Labor Legislation Political Cartoon
2/4/1947
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Post-war strikes had turned public opinion against organized labor by early 1947. Congress passed the Taft-Hartley Act over President Harry S Truman's veto. The act outlawed industry-wide strikes, mass picketing and the closed shop; made unions liable for law suits; established cooling-off periods before strikes; prohibited the use of union funds for political contributions; and gave the President broad power to obtain injunctions in cases of strikes which involved interstate commerce, communications and public utilities.
President Truman had recently announced a plan developed by the American Federation of Labor and construction contractors to arbitrate pay and other disputes with the aim of avoiding strikes. Cartoonist Clifford Berryman shows a pleased Truman taking a bite of the new building trades agreement cake while commenting to the cooks creating the new labor legislation that he hoped the new cooking would taste as good as the agreement cake. The three cooks are Senators Robert A. Taft, Jr. of Ohio, Joseph H. Ball of Minnesota and Smith.
President Truman had recently announced a plan developed by the American Federation of Labor and construction contractors to arbitrate pay and other disputes with the aim of avoiding strikes. Cartoonist Clifford Berryman shows a pleased Truman taking a bite of the new building trades agreement cake while commenting to the cooks creating the new labor legislation that he hoped the new cooking would taste as good as the agreement cake. The three cooks are Senators Robert A. Taft, Jr. of Ohio, Joseph H. Ball of Minnesota and Smith.
This primary source comes from the Records of the U.S. Senate.
National Archives Identifier: 6012382
Full Citation: C-066; Labor Legislation Political Cartoon; 2/4/1947; Berryman Political Cartoon Collection, 1896–1949; Records of the U.S. Senate, Record Group 46; National Archives Building, Washington, DC. [Online Version, https://docsteach.org/documents/document/labor-legislation-political-cartoon, January 13, 2025]Rights: Public Domain, Free of Known Copyright Restrictions. Learn more on our privacy and legal page.