to the German works' council law, believing that increased production is absolutely necessary for the economic reconstruction of Germany and that increased production can be achieved only by an independent employers' class and the development of free initia- tive by the employers.

At the last annual meeting of the union (Mar. 11, 1920, at Berlin) its secretary pointed out "tnat a large number of social problems aro awaiting solution, but that the union should for the present center all its activities upon the solution of the wage problem, the adjustment of prices and consequently also of wages to world's market prices, the building up of a wage system based on the cost of living, the in- troduction of sliding wage scales, consideration of the size of the family of the worker in the fixing of wages, etc. ; that a clearly defined policy of the employers' federations witn respect to these problems requires thorough investigation of existing conditions and their effects; that the principal task of the German employers' federations must be energetic cooperation in reconstructing a basis for effi- cient production. They must create the conditions which make the performance of work possible and must oppose unjustified attempts to disturb and hamper peaceful production. To strengthen and support them therein througn the power of combination must now as before be the task and aim of the union of German Employers' Federations.2

The Hansa Union of Trade, Commerce, and Industry (Ilansabund für Gev)erbe , Handel und Industrie ), one of the most reactionary employers' organizations of Germany, which has always maintained the

Koint as for of

a view long

that time

the cherished

employer the must

idea be

of "master

forming in

a his

superunion own house,"

of as for a long time cherished the idea of forming a superunion of all German employers' organizations. This idea has in part been realized. According to Soziale Praxis (Berlin, July 21, 1920) some of the large national employers' organizations have combined into a Central Committee (Zentratausschuss) . This central committee has * Soziale Praxis und Archiv für Volkswohlfahrt. Berlin, May 5, 1920, p. 723.

1014]




proclaimed as its aim the solidary safeguarding of the common economic and political interests of all German employers and a con- certed defense against all movements directed against these interests. A subsequent issue of Soziale Praxis (July 28, 1920) states, however, that the formation of this superunion has not been greeted with general acclaim. The fact is that German employers are already much overorganized. For this reason the National Federation of German industry and the Union of German Employers' Federations have declined to become members of the new Central Committee. These two organizations are much stronger central organizations of employers than the new creation of the ultraconservative Hansabund can ever expect to become.

During the present critical industrial and labor situation the German employers' organizations schooled through long experience and welded together in the fire of revolutionary wage movements will give proof of their great power. The union of German Employers' Federations is strongly prepared for defensive action, as has become evident from a secret circular letter addressed to its members. This circular letter, which somehow came into the hands of some labor organization and was given wide publicity in the labor press, deals with the attitude to be taken by employers toward the works' council law of January 18, 1920. The letter states that "the plans for a general strike of employers against the enactment of the works' council law have not been carried out, owing to reasons of expediency. It is also not intended to use sabotage against the law. Employers are, however, urgently requested to adopt a strong defensive attitude in the application oi the law against an attempts to go beyond the letter of the law made either by the regulations ior the enforcement of the lav/ or by the workers. Employers are especially admonished against making concessions in the application of article 62 of the law.3 In the framing of shop regulations ( Arbeitsordnungen ) and in the con- clusion of collective agreements employers' federations should not go beyond the bounds of legal obligations." It can only be hoped that this warning will not prevent employers from working in harmony with sensible works councils, however great the difficulties that are to be overcome while this new German institution is in its experimental stage.

In connection with the subject of employers' organizations it should be mentioned that following the amalgamation of German employers' federations the 1 7 existing employers societies for insurance against strikes have formed themselves into one society under the name of "German Protective Association against Strikes" ( Deutscher Streik- schütz) .

Workers' Organizations.

IN GERMANY, as in all countries affected by the war, the power of * labor and especially of organized labor has increased consider- ably. In order to secure an uninterrupted supply of war materials * Article 62 of the works' council law has the following wording: ' 'A works council shall not be created, or, if already created, snail be dissolved if, in the nature of the establishment, there are special diff iculties in the way of its institution or functioning and if by virtue of a collective agreement declared to be universally binding some other form of representation of the employees of the establishment exists or is to be set up. This form of representation shall take over the rights and duties assigned to the works council by the present law * *

k o * IC15]




concessions without end had to be made to the working classes. The greatly augmented power of the working classes wnich was acquired during the war, underwent an even more extraordinary- increase during the two years following the armistice. The most distinguished feature of this vastly increased power of labor is to be found in the development of the trade-unions, particularly of the so-called "free" trade-unions.

The most important groups of the German trade-unions are the "Free," the Christian, the Hirsch-Duncker, the Syndicalist and Communist, and the so-called "Yellow Unions." The development of the German trade-union movement has repeatedly been discussed in publications of the Bureau of Labor Statistics. For this reason ana owing to lack of space only a very sketchy description of the development of the individual trade-union groups is given below.

The "Free" Trade-Unions.

The "free" or Social Democratic trade-unions ( Freie Geweric - schajten) embrace the great majority of the organized workers in Germany, and constitute the most highly organized labor organization in the world. At present the number of members is over 7,000,000. The movement was started in the sixties of the last century, mainly by members of the Social Democratic Party. By 1874 the early unions, which were viewed with disfavor by the Government, had died out. Attempts were made to revive them, but the antisocialist law of 1879 destroyed not only socialist bodies but also practically all trade-union organizations. Between 1878 and 1888, 108 trade-unions were dissolved by the authorities; but in spite of that, many unions contrived to keep alive under the form of mutual benefit societies, so that, when the antisocialist law lapsed (it was never repealed), a large number of unions were in existence in a more independent form than before, though the members were still pledged to work for the Social Democratic Party.4

In 1890 it was decided to link up the unions in a central organization, and at a conference in Berlin the General Commission of German Trade-Unions was founded. This conference also decided on the form that trade-union organization should take, that the real power should be left with the national federations, which still remain the strongest and most characteristic element in German trade- union organization. Until the tenth congress in July, 1919, the central coordinating agency was the General Commission, with its headquarters in Berlin. It consisted of a committee of 13 members, elected by delegates of the trade federations, meeting every three years at a trade-union congress. Its functions were to carry on

feneral t also trade-union issued the Korrespondenzblatt,

propaganda and publish the

trade-union weekly organ

statistics, of the t also issued the Korrespondenzblatt, the weekly organ of the

Social Democratic unions. In 1913 there were 2,548,763 members of the "free" trade-unions

in 47 organizations. Each of the unions had its own journal. The local branches and district organizations are very closely super- vised by the national executives of the unions. The local branches « Labor Overseas, vol. 1, No. 1, p. 116. London, 1920,

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of the unions are federated in "cartels" ( Jcartelle ) which correspond more to the British trade councils and the American central labor unions than to the French bourses du travail or the Italian chambers of labor. They do, however, manage strikes in their own districts. The secretary of the cartel is very often in charge also of the local labor secretariat (Arteitersekretariat) .

At the tenth trade-union congress at Nuremberg in July, 1919, a complete reorganization took place. The General Commission was abolished, and the General Federation of German Trade-Unions ( Allgemeiner Deutscher Gewerkschaftsbund) was constituted. Its aim is to ' 'form a permanent means 01 cooperation between the affiliated unions in representing the common interests of all workers organized in trade unions." The federation has an executive committee consisting of 15 members elected by, and responsible to, the Congress. The former council is replaced by the federation committee which consists of one member of the executive committee of each of the central unions (generally the president). The cartels are now known as local committees.

When the war broke out the unions made a truce (Burgfriede) with the employers, and their services were entirely at the disposal of the Government. They cooperated with the employers in joint councils (Arbeitsgemeinschaften) and greatly extended the system of collective agreements. At the revolution they took no part in political action. Friction soon developed between them and the workers' councils (Arbeiterräte) owing to attempts to exclude the unions from influence in the councils.

The split in the Social Democratic Party naturally brought about a division in the unions. The trade-union congress in July, 1919, declared its political neutrality owing to this division. At this congress the "patriotic" attitude of the General Commission was sharply criticized, but a vote of confidence was ultimately passed. There is a strong revolutionary minority in the federation which has captured the powerful Metal Workers' Union and the Berlin Trade Union Commission. This minority is opposed to all negotiation with employers, and the joint council in the metal trades has been dissolved. The majority is in favor of a wide extension of joint councils in preparation for "the social state." The majority leaders maintain that works councils, if they are to be successful, must not be more than the organs of the unions within the various establishments, while the minority hold that they must be revolutionary agencies.

The most interesting event in recent trade-union history was their entrance into the political field at the time of the Kapp coup in March, 1920. The unions organized a general strike against the usurping junker government, with the cooperation of both the majority and the independent socialists and with the approval of the public ; their action was the chief cause of Dr. Kapp s failure. The federation declared that the struggle would-be continued until the Government granted a list of demands which included trade- union "influence" over the reorganization of the Governemnt, social and economic legislation, and the resignation of Herr Noske, minister of defense. Although the concessions made by the Government were not wholly satisfactory to the unions, it is significant that such

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demands were made. Before the war, the unions, while closely- connected with the Social Democratic Party and believing in the class war, had held that all such questions should be left to the political party, and that the immediate business of the unions was to work for improvement in the position of the workers, mainly by means of better wages and working conditions« They were active in encouraging international cooperation, and in prewar times the great majority of the international trade-union federations had their headquarters in Germany.

The Christian Unions.

The religious trade-union movement was first coordinated about 1890 in opposition to the socialism and militant methods of the " free " unions. There are three branches, the Christian, the Catholic, and the Evangelical. They are strongest in the industrial and mining districts of Rhenish Westphalia, where the Catholic Church is very influential, and in Bavaria. In 1899 a Federation of Christian Trade-Unions of Germany was formed to admit members of any Christian denomination. Its aims were stated to be to promote the common interests of employers and workers and to increase production. Its methods were to be concilatory, the strike to be admitted only as a last resource. Occasionally they have cooperated with the "free" unions for common, strictly economic ends.

In 1919 a federation was formed called the German Trade-Union Federation composed of the " Christian" unions, the Trade-Union of Nonmanual Workers and the Union of German Officials. The membership was stated to be 1,700,000 at the end of 1919. The unions forming the new bodv were stated to be inspired by the conviction that not class warfare and internationalism but national consciousness and the fostering of the ideals of the German people were the right path for the future.

Hirsch-Duncker Unions.

The Hirsch-Duncker unions date from about 1868 and were due mainly to the efforts of Dr. Marx Hirsch, who drew his inspiration from the English trade-unions of that period. They were meant partly to counteract the influence of the Social Democratic unions which were then springing u¡>. They were originally political and economic associations of workingmen more or less in sympathy with the radicalism of their founder. At their congress in 1906 they declared themselves to be "neutral organizations For economic ends." They believe that the interests of employers and workers are funda- mentally the same and that concessions must be obtained by agreement and not by aggressive methods, and without political action. At their congress in 1908 their aims were defined as the repudiation of class warfare and community of property, support of arbitration and conciliation in preference to strikes, and the establishment of collective agreements. At the end of 1919 they had only 189,831 members and, though this number has probably grown with the general spread of trade-unionism, they have no great significance in the German labor movement.

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Syndicalist and Communist Unions.

Syndicalism in Germany is organized in the associations central- ized in the Free Workers' Union of Germany. They are described in the journal of the Metal Workers' Union (itself extreme), as " extremist organizations whose principles are those of class war." They are strongly opposed to social democracy. Before the war they were known first as the Federation of Syndicalists and later as the Free Association of German Trade-Unions. Since then the name has been changed several times, the name Free Workers' Union of Germany ( Freie Arbeiter- Union Deutschlands) being adopted at the congress in December, 1919, as many workers in Germany are shy of the name of syndicalism. In some districts they are known as "localists." The writer in the Metal Workers' Journal states that numerically they are not strong; they had 15,000 members before the war and 110,000 at the ena of 1919. A delegate at the 1919 congress said that progress had been rapid in the Ruhr district, where 90 per cent oi the miners were organized in syndicalist organizations.

As the contributions exacted by the union are very low, it is unable to finance strikes successfully and prefers to adopt " ca'canny" methods and passive resistance, in order to reduce output to such an extent that the employer may be compelled to shut down his factory. The State, it is believed, would then have to hand over the establishment to the workers.

The General Workers' Union ( Allgemeine Arbeiter- Union) is a communist organization and is the outcome of the dissatisfaction felt by the workers with the " reactionary and bourgeois" tendencies shown by some trade-union leaders. Opposition to trade-unions was strengthened by rumors that the Kussian communists were unfriendly to the unions and that there was no room for the latter in a soviet republic. It was asserted that there should be only one proletarian organization, whose aim should be the conquest of political power.

The Communist Party refused to support these ideas, but, when the Communist Labor Party was formed at Berlin in April, 1920, it refused to recognize the trade-unions, because they were willing to cooperate and make compromises with capitalism.

The most prominent feature of the by-laws of the General Workers' Union is the antipathy shown toward the Social Democratic trade- unions. The union is organized on the basis of works orgainzations. Workers in one establishment form a "union" under the leadership of the works council. This union works in close cooperation witn the Communist Labor Party. Its aims are (1) to destroy thé trade- unions, and (2) to prepare for the communist system.

Thus the syndicalist free union and the communist general union differ widely, the former aiming primarily at industrial conquest and the latter at political supremacy. They are at one, however, in attacking official trade-unionism as bureaucratic. In their opinion leaders are unnecessary, and their own spokesmen have no position of authority and no responsibility. The free union attacks all forms, of centralization, and accuses even the general union of a tendency toward centralization through its cooperation with the Communist Labor Party.

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"Yellow" Unions.

The so-called " yellow " workers' movement in Germany was pro-

moted before the war by large firms, such as Krupp's and Siemens'. The total membership before the war was 280,000. During the war their membersnip decreased and in a national agreement between the largest employers' organizations and all of the large workers' central organizations, concluded on November 15, 1918, it was expressly stipulated that employers must sever all connection with the movement. In an article in Freiheit (Berlin, July 2, 1920), Herr Aufhäuser, president of the Federation of Social Democratic Unions of Technical and Office Employees and a member of the National Economic Council, states that the "yellow" movement is being revived. The new organizations are the National Federation of German Trade-Unions ( Nationalverband Deutscher Gewerkschaften) and the National Federation of Technical Emplovees ( Nationaler Bund Technischer Angestellten). They are stated to be subject to the influence of Herr Karl Friedrich von Siemens (president of the Siemens Co. and one of the leaders of the Democratic Party). The actual leader of the movement is Herr Geisler, a Reichstag deputy of the Peoples' Party. The above unions are organized in industrial groups with the avowed object (as stated in Herr Geisler's journal the Deutsche Arbeitgeberzeitung) of

" obtaining the strongest possible

representation in the works councils and of making the latter organs of increased production instead of organs of the bolshevisation of German life."

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RELATIONS BETWEEN EMPLOYERS AND EMPLOYED

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