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2. The correct answer is (B). The right to bargain collectively, that is, the right of workers to be repre-
sented by a union, is not guaranteed by the Constitution of the United States, but it is recognized by
statute. Section 7A of the National Industrial Recovery Act (1933) guaranteed the right of collective
bargaining with employers through representatives chosen by employees. When that Act was de-
clared unconstitutional by the Supreme Court, Congress passed the National Labor Relations Act
(1935), or Wagner Act. The Wagner Act reaffirmed the rights granted in Section 7A and established
the National Labor Relations Board to hear complaints from workers concerning violations of those
rights. In the fall of 1945, the country was hit by a wave of strikes, and even more serious labor
troubles occurred in 1946, including strikes by coal miners and railroad workers. The Taft-Hartley
Act (1947) was intended by its authors to correct the seeming imbalance between labor and manage-
ment. The Act outlawed the closed shop (under which employers are permitted to hire only members
of a union recognized by the collective-bargaining agreement) and restricted the union shop (under
which an employer agrees that employees must join a certified union after a period of probation) by
allowing states to pass “right-to-work” laws. A “right-to-work” law weakens union power, because a
worker doesn’t have to join the union even though his coworkers belong to it.

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U.S History Subject Test
135
ARCO
■ SAT II Subject Tests
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3. The correct answer is (A). On August 2, 1964, the United States destroyer Maddox reported that it
had been attacked by three boats using torpedoes and guns while in international waters in the Gulf of
Tonkin off the coast of Vietnam. Two days later there was a report of a similar attack on a different
United States vessel. Johnson ordered air strikes against North Vietnam and went before Congress to
obtain a resolution empowering the President to “take all necessary measures to repel any armed
attack against the forces of the United States and to prevent further aggression.” The resolution passed
the House unanimously and the Senate with only two dissenting votes. This resolution thereafter was
used by the administration as authority for its escalation of the war in Vietnam. Ironically, subsequent
research suggests that the attacks may not even have taken place.
The Platt Amendment was a provision attached to a 1901 army appropriations bill that was de-
signed to keep Cuba subservient to the United States even while granting Cuba independence. The
terms of the Platt Amendment were later incorporated into the Cuban constitution of 1902 and were
reaffirmed in a treaty between the United States and Cuba.
SEATO is an acronym for Southeast Asian Treaty Organization. Formed in 1954, the organiza-
tion included Australia, Britain, France, Pakistan, the Philippines, Thailand, and New Zealand. De-
spite the similarity of the acronyms SEATO and NATO, SEATO was not a true military alliance.
The Wilmot Proviso was added to a bill appropriating money to negotiate an end to the war with
Mexico. It stipulated that slavery would be forbidden in any territory acquired from Mexico by virtue
of any treaty negotiated. The provision failed to pass in the Senate.