Evening star., 1942-06-28
War of Words

w ~ W VIVID
Back in the days before Pearl
Harbor, when the need for real ma
tional unity seemingly was less acute,
there was a great deal of name
calling on both sides of the indus
trial fence. Then, with the outbreak
of war, came the domestic armistice,
the agreement between labor on the
one hand and management on the
other to bury the hatchet for the
duration. On the whole, manage
ment has kept its end of the bargain
well. Instances in which employers,
since December 7, have INDUCED in
lntemperate criticism of labor have
been few and far between. But
labor, In the persons OF a few OF its
leaders, still seems to believe that
the war can be won more expedi-
tiously by indulgence in ill-consid-
cred and inflammatory language.
The latest example of this is to be
found in the recent statement by
Philip Murray. president Of the CIO,
on the steel situation. We are short
of steel plates, according to Mr..
Murray, because of the inefficiency
and greed" Of the big steel corpora
tions. And. the Government, he
adds, has been guilty Of an "almost
criminal" failure to gather steel
scrap.
The use Of this sort of language by
Mr.. Murray is unfortunate for sew
eral reasons. In the first place, it
invites retaliation from those on the
managerial end OF the production
Job. Despite labors no-strike agree
ment, and despite the undoubtedly
sincere efforts Of labor leaders, there
have been number of strikes which
have interfered with the war effort.
But management, recognizing that
the leaders were doing their best
to keep the agreement, have not at
tempted to make capital out Of their
failure to keep local unions in line.
II Mr.. Murray continues his intem-
perate criticisms, however, he can
hardly expect those on the other side
Of the fence to remain silent.
1t Is unfortunate, in the second
place, because abusive criticism tends
to defeat the legitimate purpose of
criticism. No doubt Mr.. Murray's
concern over the steel plate shortage
Is genuine, but II he has construc-
tive suggestions to offer he would
enjoy greater success in the long run
by Offering them in dignified and
temperate manner. Certainly, those
who must act upon his suggestions,
If they are acted upon at all, are not
put in a receptive frame of mind
when they are accused of greed and
criminal negligence. On the con-
trary, such an approach engenders
a spirit Of resentment and hostility
which Is productive Of disunity. and
therefore harmful to the Nations
war effort.
Finally, the tone of Mr.. Murray's ac-
cusations is unfortunate because the
charges do not appear to have been
we'll founded. Only last week DON
aid Nelson, War Production chief,
submitted a report to the Truman
Committee which showed that while
there has been a shortage Of steel
plates, production has been and is
being stepped up rapidly. And he
added that he was confident produc-
ton would catch up with demand in
three months. Another War Produc-
ton Board official. taking direct issue
with Mr.. Murray's criminal negli-
gence" charge, cited specific figures
to show remarkable progress in the
scrap collection field.
The best answer to Mr.. Murray.
however, lies in the amazing results
which have been achieved in tie
production Of tanks and ships, the
principal users of steel plate. No
doubt there have been mistakes. but
there is no evidence that they are
attributable either to greed or GRIM
inal negligence. On the contrary, the
job has been done in manner which
reflects great credit on all concerned,
and no helpful purpose is to be
served by attempting to create a
contrary impression.