Evening star., 1943-11-11
Little Steel Formula
Won't Be Discarded,
WLB Warns Labor
Ey the Associated Press.

Ey the Associated Press.
All labor was warned today
that the War Labor Board still.
stands by the Little Steel" for
mula, believes that it cannot dis
card it and wouldn't discard it il
it could.
This notice came from William
H. Davis, chairman of the WLB
and apparently it was intended to
clear up the boards position in view
of the recent wage hike allowed the
coal miners.
1t was directed specifically at the
CLOS United Steelworkers who
want to abolish the so-called
formula which in the interest OF
anti-inhation permits wage in
creases only up to Is per cent of
late 194l levels.
So far as I am concerned" Mr..
Davis said in press conference
statement, Il have not begun to
surrender and do not intend to
surrender any part of the wage
stabilization program. AS chairman
of the War Labor Board, I am
bound to adhere to and apply that
policy, and as citizen I believe
it is essential to the American
worker and I have just begun to
fight for it."
Hold -the-Line" Doctrine.
That" questioned a newsman,
lis a reaf1irmation of the hold-the-
line doctrine, isn't it?"
You betcha," was the determined
reply.
Discussing the coal case, Mr.. Davis
said the wage stabilization policy
has not been broken by this de-
cision. The injury that that episode
has done is to the boards policy in
dealing with disputes during strikes,
with the no-strike agreement, and
with the labor movement which
has, except for this one exception,
adhered to the no-strike agreement.
l mean the responsible leaders"
Without referring specifically to
Secretary Ickes' negotiations with
the United Mine Workers during a
miners strike, Mr.. Davis said the
policy of not dealing with strikers
was firmly established, and l am
quite sure that as far as the War
Labor Board is concerned, it will
be firmly maintained. 1t would be
foolish to say that this occurrence
has not damaged that policy"
AS to the Ickes-Lewis agreement,
he said, the only change made by
Mr.. Ickes and Mr., Lewis was to sell
us Is minutes of lunch time for
37l4 cents, which was the going
rate. The final agreement entered
into by Mr.. Ickes was an agreement
in which the government bought the
labor of the miners at exactly the
same rate that was paid for it un-
der the contract of 1941-1943. They
paid $3.50 for eight hours work,
which is exactly what they paid un-
der the old contract.
Can't Aid Individuals.
The WLB chairman said the aver
age American worker had received
more than the Is per cent increase
over his straight time hourly earn
ings Of January, 1941, but that some
groups of white collar workers had
not received the IS per cent allowed
by the Little Steel formula. He
said the board cannot do anything
for those people as individuals, but if
they applied as groups their cases
would be handled
The WLB chairman said it would
take an executive order from the
President to change the policy on
the Little Steel formula. He con-
tended that even if that should be
done and wages in basic Industries
were raised, the workers would not
get any real increase because prices
would 60 up, too, and wages never
would catch up with them.
He said he thought a good job OF
holding prices down was being done,
infinitely better than in the dast
war" and that with the help of Con-
gress they would be rolled back ap-
proXlmately to the level of Septem-
Der IS, 1912. the stabilization date
fixed for both wages and prices by
Congress.