Evening star., 1943-03-14
Steel Mill Pay Raised
Canada Wonders i
Ceiling Is Effective
Two Workers Strikes
Achieve Their Goal
Of Increased Rates
(Fourth of q Series J
By CARL w. McCARDLE,


BY CARL w. McCARDLE.
OTTAWA, March 13.-ThLs is a
question that is being pondered
here: AS result of strike in two
= steel mills recently has organized
labor driven real opening in
Canada's ceiling on wages?
Wages were frozen in Canada as
of November Is, 1941, with a provi-
sion for 25-cent weekly bonus
whenever the cost of living went up
q point. and National Labor board
and several regional boards were
set up to supervise the execution of
the controls.
There are. as in the United States,
two principal organizations of labor.
One is the Trades and Labor Con-
gress. 1t is the Canadian counter
part Of the AFL. All Canadian
aff1liates of the AFL belong to the
Trades and Labor Congress, al
though it has, among its members,
some unions which are not as
sociated with the AFL. The other
main group in Canada is the
Canadian Congress of Labor. It is
the counterpart of the CIO. All
CIO afdliates in Canada belong to
1t, but it, likewise, has some unions
on its rolls which are not aligned
with CIO.
The Canadian Congress of Labor
was formed, as such, in 1910. 1t Is
young. therefore, and it is as aggres-
slve IN It's tactics as was the CIO
in the days of its beginning in the
United States. 1t is after new mem
bers and strength and it is not
letting the war interfere with that
aim.
Higher Wage Sought.
In January CIO steel workers in
the Dominion Steel and Coal Co.
and the Algoma Steel Corp. pressed
for higher basic wage scale. The
minimum wage that was being paid
was As cents an hour. Neither
worker group got any place with the
regional boards. They threatened to
strike. and the Government ap-
pointed a Royal Commission to 20
Into the issue, The commission re-
Jected the increased pay demand. A
minority report was filed, however
which recommended that the mini
mum basic wage should be SIS cents
an hour This was to be in addition
to the cost of living bonus which
Canadian workers receive. The
union contended that the commits
sion occupied itself not with the
merits Of the workers request but
with whether it could be granted
under the wage ceiling law. The
workers struck, some $4,000 in all.
Prime Minister Mackenzie King
called representatives Of the union
and OF management to Ottawa. The
upshot was that the men got what
they were after-a basic rate of SIS
cents an hour.
But they got more. The gov
ernment volunteered to reconsti-
tute the War Labor Board. The
board. under the Minister of Labor,
had become more or less persona
non grata with labor. It was also
unwieldly, consisting of four repre-
sentatives of labor and four of en-
ployers. The government substi-
tuted three-inan board, headed by
Justice C.sP. McTague of the Court
OF Appeals OF the Province Of On
tario. Justice McTague has had
considerable experience In the set
tlement of labor disputes. On all
sides there was enthusiastic approv-
al of his appointment.
Labor Represented on Board,
Labor's representative on the new
board is j. L. Cohen. Newspapers in
Canada were quick to point out that
he had been engaged in the past as
attorney for the CIO on several
occasions.
The government said it would
recommend that steel be regarded
aas national industry and, accord
ingly, steel-labor disputes would
then come before the national
board, rather than the regional
boards.
The strike settlement left up to
the new national board to decide
whether the increase to the 55-cent
basic pay for the Algoma and Do
mlnion workers was to be considered
as including the cost-of living bonus
or whether the bonus would be in
addition to that. The prevailing
opinion is that the board will decide
that the workers are entitled also
to the bonus.
One commentator described the
governments new wage policy as
expressed In the steel settlement as
the Achilles heel Of the price ceiling.
ANY general upswing in wages" he
said, such as now seems to have
been touched off by the steel strike
settlement would, it is thought,
constitute a direct threat to the
governments inflationary control
policy" That may or may not be.
Another Interpretation is this:
That it was Mackenzie Kings pur-
pose to create board that is abso-
lutely fair and even kindly to labor
q board that will have the conf
dence of labor and of the commu-
nifty that labor is being fairly
treated.
More Liberal Policy Seen.
had long talk with Justice Nc
Tague. He is judicial in appearance
and manner. He gives the impress
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