Evening star., 1942-06-19

The Senate committee investi-
eating the national defense pro-
gram, headed by Senator Truman,
Democrat, of Missouri, says the
dollar-a-year men are men of un-
questioned capacity and "the over
whelming number are possessed OF
patriotism and integrity" but that
they should not be allowed to have
a voice in any decisions or deter
limitations affecting the thing they
know most about, namely, their own
industries. The reason given is that
"they are unable to divorce them
selves from their subconscious grav-
itation to their own industries"
This is merely another way of
saying that the things which the
dollar-a-year men have learned
about industrial operations are not
easily discarded by them any more
than experience and facts can be
discarded by those in science or
the law or In engineering who have
had years of familiarity with such
facts.
Why, therefore, is it urged that
these dollar-a-year men should give
up their convictions? What is it
about the dollar-a-year men that is
wrong II their integrity and patriot
ism is unquestioneda Is it possible
that these men are not ready to
surrender to the collectivist con-
cept Of the American social sys-
TEN? Are they being penalized be-
cause they will not allow the war
program to be used for socialistic
purposes and experiments, for failing
to consent to the wholesale wreck
age of the industries which they
know, when they see no alternative
plans emanating from Government
to do the war job efdciently?
Report May Give Clue.
Maybe there is somewhere a clue
to the campaign OF defamation
which has been going on for some
time against the dollar-a-year men,
Q campaign which has caused DON
old Nelson. chief of the War Pro-
duction Board, to cry out publicly in
protest against what he considers
tragic effort to weaken the per-
sonnel and management OF vital
work of war production.
Possibility the clue for the anti
dollar ar-a-year-men campaign can be
located In the words of the Senate
committee report itself, which re-
veals that labor chiefs can acquire
more and more power in war pro-
duction and thus prepare for unsur-
patton of management functions,
especially after the war. Here is an
interesting passage in the Senate
committee report. which says in
part:
The committee is of the opinion
that there exists in this country
administrative resources which have
not yet been adequately tapped by
the War Production Board
THE Labor Division of the War
Production Board and the Labor
Advisory Committees have consist
emily taken advanced positions IN
advocacy of radical curtailment OF
civilian industry; and the labor
groups have been constantly in the
foreground in fighting for an ade-
quate conversion program. Labor
has fought for curtailment and con-
version despite the fact that in many
cases limitation orders have re-
suited in severe and prolongated
unemployment for thousands OF
union members.
Would Broaden Policy.
I'm the necessary tasks which
lie ahead in the completion of the
conversion process, labor has dem
onstrated its right to a greater de-
gree of participation in the oper-
ating work of the War Production
Board and to a more respectful
hearing for its plans and sugges-
tions. Mr.. Nelson has already rec
ognized this in his inauguration OF
the war production drive, which
provides for joint participation by
labor and management in the stim-
ulation of production at the indi-
vidual plants.
This program of labor partici-
patton should, in the committees
opinion, he broadened to provide
for similar activity on regional
and industrial basis. The war pro-
duction drive has proved that, with
out either labor or management
trespassing upon the legitimate
functions of the other, both can