Evening star., 1943-04-09
Presidents Wage freeze Order
Is Seen as Reply to Lewis
Action Taken Without Previous
Consultation With War Labor Bourd
BY the Associated Press.

By the Associated Press.
President Roosevelt's new anti
imitation stroke drastically limits
the War Labor Boards field of
authority by removing the No. l
basis for wage increases in ex-
cess Of the Little Steel for
mula-"inequalities."
Some informed persons regarded
the Presidents action as an assump-
tion of personal responsibility for
answering John L. Lewis challenge
Of the administration wartime eco
nomic program.
The WLB. taken by surprise, may
now grant increases on two premises
only: The IS per cent Little Steel
formula and substandards. The II
regional War Labor Boards are now
in the process of determining, in
terms of cents an hour, what con-
stitutes substandard wage for their
respective areas.
last night without previous con-
sultation with the War Labor Board,
with the possible exception of one
or two of the public members. BY
coincidence. the board had scheduled
meeting for last night and decided
Immediately on convening to seek
conference with Sterilization Direc-
tor James F. Byrnes to preclude any
misinterpretation of the order.
Boards Get Instructions.
The WLB also telegraphed It's
regional boards to withhold. pending
further instructions. all wage ap-
prevails except those which clearly
come within the IS per cent limita-
ton of the Little Steel formula
Final decisions on wages which had
been reached before 7:30 pm. when
the Presidents order was released,
may be issued to the parties.
Wage and hour Offices throughout
the conutry also were notified to
cease issuing rulings pending a re-
examination of general orders by
the board The Wage and Hour
Offices had been authorized to ad-
wise employers in writing whether
certain types Of Increases could be
granted without board approval.
The principal basis for wage in
creases approved by the board in
recent months was not the Little
Steel formula, but Inequalities. The
formula is simple mathematical
proposition which compensates in
part for the increased cost of living.
The board says. as general rule
groups of employees who have not
had Is per cent increase in their
straight time. average hourly earn
ings since January /. e194l. shall be
deemed to be suffering a maladjust-
ment.
An adjustment up to total of Is
per cent was allowed under that
formula. However, many employers
had voluntarily granted increases in
excess OF that amount before the lid
was put on last October. These in
creases had the effect of creating
inequalities within industries and
areas If such Inequalities were
deemed manifest injustice" by the
board, an increase in excess of IS
per cent was allowed up to the
point where the injustice, or in
equality was removed.
Wage Adjustment Statistics.
Records of the regional War Labor
Boards up to March S showed that
they approved 5,339 wage adjust
ments voluntarily proposed by en-
ployers. OF that total. ONLY l.o88
were based exclusively on the
Little Steel formula. Twenty-one
others were based exclusively on
"substandards." The remainder
were based on inequalities or
combination of factors which in
cluded inequalities.
The WLB also had authority to
grant raises for the effective prose-
cution of the war It never off,
cially interpreted or applied that
phrase and under the new executive
order such power is reserved to Mr.
Byrnes
In the soft coal wage case, Mr.,
Lewis has conceded that the miners
nave received a raise in excess of
the Little Steel formula. (The basic
wage in the North was raised from
So day to 81 in l94l, an increase
OF more than is per cent He has
not termed the miners wage sub
standard" in the sense that the
Government interprets that term.
That meant that a rise, within the
stabilization program, would have to
be justified on the basis OF "ineouan-
ties or laid in the effective prose-
| cution Of the war" With one of these
wiped out and the other reserved to
Mr.. Byrnes for Interpretation. Mr.,
Lewis position appeared more uncer-
tain than ever. Both he and the
mine operators refused comment In
New York last night.
Portal-to- Portal Issue.
Prior to the executive order. many
informed persons saw the possibility
that an agreement with the opera
tors to pay wages on 4 portal to-
portal basis could be justified under
the Inequalities" category. The mine
workers Shift begins when he reaches
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