Union (organization)

“ When the unions amalgamate, as they must, the question of autonomy will be settled once for all. Then all power will be passed on to the industrial center and the crafts will be directed by it, as the individual member is now directed by his local. The industrial union will be the unit of authority. cannot have industrial unity until we have one union with one treasury and one directing center. Federation cannot supply these essentials of unity and therefore has proven a failure, and must make way for the superior form of organization. ”

“ It is time now to consider the tendencies towards growth and adaptation to modern needs that have been, and are at work, within the American Federation of Labor, and among those large outside organizations on the outer edge of the Federation, as it were, such as the brotherhoods of railroad trainmen. These tendencies, are, speaking generally, towards such reorganization as will convert many small unions into fewer, larger, and therefore stronger bodies, and towards the long-delayed but inevitable organization of the workers on the political field. ”

“ And so Congress charged the federal courts with the duty to look sharply to the relation of the individual to the affairs of the organization, and not to confound individual with union unless the individual is clothed with power by the union, in the ordinary way of union operation, in doing what he does for the union. ”

“ This inquiry will naturally divide itself into three branches,—the objects to be provided for by the Fœderal Government; the quantity of power necessary to the accomplishment of those objects; the persons upon whom that power ought to operate. Its distribution and organization will more properly claim our attention under the succeeding head.
The principal purposes to be answered by Union are these,—the common defence of the members ”

“ And now a far greater organization has come to take its place—as much greater as the American Railway Union was greater than the old union—and that organization is the Industrial Workers of the World. This great union is organized on the basis of the class struggle. It makes its appeal to the intelligence of the working class. It commands you workingmen to open your eyes and see for yourselves; to use your brains, and think for yourselves; to cultivate self-reliance and depend upon yourselves. ”

“ Compared with this modern system of organization the present craft. unions, each going its separate way and duplicating the union work of the industries as many as thirty times, is confusion worse confounded. The departmentalized union will be like an army, with its separate branches of artillery, cavalry, infantry, etc., but all welded together into one powerful machine.
Under the industrial system of unionism the workers will obtain tremendous power compared with the craft or federated form. Unity of action will at all times be obtainable. ”

“ Necessarily, executive power is strongly centralized, for the labor-union is a militant organization, but much is left to the local union. Though peaceful methods are employed when possible, warlike operations are frequent. ”

“ They also expected to be in a position to compel all non-union men to obey the mandates of the organization.
At a meeting of the Council, April 23d, the constitution was amended by adding the following section:
It shall be the special duty of this Council to use the united strength of the organizations represented therein to compel all non-union men to conform to and obey the laws of the organizations to which they should properly belong. ”

“ The Industrial Workers proposes to first unite all workers within one organization, classified in the various departments representing their several trades and occupation, to bring them all into harmonious economic relations with each other. The next thing is to coördinate them within their several industries with an eye to operating these industries when they secure control of them. That is the central function of the new union, and by far the most important one. ”

“ Besides these institutions, the union is in possession of a number of other enterprises, of which ten are agricultural, covering 300,000 acres and all worked by the organization." All the national unions are divided into departments to carry on the various phases of their educational and organizational work. ”

“ But in their stage of organization this group of unions closely resembles the local unions, whether of men or women, which existed in so many trades before the day of nation-wide organizations set in. ”

“ The organizations became divided up into what were nominally craft unions, in reality only process unions. Or if a new organization was formed, it was but a mere clipping off the whole body of operatives. And these unions, too, would probably have their international organization, to which they could turn to come in touch with brother workers, similarly qualified and employed. There is necessarily involved an element of weakness in any organization, however extensive, built up upon so limited a foundation, unless the membership has other local and occupational affiliations as well. ”

“ The I. W. W. arranges for their contact, co-ordination, and co-operation in its general organization—the working class organization. By thus organizing the workers by industries and uniting them in one solid organization, you can see how the I. W. W. is forming the structure of the new society. 207. But are not the coal miners so organized now? No. "All is not gold that glitters," and every organization that appears to be is not an industrial union. Being an inclusive union in the industry is not by any means all there is to being an industrial union. ”

“ The call for the formation of a Citizens' Union, signed by a large number of respectable persons, many of whom enjoy the confidence of the whole community for uprightness and good faith, furnishes a suitable rallying-point for a strong organization. The work of organizing should be pushed forward without delay, and as soon as the organization is sufficiently representative of the various classes of our population it should proceed to action. ”

“ I believe that under modern industrial conditions it is often necessary, and even where not necessary it is yet often wise, that there should be organization of labor in order better to secure the rights of the individual wage-worker. ”

“ By outlawing Solidarity, a free trade organization to which an overwhelming majority of Polish workers and farmers belong, they have made it clear that they never had any intention of restoring one of the most elemental human rights—the right to belong to a free trade union. ”

“ Just connections tend to become unions, it being found in practice necessary, for the preservation of the connection in due order, that the power of limited legislation for the common purposes and the power of adjudicating and applying the law for the common purposes should extend not only to the states, but to all individuals throughout the states. ”

“ The Community shall contribute to the development of quality education by encouraging co-operation between Member States and, if necessary, by supporting and supplementing their action, while fully respecting the responsibility of the Member States for the content of teaching and the organization of education systems and their cultural and linguistic diversity. ”

“ Never in the world’s history were the toiling millions so near as now to a union for political action to secure their rights. Given a plan on which all can unite, and the union can be effected with astonishing rapidity. ”

“ In this endeavor, we were inspired by the ideals which guided the Founding Fathers of our Organization and generations of Pan-Africanists in their resolve to forge unity, solidarity and cohesion, as well as cooperation, between African peoples and among African States. ”

“ The National League receives a certain amount of financial support from the American Federation of Labor, and from a number of the international unions, several of the latter being affiliated with the League. State federations, city central bodies, and local unions in different parts of the country give similar coöperation and money support. ”

“ The number of unions should be reduced to a minimum. (b) Congress should not encourage the formation of any new Union. (c) This Congress instructs the General Council to continue its work of amalgamation of existing unions with One Big Union as the ultimate goal. ”

“ To the wise men who were entrusted with the formation of that union and common government, it was obvious enough that each separate society should be entrusted with the management of its own peculiar interests, and that the united government should take charge only of those interests which were common and general. ”

“ And yet I know, Gentlemen, I feel, that this united system is held together by strong tendencies to union, at the same time that it is kept from too much leaning toward consolidation by a strong tendency in the several States to support each its own power and consideration. ”

“ It appears to me that the objects of this Society are so important and far-reaching that it ought to be a large national union, every one joining it as members and supporting it to the utmost of their power. ”

“ The committee remark in that letter, "that to form a permanent union, accommodated to the opinions and wishes of the delegates of so many states, differing in habits, produce, commerce, and internal police, was found to be a work, which nothing but time and reflection, conspiring with a disposition to conciliate, could mature and accomplish. Hardly is it to be expected, that any plan, in the variety of provisions essential to our union, should exactly correspond with the maxims and political views of every particular state. ”

“ The local unions are obliged to pay their tithe into the greater treasury, to make stated reports, to appoint a 116 certain roster of committees, and in certain small matters to conform to the requirements of the national union. ”

“ All these organizations have been the type of first elementary connections, the first elementary unity among the workers, and only further along as the struggle sharpened these benefit socities turned into unions. ”

“ Of recent years there has been a steady pressure towards amalgamation and consolidation of forces. Many small and local Unions have been merged, and several of the larger bodies seem to be on the point of union. ”

“ If we take the organizational structure of the trade unions we will see that the unions, from narrow craft organizations, are turning into wider units and later into industrial unities. This process is very slow. ”

“ If all this is done it will not be long before such a body of favorable sentiment is created that the sixteen unions can be combined into one, and the amalgamated organization launched into a career of power and success now hardly thought possible. ”

“ These industrial unions are grouped into Industrial Departments of connecting or kindred industries, while all are brought together in One Big union of all the workers of the world—the I.W.W. Workers, not officials, call strikes on or off. All power thereby remains in the hands of the man on the job. ”

“ If a Union of one hundred thousand members can be organized in three years like has been so wonderfully done here by your leaders and by your officers and your membership, my friends, anything is possible. ”

“ Baffled, however, in the further carrying out of her plans for a thorough, and for that day, nation-wide investigation, she turned her attention mainly to education and organizing, establishing new local unions, helping those already in existence, and trying everywhere to strengthen the spirit of the workers in striving to procure for themselves improved standards. ”

“ The industrial principle of union structure as applied to workers occupied in other branches of national industries, than manufacture (transportation, commerce, and farming) , and also in institutions fulfilling definite functions of government (postal-telegraph, medico-sanitary departments, education, etc.) , must be used to unite the workers of small isolated branches of industry and management into more powerful unions. As a basis for such amalgamation one must take the similarity of conditions of labor and the functions carried out. ”

“ It is a type of organization which, instead of uniting all workers, makes the sharpest division between those in the unions and those outside of them, and creates a lesser opposition between the different unions themselves. ”

“ BY the time a movement gets to be a movement and has people boosting for it, it has traveled a long time unseen. For many years the workers have been clearing the ground for amalgamation, actually doing the preparatory work, by trying out another and less radical form of union affiliation, namely, federation. ”

“ In the use of the word union, I desire always to be understood to refer to such organizations of workingmen as are conducted along reasonable lines and are led by representatives worthy of the best element composing the membership, who formulate their demands in harmony with known business conditions and control their movements within the lines of law and order, because when they assume any other condition they are simply mobs, and deserve only the condemnation of every worthy citizen. ”

“ Both Transport Workers and Miners, although they are called "federations", are now practically single unions. Not one of these bodies, however, sprang up in a night, but they were the result of years of growth, in which the organization of the unskilled and semi-skilled, and the processes of amalgamation and federation of separate unions, all helped. ”