Evening star., 1943-06-11
Wage-Earner Revolt
Seen by Green Unless
Prices Are Lowered
Senate Group Is Told
100000, 900 Yearly
Subsidy Is Needed
BY the Associated Press

BY the Associated Press.
Predicting a spontaneous re-
volt" OF wage earners unless liv-
ing costs are cut, William Gres>,
president of the American Fed
Grafton of Labor, told a Senate
Committee today a $2,000.000,-
900 yearly subsidy is necessary to
roll back living costs to levels of
l3 months ago.
The only alternative, the AFL
chief said, is to increase the IS per
cent Little Steel formula controlling
wage increases per cent for per
cent of our failure to cut the cost
of living down to the May, 1912.
level
The workers of the Nation feel
that their Government has gone
back on its promise to extend them
equality of treatment in the cost
of living control" Mr.. Green said.
Revolt Threatened.
Unless immediate and express
action is taken to carry out the pol
icy pledged and promised to the
wage earners of the Nation, wide
spread protest and spontaneous re-
volt on the part of the workers
against the rising cost of living is
inevitable"
Earlier members of the Senate
Banking Committee. before which
Mr., Green testified, said they IA
vored legislation restricting sharply
the amount and number of subsidies
that could be paid to compensate
for price cuts.
Mr.. Green's assertion to the COM
mittee that since May, 1912, living
costs have risen I per cent and food
prices over Is per cent without ad-
iustment in wages was challenged
Immediately by Senator Taft. Re-
publican, of Ohio.
Cites Wage Increase.
The average weekly wage increase
since last June 30 to March Is was
Is per cent, Senator Taft declared.
adding:
so you can't assume that wages
were frozen as Of May. 1912"
The labor leader heatedly told
Senator Taft he would send the
committee statistics to show that the
AFL figures are correct.
Labor insists and demands" con-
tinued Mr.. Green, "thatth prices OF
cost of living items be rolled back
to bring wages and prices into a
just and proper relationship and to
assure economic stability for the
duration of the war.
He estimated that the $4,000. .OOO.- :
900 subsidy would reduce the overall
cost of living by per cent. Final
economies. he added. would far
more than warrant the cost of the
subsidy"
Asked by the committee for an
explanation. Mr.. Green said the
Government would save "at least
81 900 100000 a year" and consumers
$4,000 900, ,O0O
Murray to Testify.
Philip Murray. president of the
Congress of Industrial Organiza-
tions, was to follow Mr.. Green to
the stand to urge the $1,000, ,0OO, 900
subsidy.
Meantime, the Banking Commit
tee sought to recall anti-subsidy leg
islation it approved a few days earl
ier but was blocked temporarily by
Minority Leader McNary, who re-
fused to give the unanimous consent
needed yesterday.
Senator McNary said he was sat
isfled with the existing measure-a
bill extending the life of the Com
modify Credit Corp. but amended by
the committee to prohibit the agency
from using funds for subsidy pay
ments to effect price rollbacks.
Acting Chairman Bankhead and
other committee members said they
could attempt to rewrite the anti
subsidy provision on the floor, but
preferred to withhold revision until
after committee hearings, which are
expected later to disclose the num-
Der of commodities on the admins
tration's subsidy-rollback program.