Evening star., 1943-12-10
Consumer Conference
Lays Plans 10 Renew
Fight for Subsidies

Nearly a score Of Congress men,
oers and several hundred repre-
sentatives of consumer, labor. pro-
fessional and civic groups from
various Eastern cities laid plans to-
day to renew their fight for Govern
ment subsidies to hold down the cost
OF living, so pledging themselves at
an an-day meeting of the unofficial
Congressional Committee for the
Protection of the Consumer here
yesterday.
SteelWorkers are determined to
hight not only for an increase of IT
cents a day in their present basic
wage, but for a two-year contract
at an annual salary, David J. Nc
donald, secretary treasurer Of the
United Steelworkers of America
C1O), told the conference.
AS steel goes, so go other indus
tries, he added, and if the steel
workers can establish the principle
that they should be guaranteed an
annual wage, instead of laid off at
the Will OF their employees, it will 20
a long way toward averting a post
war depression.
Sees Creeping Imitation"
Mr.. Mcdonald said Creeping in
hatlon' was going on today and the
steelWorkers. among others, had
suffered from it. They had asked
Tor an increase of 81 day, he re-
called, but the National War Labor
Board, by some mysterious reason
ing, had arrived at a raise of "A
cents as sufficient Since the Little
Steel formula was evolved, he said,
an increase OF 8 per cent in the cost
OF living had been reported formally.
while studies had indicated it would
be nearer 20 per cent when the en-
tire situation was canvassed.
We were told he added, that
the Government. would hold the
line. But it hasn't been held"
Already. he said. unemployment
mad begun to creep into the steel
industry, with thousands thrown
out of work because of cutbacks in
certain war items found not to be
required in the quantities originally
ordered. An annual wage would
correct such situation, he pointed
out.
Millard w. Rice, national service
director Of the Disabled American
veterans, said members Of the Or
gan1zation were helpless to do much
about the cost of living and most of
them had to take what they could
get, In the way Of wages or pensions,
but II living costs continued to rise
and their payments remained the
same, all they could do was to lower
their standards of living.
Calls Fight Greatest"
Representative Sadowski. Demo-
crat. of Michigan said the fight
against imitation was the greatest
battle Of the whole war. because
military victories would be mean
ingless unless imitation were stopped
and the fighting men could return
to stable economy.
The lesson of the last depression
should not be forgotten. Representa-
tive Rabaut, Democrat, of Michigan
declared, blaming the World War
Congress for lack of foresight and
failure to prevent this dreadful
aftermath OF the war.
A group Of New York women. az
flliated with a consumers organiza-
ton, sang some parodies against in
f1ation and soaring living costs.
Representative Scanlon, Democrat.
OF Pennsylvania, chairman of the
unofficial Congressional Committee
for the Protection of the Consumer,
presided. Mr.. Scanlon emphasized
that the night for subsidies against
a hostile House was bipartisan. with
many Republicans joining Demo-
Gratis