Page:William Zebulon Foster - The Railroaders' Next Step, Amalgamation (1922).djvu/54

Rh above. Thy could set up their departments, one for each of the amalgamating trades, just as though all the unions were parties to the plan. Later on, as the outstanding organizations woke up and came into the amalgamation, new departments could be provided for them, and representation given them on the national executive committee. The foregoing plan is feasible whether the unions all join hands at once, whether they first form several sets of amalgamations among themselves, and then link these together, or whether the various trades come in in ones and twos.

Should all the unions amalgamate simultaneously one effect would be either the remodelling of the Railway Employes' Department, along the lines suggested above, so that it could serve as the national executive committee of the industrial union (which would be the logical thing to do), or, in failure of such remodelling, its entire elimination as superfluous. But should the unions amalgamate piece-meal, two or more at a time, the Railway Employes' Department might probably continue much as it is, with the same system of representation, the same autonomy between the affiliated organizations, etc.; until finally the amalgamation had been completed, when the department would be faced by the same necessity as though all the organizations had fused together at the same time; namely, remodelling to meet the new condition, or abolition.

Of course, such partial amalgamations of two or more trades would be steps in the right direction. But they would not meet the needs of the situation. The thing that is wanted, and the thing that must be put through is the amalgamation of the whole sixteen railroad unions at the same time.

In working out an amalgamation project for the railroad industry consideration must be given to the very important fact that the unions therein divide into two