Evening star., 1942-11-06
Compulsory Control
Over Workers Seen
By Nelson as Certain
Impartial Treatment
Should Be Assured
To All, He Asserts
BY the Associated Press.

BY the Associated Press.
Chairman Donald M. Nelson o
the WPB declared today that tn
Nation was going to have to exer
else compulsory control over work
ers before we get through with tn
war"
Testifying before the Senate Mill
tary Affairs Committee studying
manpower legislation. Mr.. Nelson
agreed with Senator Austin, Repub'
;Acan, of Vermont that all men ane
women ought to be assured tina,
they would be treated impartially
in demands for service with the
armed forces or in war work be-
hind the lines through the estab.
.Ishment of overall manpower con.
troll.
I'VE are going to have to do it
before we are through" Mr.. Nelson
said, emphasizing his point by rap
ping his knuckles on a table.
No Dilly-Dallying.
'-" IT don't belive we ought to dilly-
daily with this war;" he continued.
II believe we ought to put our teeth
in it. The people of this country
are going to demand that Congress
do something of this kind before we
get through"
I Senator Austin said others had
agreed that adoption of manpower
rontrol was inevitable but many
believed the time not yet ripe Tor
such action. He asked Mr.. Nelson
Il the latter did not believe that
careful planning ought not to be
Under way on the manpoWer ques-
zion.
: This is the time to keep bringing
this before the public, to keep de-
batting it and to bring out all OF Its
boints," Mr.. Nelson replied. .
Putting at cigar. Mr.. Nelson said
lie believed not everything yet had
heen done to mobilize manpower ef-
fectively in the war effort, adding
that more cuts in civilian production
were in sight.
Backs Selective Service.
"Our boys out on the Solomon
Islands are entitled to everything
this Nation can give them" he con-
tinued. "They are entitled to know
that everybody at home is doing
everything he can
In response to questions by Sen
ator Austin, Mr.. Nelson said he felt
the selective service system ought to
be preserved as a democratic method
of handling induction OF personnel
into the armed forces, adding that
the principle of local administration
of rationing appeared to be better
than having some official in Wash
ington, who might not know about
local conditions, giving the orders.
Senator Hill, Democrat, OF Ala
bama said he believed it was going
to be necessary to extend the selec-
tive service principle to cover all in
dividuals and business into the war
effort. .--- -...a
Mr.. Nelson agreed.
TT seems to me it is always better
to do a job with clean. cut law
passed by Congress than bysadmini-
strative acts" he said.
Senator Hill asked Mr.. Nelson If
he did not think it time. for Con-
gress to act.
Mr.. Nelson reiterated his prefer
ence for legislation rather than ad-
ministrative orders and added that
IT think it would be well for Con-
press to survey the situation and
determine what the needs are"
Kaiser Favors Commission.
Meanwhile, Shipbuilder Henry j.
Kaiser had told Senate Labor and
Education subcommittee he thought
voluntary enlistments in the armed
services should be halted and that
a nine-member committee should be
established to control the distribu-
ton of manpower and womanpoWer
for the Nations war needs
Mr.. Nelson, too, said he believed
voluntary enlistments should be
halted and cited five additional ways
in which he thought the country
could realize greater production from
its reserves of workers.
The work week might be length
ened, he suggested; production could
be increased through better manage
ment, greater use should be made OF
minority groups, less essential uses
of manpower should be cut of and
worker absenteeism should be
stopped.
There are too many cases OF Mon
day morning sickness and payroll
sickness" Mr.. Nelson observed dryly'
Kaiser said the proposed nine-man
committee should be made up OF
a representative of the Army, the
Navy, the Maritime Commission,
agriculture, war industries. essen
tial civilian industry, two rep
resentatives of labor and one rep
resentative classified as neutral
Classification of Workers.
The committees first job would
be to classify all available manpower
into four groups, those in the armed
forces, in war industries, in essential
civilian industry, including agricul-
ture, and those in n-esSent1al IN
dustry.
Regional Offices would be set up
with the regional director having
full responsibility to provide full
utilization of manpower under a
uniform national policy.
Having obtained only noncom-
initial answers on the need for a
national service act from Secretary
of Agriculture Wickard and Chair
man Emory S. Land of the Maritime
Commission, the Senate Military
Affairs Committee called on Mr.. Mel
son and Brig Gen. F. j. McSherry
of the War Manpower Commission
for their points of view.
Divergent views on a national
service act were expressed from
opposite sides of the chamber.
McNary Attacks Proposal.
Senator Hill told reporters the
hearings thus far had only confirmed
his convictions that I'VE should have
universal service legislation" Sen
ator Hill is author Of a bill that
would give President Roosevelt
broad powers to control the employ
ment and distribution of labor.
YooAn~ NEcNyovV, an %hn