Detroit evening times. (Detroit, Mich) 1921-1958, 1942-03-09
Nelson S+irs
Hornet Nest
In Industry
Joint Labor Management
Boards TO Mean Woe
BY PAIN MALLON

WASHINGT0N March q
W Mr. Nelson has stepped IN
advcrtontly IN some flypaper IN
his first move forward toward
moro production.
HIS boys have worked up and
sent 10 the government printing
Office AN official handbook Of
tho War Production Board for
the offensive on the factory
front
II Is a presentation Of excel
lent suggestions on how each
plant can do MS Job as Mae
Arthur y dong his.
The workers would he cncOur-
aged 10 com their own slogans
10 paste on thor machines like
"Go Way; I'm Busy Helping
Guy IN Fight. advertising
their accomplishments by blow
Ing a whistle whenever "A new
unit rolls off the production line,
doubling mp IN autos coming to
Morll.
THIS kind Of more production
drive Is needed. perhaps more
than anything else right nov.
Every one is eager and CO.
operative
But back i'm the booklet. after
gcncrallcd letters about neCes-
Sity from President Roosevelt,
Secretaries Knox and StlmSon.
ct al. j. a controversial kernel.
The whole drive is to be built
around establishment of Joint
labor-managcmcnt committees
Tor each plant
NOW that sounds innocent
~ enough until YOU consider
tas all plant managers invited
TO JOIN arc) what this Joint
management committee is 10
handle. The book tells you nine
things:
Care Of tools, preventing
hrea k downs. Curtalllng acct
dents, good lighting. mainte-
nance and repair, readapting
machines. cutting waste, break
ing production bottlenecks. using
every machine 10 the fullest.
These are just suggestions"
the booklet says. you will prob
ably have 10 adapt them to your
own plant" tleaVing wide
door ON7n).
But lhO>o who Will do the
adapting wonder Justly or UNI
justly how much of their bust
ness mar"~oncnt viii be eX-
CluSlvcly theirs. free of labor
consultation. except tho prob
lem of making enough money to
pay taxes. wages and profits.
TlI1S heSitancy might not
limit managerial cNth"s.o>m
for the plan had not ~ man
ayers been publicly warned by
the last Go convention that
Go would fight unrcmlttinCly
this year for acknowledgement
councils for each major basic
and vital defense industry"
The Phil Murray plan Of de-
Tense. which was presented to
the President. called for eStab-
lShment Of industry councils to
do about the same thing as these
new plant committees. II says:
Each council shall he charged
with the responsibility of eX-
pediting the defense program
and assuring the adequate pro-
of domestic or nOn-mili-
tary goods"
That plan was discarded by
the government. but the shell
of It seems involved in the
more production drive"
Two notable differences NAV
be noted The Joint labor
Management committees will
now DO for each plant instead
Of each industry, and no gov
eminent representative viii sit
on them.
TNHE question whether the
L more production drive
could not have been organized
on A loss controversial basis is
Therefore naturally arising
and az bad time
Manage, arc not likely 10
speak out their suspicious and
risk tho wrath Of tho govern
ment but thor caution is likely
TO lead the vital program into
all manner of delays.
NO NEED vet to h i'd your
y tires N tho collar. Mr.. Hen
do->on VIII not bo around for
th'w FOR a while 4 long. long
vhlo
Tho price nxcr was a little
moro abrupt m his spoken tcsti-
Uonv than I'M tho handout he
furnished of what he intended
10 ,aN
In that hardout he said
WavhC IN Two moro years if This.
'ha' and tho other thing hap
rcn"d tho government nj hit
Na'n 'o do y Little tire stealing
~ u.s. own ~ tho expense of tho
citizen
Tho Vav he put il orally 20
the committee later made The
prospect sound slightly more I'M
WInpu'
Unfortunately tho way 10
make - 100000 motorists
w q q c.>' rig NJ now is TO
threaten 'hcm with contiScation.
ANYWAY they want 20 know
why rho government cannot IN
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