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Container
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Title
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Series: James V. (Jack) Johnston
: 1702 Tamarack Lane, Janesville
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1976 August 24
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Tape/Side
17/1-A
Time
0:00 to 0:25
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Introduction
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Tape/Side
17/1-A
Time
0:26 to 7:46
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Family background--father as a teamster--parents emigrated from British Isles to Chicago--move to Fontana, Wis., father worked as butcher--mother's health
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Tape/Side
17/1-A
Time
7:47 to 12:32
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Family politics, Republican, J. J. as only Democrat--weeding onions during the Depression--J. J. voted for Al Smith
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Tape/Side
17/1-A
Time
12:33 to 19:52
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Family religious background--parents had no desire to visit ancestral lands--J. J. opposed to Prohibition
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Tape/Side
17/1-A
Time
19:53 to 22:47
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Class awareness not strong--family got by, never on relief--carpentry in spare time
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Tape/Side
17/1-A
Time
22:48 to 26:58
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Growing up in Fontana--recreation--cutting ice on Lake Geneva
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Tape/Side
17/1-A
Time
26:59 to 29:39
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Schools in Walworth--vocational school
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Tape/Side
17/1-B
Time
0:00 to 3:00
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J. J. looked for something different in life--variety of jobs at Fisher--welding, jig shop
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Tape/Side
17/1-B
Time
3:01 to 8:37
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Leaving high school--work for power company--didn't finish high school--nothing about labor movement in schools--J. J. proposed river front parking lot in Janesville
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Tape/Side
17/1-B
Time
8:38 to 12:46
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Father's attitude toward organized labor--influence of Clayton Orcutt in getting J. J. job at Fisher
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Tape/Side
17/1-B
Time
12:47 to 15:32
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More on power company work, enjoyed working out-of-doors
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Tape/Side
17/1-B
Time
15:33 to 19:03
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Going to work at Fisher--previous interest in cars--reaction against inside work--work on Big Foot Country Club course--selling bakery ovens
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Tape/Side
17/1-B
Time
19:04 to 22:29
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More on reaction to inside work--frequent job changes at Fisher--J. J. one of youngest Fisher workers
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Tape/Side
17/1-B
Time
22:30 to 29:40
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Door hanging as first Fisher job, skilled job at that time, not so today--changes in door hanging work, end of wood work
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Tape/Side
17/2-A
Time
0:00 to 0:10
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Introduction
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Tape/Side
17/2-A
Time
0:11 to 5:16
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Problems for doorhangers, correcting defective parts--no allowance for individual differences on the line, speedup--piece work system
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Tape/Side
17/2-A
Time
5:17 to 7:42
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Need to set a line speed that workers could sustain for a long time
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Tape/Side
17/2-A
Time
7:43 to 13:09
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More on piece work system--J. J. left Fisher after 8 months, felt tied down--returned to Fisher because it was a steady job--moving from job to job in the plant, useful later in organizing
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Tape/Side
17/2-A
Time
13:10 to 26:40
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J. J. as a foreman, quit that job because he didn't want to drive the workers--his department first to drop piece work--J. J. saw need to work out problems between workers and management--information from people in the front office--more on supervisory work
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Tape/Side
17/2-A
Time
26:41 to 30:51
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Fisher work force in the 1920s--most from Wisconsin, large percentage off farms--good laborers
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Tape/Side
17/2-B
Time
0:00 to 3:15
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Very few Fisher workers from Chicago or Milwaukee--possible influence of plant manager Markham
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Tape/Side
17/2-B
Time
3:16 to 9:21
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Further comments on the work force--no distinctive ethnic character, also for the door hanging area--workers with speech and hearing impediments from the Delavan School
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Tape/Side
17/2-B
Time
9:22 to 11:22
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Workers scattered residentially throughout several Janesville neighborhoods
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Tape/Side
17/2-B
Time
11:23 to 14:43
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Worker reaction to unions prior to 1933--comment on industrial unions--impossible to organize Fisher plant along craft lines
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Tape/Side
17/2-B
Time
14:44 to 19:54
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Friends of J. J. in early years who later became active in the union. Still in contact with some of them--the radicals--desire of union members to avoid trouble
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Tape/Side
17/2-B
Time
19:55 to 24:25
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Weeding out the Pinkerton men hired as company spies--J. J. confronted company on spies--dealt with Eddie Butler on these cases--one of Pinkertons used the name of Herb Lilla
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1976 September 2
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Tape/Side
19/1-A
Time
0:00 to 0:15
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Introduction
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Tape/Side
19/1-A
Time
0:16 to 6:00
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J. J.'s political attitudes--moved away from family Republicanism--positive reaction to the La Follettes--first Wisconsin unemployment check
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Tape/Side
19/1-A
Time
6:01 to 8:26
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Extent of J. J.'s political activity--attitude toward free enterprise capitalism
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Tape/Side
19/1-A
Time
8:27 to 11:47
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Work problems at Fisher--problem with ordering a car at smaller dealer, Dickhoff in Milton
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Tape/Side
19/1-A
Time
11:48 to 23:58
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Elimination of company savings plan in 1934--worker reaction to that event--J. J. suspected that action was anti-union in purpose
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Tape/Side
19/1-A
Time
23:59 to 2755
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Plant managers as distant figures in the early years--being away from family
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Tape/Side
19/1-A
Time
27:56 to 29:10
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More on being away from family as result of union activity
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Tape/Side
19/1-B
Time
0:00 to 9:50
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Difficulty sending union representatives to conventions--fellow workers with whom J. J. socialized--get-togethers with the officers--early “victory” party
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Tape/Side
19/1-B
Time
9:51 to 18:31
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Membership in Oddfellows, quit after union involvement--importance of lodge and church affiliations--Janesville as “lily-white” town--J. J.'s reaction to the absence of black people in Janesville
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Tape/Side
19/1-B
Time
18:32 to 21:17
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Location of J. J.'s Janesville residences--uncertainty during World War II--commuting from Rock River home to GM
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Tape/Side
19/1-B
Time
21:18 to 24:48
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Nature of Janesville neighborhood--other GM workers and UAW members in that neighborhood--paying back relief money
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Tape/Side
19/1-B
Time
24:49 to 27:29
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More on Oddfellows--fellow union members who were also Oddfellows--getting a boost through lodges
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Tape/Side
19/1-B
Time
27:30 to 29:55
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Brief period working in Kansas City--also worked in Oakland during the Depression at Ford and GM
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Tape/Side
19/2-A
Time
0:00 to 0:10
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Introduction
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Tape/Side
19/2-A
Time
0:11 to 2:55
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J. J. returned to Janesville in the fall of 1933, saw union coming then, “people won't be held down”--plumbers card incident in Pittsburgh in 1924--J. J. waited for opportunity to join a labor union
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Tape/Side
19/2-A
Time
2:56 to 9:18
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J. J. observed early organizing efforts in Oakland, influenced by that experience--anxious to get involved
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Tape/Side
19/2-A
Time
9:19 to 14:14
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Recollection of first Janesville UAW meeting at the Lien Garage--current location of that building--union card numbers not in order--relationship to Waldo Luchsinger and Lou Adkins--union drew people together
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Tape/Side
19/2-A
Time
14:15 to 17:07
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Nature of work after return to Janesville in 1933--metal finishing and welding--the work of the metal finisher
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Tape/Side
19/2-A
Time
17:08 to 22:58
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J. J.'s early involvement with the UAW in Janesville--first mass meeting at the Beverly Theater--comments on pensions
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Tape/Side
19/2-A
Time
22:59 to 27:19
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Further comments on J. J.'s early union activity--more on first meeting at Lien Garage, small group--many fearful for jobs early--organizing accomplished by local people, different from Oakland
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Tape/Side
19/2-A
Time
27:20 to 30:22
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Early members from the body shop--recruiting on the sly
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Tape/Side
19/2-B
Time
0:00 to 2:50
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Recruiting in the plant, against company rules--most members signed up in plant
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Tape/Side
19/2-B
Time
2:51 to 14:00
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Fear as an impediment to organizing--the GM Alliance, weak effort--limits on organizing activities in the plant--body shop hard to organize--need to control violence--UAW as most democratic union
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Tape/Side
19/2-B
Time
14:01 to 21:21
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Auto workers needed the CIO, workers bound together only by need to organize, no ethnic or religious bonds--early union members tended to be the more experienced GM workers--older workers as more reluctant to join-local UAW leaders from Janesville
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Tape/Side
19/2-B
Time
21:22 to 23:58
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Small town and farm people as harder to organize--most workers as unsophisticated and untravelled--J. J. had wider range of experience than most
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Tape/Side
19/2-B
Time
23:59 to 26:24
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Politics of early members, not overwhelmingly Democratic at that time, became so before long
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1976 September 16
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Tape/Side
22/1-A
Time
0:00 to 0:12
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Introduction
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Tape/Side
22/1-A
Time
0:13 to 11:58
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Grievances concerning work load--setting a pace--impact of piece work system--wages as secondary grievance--hiring and firing system as key grievance--health hazards, particles in the air
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Tape/Side
22/1-A
Time
11:59 to-16:39
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Dealing with health hazards--union had called in state health inspectors very early--fumes in the paint department
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Tape/Side
22/1-A
Time
16:40 to 22:08
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Company reaction to early organizing efforts--recollection of firings for organizing activities--city hurt by strikes
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Tape/Side
22/1-A
Time
22:09 to 28:56
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J. J. as a GM Alliance committeeman--recalls Alliance committee meetings with management--Alliance folded in six months
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Tape/Side
22/1-B
Time
0:00 to 2:25
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Violence held to a minimum--no personal knowledge of violence or sabotage
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Tape/Side
22/1-B
Time
2:25 to 6:33
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Pressuring workers in UAW membership, very infrequent--cold shoulder treatment--working with reluctant members
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Tape/Side
22/1-B
Time
6:34 to 8:39
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J. J. leaned toward the CIO--dissension resulting from AFL-CIO split
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Tape/Side
22/1-B
Time
8:40 to 17:35
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AFL v. CIO--Wes Van Horn's support for AFL--persistent support for AFL in Janesville--J. J. leaned toward CIO, but not militant--no desire for union job
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Tape/Side
22/1-B
Time
17:36 to 23:31
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Bylaws and constitution for Local 95--need to bring young members into leadership--working on the bylaws
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Tape/Side
22/1-B
Time
23:32 to 29:17
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Little reading and studying about unions in early years--reaction to John L. Lewis, Homer Martin--Janesville isolated from mainstream of union activity--Dave Sigman and the organization of Parker Pen
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Tape/Side
22/2-A
Time
0:00 to 0:12
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Introduction
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Tape/Side
22/2-A
Time
0:13 to 4:41
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Local 95 and organization of Parker Pen--other Local 95 efforts to assist other unions--organizing effort in Fort Atkinson
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Tape/Side
22/2-A
Time
4:42 to 14:27
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Janesville community reaction to UAW--attitude toward Vietnam War--different attitudes of retirees and young workers--no feeling of isolation in Janesville
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Tape/Side
22/2-A
Time
14:28 to 27:10
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J. J. as a union officer--offices not generally sought after--relationship between J. J. and Wes Van Horn-union officers not usually well-acquainted previously--more socializing now than in early years
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Tape/Side
22/2-A
Time
27:11 to 28:13
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Development of social relations
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Tape/Side
22/2-B
Time
0:00 to 6:30
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The significance of wearing union buttons--buttons disallowed in first contract--plant manager wore a Landon button in 1936
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Tape/Side
22/2-B
Time
6:31 to 15:00
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The sitdown strike of 1937--planning--J. J. and Wes Van Horn pulled the switches--meeting with management--supervisors allowed to pass through picket lines--providing food for the strikers
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Tape/Side
22/2-B
Time
15:01 to 20:26
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Further comments on planning the sitdown--imponderables--strike vote--role of the international in calling the strike
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Tape/Side
22/2-B
Time
20:27 to 32:12
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Happenings at the time of the sitdown, many left plant, fifty percent sitdown--strike vote meeting well-attended, little opposition to strike from members--Homer Martin scheduled to speak, called back to Detroit--J. J.'s comments on the legality of the strike
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1976 September 21
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Tape/Side
23/1-A
Time
0:00 to 0:15
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Introduction
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Tape/Side
23/1-A
Time
0:16 to 2:52
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More on the sitdown strike of 1937--trim shop as militant--strike carried off smoothly
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Tape/Side
23/1-A
Time
2:53 to 4:00
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Education efforts
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Tape/Side
23/1-A
Time
4:01 to 6:47
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Setting the strike--positions during the sitdown, desire to prevent trouble
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Tape/Side
23/1-A
Time
6:48 to 15:58
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Meeting in City Manager's office--Traxler's role--brief meeting--sheriff's office
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Tape/Side
23/1-A
Time
15:59 to 24:15
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After the agreement was announced--strike activities after the sitdown ended--daily meetings--difference between radical and militant
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Tape/Side
23/1-A
Time
24:16 to 25:46
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Going back to work--seniority as key gain
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Tape/Side
23/1-A
Time
25:47 to 29:27
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Wildcat strikes during 1937--front window vent group on strike--manpower problem
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Tape/Side
23/1-B
Time
0:00 to 3:05
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Relief time problem
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Tape/Side
23/1-B
Time
3:06 to 6:51
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Relationship between locals 121 and 95--J. J.'s knowledge of people on Chevy side
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Tape/Side
23/1-B
Time
6:52 to 13:47
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Membership growth after the sitdown--pride in accomplishments of Local 95--Christmas baskets--seasonal layoffs
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Tape/Side
23/1-B
Time
13:48 to 15:23
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Credit from merchants during the strike
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Tape/Side
23/1-B
Time
15:24 to 22:09
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AFL and CIO affiliations--J. J. support for industrial union concept--failure to buy old post office, AFL insisted on control by one union, one vote principle
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Tape/Side
23/1-B
Time
22:10 to 24:48
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Chevrolet purchased old UAW building on Jackson Street--95 bought Lutheran school on Academy Street
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Tape/Side
23/1-B
Time
24:49 to 30:00
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UAW and the Janesville Labor Council--J. J. unaware of AFL resentment of moonlighting by UAW workers
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Tape/Side
23/2-A
Time
0:00 to 0:10
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Introduction
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Tape/Side
23/2-A
Time
0:11 to 7:53
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Transition from AFL to CIO--fear of losing dues money delayed decision--few CIO organizers in Janesville--desire for unity in Local 95--factionalism
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Tape/Side
23/2-A
Time
7:54 to 18:32
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J. J. as early CIO supporter--many members quiet regarding AFL and CIO, although the issue was of general concern to members
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Tape/Side
23/2-A
Time
18:33 to 19:18
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Homer Martin scheduled to come to Janesville
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Tape/Side
23/2-A
Time
19:19 to 24:49
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J. J.'s knowledge of the positions of several Local 95 members on the AFL-CIO split--John Goetzinger, Dick Halford, John Goethe, Lars and John Johannson, Jake Vorath
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Tape/Side
23/2-A
Time
24:50 to 28:08
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Dropping of GM savings plan--GM control
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Tape/Side
23/2-B
Time
0:00 to 3:28
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UAW in local politics, UAW members on the City Council, Mark Egbert and Harry Johnson
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Tape/Side
23/2-B
Time
3:29 to 7:05.
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J. J.'s recollection of effort to oust Lou Adkins from Local 95, led by Wes Van Horn
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Tape/Side
23/2-B
Time
7:06 to 10:11
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J. J. during World War II--not an officer then, need for younger officers, concern about factionalism within Local 95--work in inspection department, then tool and die
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Tape/Side
23/2-B
Time
10:12 to 16:52
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J. J. called in to talk with FBI agent--asked about Communists in the union, J. J. knew of none--FBI agent only concerned about those specifically members of Communist Party--different type of people in Janesville
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Tape/Side
23/2-B
Time
16:53 to 19:27
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Ringling Circus incident--auto raffle--J. J. missed the elephant charge
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Tape/Side
23/2-B
Time
19:28 to 22:23
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Concluding remarks--development of the UAW as inevitable
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