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OUCHt TE SXO?-T? B VYRTINGt

(CFLNL) SAN FRANCISOCO in4vsot aFraneiso con.tructn

employees were last week isfet4n hasouts fby aj insur-

ance corporation In answr .to. the Ctlfo Stat Federation of

Labor boycott of private disability insurance plans.

The mimeographed letters given to oonistruotion workers pro-

tested that the oompany should be allowed a fair trial and a chance

to state its case.

Boycott of private disability plans was unanimously adopted by

the 1949 convention or the Stato Federation of Labor because of the

conduct of the insurance lobby during the 1949 general session of the

California legislature.

The insurance lobby resisted all efforts to liberalize the dis-

ability insuranoe law, and what is more, Joined with employer foroes

in seeking to frustrate the true function of the Unenployment Insur

ance and the Workmen's Componsation Acts.

Insurance lobbyists vigorously fought the hospitalization ben-

efit feature which now identifies the disability insurance law. This'

victory was won by the California State Federation of Labor over the

desperate protests of the insuranoe lobby.

As envisioned by its authors, the primry purpose of the unem-

ployment disability law was the aiding of the disibled workers of

California. Its seoondary, or incidental.purposAe was the parti.oipa.-

tion of private insurance carriers.

Califfo.rnia State Federation of LaborJ'E.KLYL INKL S LETTER, February 2, 195C Page 2

The insurance lobby has made it quite evident that it holds to

another, to a contrary philosophy. It has sought to m.ake corporation

profit tiho first purpose of the law.

12 the working people of California are ever to know the full

f-ru.ts of the disability systemnl, they must j'oin with the State Feder-

ation of la;bor i-L this boycott action.

Trhe insurancG corporations have received a fair trial. They

received that trial in Sacramento before the state, legislature. They

canlnoct now escape responsibility for the behavior of their powerful

I obDby

TMiore than 200,000 AFL workers have already joined the boycott

camipaigra. Unions desiring further information should write C. J. Hag-

gerty, Secretary, California State Federation of Labor, 402 Flood

B-ailding, San Francisco 2, California.

S. S.. **o .. ..

PRESIDEITT GREEN ENDORSES 1950 HEART APPEAL

(CFLNL)3AN FRANCISCO.--Willia-m Green, president of the Amer

inan Federation ol Labor, has endorsed the 1950 Heart Campnaign now

being sponsor ed by the American Heart Association.

This annual. appeal f or funds to fighit heart disease will con-

tir±ue thioughout the month of February.

?rIesident Green is a member of the national labor committee

directlng the crusade againlst Arnerica's Numfber One killer. Secretary

of Labor Maurice J. Tobin is chairman of the labor division.

.0... ...0*

FARn1 UNION URGES MEMBERS TO REGISTER

(CFLNLr,.)SAN F-ilANCISCO.-EH. LTJ Mitchell, president of the

Nation&l Farm Labor TUnion, AFL, last week announced in `hlashington,

".C. that he had instructed officers of all locals to put into imme-

diate efect a plan whereby every member who became a qaalified voter,

C 7. .J'orria State Federation of LcaborXiiELKLY iSDjiS LETTER, February 8, 950 Page 3

in 1950 would be exemr-pt from pay-ment of one -month's membership dues.

MiNtchellfs action was authorized by the 16th annual convention

of 1;IbeatLlonal Farmn Labor Union held last month in Fresno.

.. * * *.

TRLUMIVIAN PRA ISES NEW \ViAGE-HOUR AMENDMVIENTS

(CFIN!L)SAN FFANOTSC( .--The new wagoshour legislation which

went int,o effect on January 25 is "an I1mportant additionl to the laws

wealive b,"rt Prevident TrL"uman said last week in Washington. D. C.

"It is a measure dictated by social justice. It adds to our

ecomi^:r nstrength. It is founded on the belief thatu full human dig-

nIt-reu:ites at leazst a mrinimnum level of economic 3ufficerncy and

secill- i ty.

Th1e leg!siation establishes a 75-cent miinimum rate for the 22

miL.1 on wrorkers protec,ted by the liFair Labor Standards Act--the fed-

er'al wag-ehour law. It also provides increased protection for chil-

dren ae,ainst hlazardous industrial employment.

"O-urs s a gr-ow.*ingr society," the President saidc. ttWe cannot

afford to stand still1 and we cannct afford to have our legislation

become outmoded, Consequently, in 1949 we reexamined and reappraised

-the federal wage-hour law In the light of the 11 years' experience we

hac1 hqd vi-th it and in the ontext of< our present 250 billion do Llar

nat 1i onga e-ooonyt

Hi added: "As now amended, the Fair Labor Standards Act is a

good law. But,no law can be drafted which will not need reexaminatian

lin the -i.ght of subsequent developmnents. I have therefore asked the

Secrotary of Labor to keep me informed cn the operation of the new

la..W. T a&n oonfident tha.t our employers and workers will find compli-

ance with this law even easier than compliance with the original stat-

ute inei 8. I look forward to great and lasting benefits from this

legis-ation.".*.* 0.0 .*. . .

CaJ. f.]orrni State IFederpatton of LaborJa;W'EL-LY kLNS LETITER, FebC_/2'eruary 8, 1950 Page 4

SLAVE STATE THREAT TO IABOR

( TFL ) SA FR1ANCISCO.-.-Thn Committee ror Constitu tional Gov-

erznneIlt, rnctorious ant1ilabor front operating out of New York, has

a>zmunc ci thla t it wi1mrl'ake available, at low cost., a paper-bound

e-Itl.on of `The RFoad. Ahead, John T. Flynn's literar,y assault on the

life of the Alericanwabor mnoovienent.

7I r.n and tuhe vev ' n-Adair Publishing Comrpany have thus aligned

tI-e>i.semsIvs with perha-pos the mlost dangerous anti-labor body in tLhe

natiocn .

hri a telegram addressed to all members of Congress as of Octo-

ber 1° 2Q18 Viillford I. King, chairman ofthe n efariou,3 comtittee,

de.el arel,:

"ongress should pass a law prohibiting acr,- Igani-zaticn ccmprising the employees of more than one sm-

plover from combining to bargain concerning eitbher

wages or hours, m1aking it a criminal offense for any

cmployee to violate th-is law.t"

But wait, there's ymcre tc come:

'IThLe m1osbt effective wa3y of puttLng teeth into such

le)gislation and punishIng any person who qits wo-rk at

the behest of any such illegal combination would be to

forbid any employer to ray, within two years, to any

su;Ich striker an hourly wage or piece rate higher than

85 perc.ent of the hourly wage or pieoe rate last paid

to said person. Any grant of additional fringe ben-

fits to suich persons should also be prohibited.

"The law could be enforced more easily by thus

acting through the employer, than it could be by

attempting to punish al1l violators directly."

California State Federation of LaborVIEEKLY NTE:iS LETTER, February 8, 1950 Page 5

The concerned telegram was later printed and distributed as

edlucational material by the Committee for Constitutional Government.

The Cozmmtittee has recently formed its shock-troop unit, "Fighters For

F^ee?dom, " and hcpes to extend the Committee influence into every Amer-

iL.an city,

,nhO-i.EEK PAID VACATION INCREASTINGLY COMMON

(CFLNT )SAN FnBAKCISCO.--A study of vacation provisions in 1,527

collective bargaining agreements in effect in Califor-nia durinr the

early months o 31949 reveals that 90 percent provided for paid vaca-

tions,3 according to a survey by the California Department of Induso-

trial, Relations, Division of Labor Statistics and Research. In 1941,

such vacations were p:rovided for in only 54 percent of y9 ccnt;ract.

The most common form of vacation plan in the agreemeents for

1949 was the "cgradu.ated" type in which the vacation allowance is in-

creased after from two to five years of service. Graduated plans

were specified in 60 percent of the current agreements reviewed. The

pattern moost frequently specified was one week after one year and two

weeks alter two yea.rs, which occurred in 445 contracts (48 percent of

all graduated plans). One week after one year and two weeks after

five years, a comrmnon provision during VWar Labor Board days, w:oas found

in 2l1 contracts, or 23 percent of all grad-uated plans.

Tn 28 percent, the vacatlon plan was of the "flat" or "uniform"'

type in which the vacation allowxance is the same for succeeding years

of service as for the first year. More than three-quarters of the

425 contracts containing flat vacation plans specified two weeks aft.r

one year of service. Onpe week after one year was stipulated in about

one-fifth of the current agreements,

OEIU- 3-AFL( 31)