Evening star., 1943-05-14
Reasonable YieIdinu

A little over month ago the Presi-
dent told the Nation that "To hold
the line we cannot tolerate further
Increases in general wage or salary
rates except where clearly necessary
to correct substandard living condi-
tions. The only way to hold the line
Is to stop trying to find justifications
for not holding it here or not holding
it there. No one straw can break a
camel's back, but there is always a
last straw. We cannot afford to take
further chances in relaxing the line.
We already have taken too many"
Are we taking another one? Has
Director of Economic Sterilization
Byrnes yielded, in the face of renewed
demands from organized labor and
the threatened designations of it's
representatives from the War Labor
Board, to another justification for
mot holding" the line "here or not
holding it there?"
Perhaps he has. But it is only fair
to believe that If he has yielded it
was because the "hold-t the line" order
itself, as originally laid down, went
too far in view Of the past policies of
the Labor Board and that the brakes
were too suddenly applied. For while
this order still permitted the War
Labor Board to increase wages within
the little steel formula" and to
adjust substandard rates of pay, it
seemed to overlook the new chain of
wage inequalities within plants which
such adjustments would set In mo-
ton, and it evidently deprived the
War Labor Board Of the power to deal
with them within the existing price
structure and within existing levels
Of production costs"
There are other concessions, or
Qualifications, in the same general
category which leave to the board
discretionary authority to be exer-
cised on the basis of the boards 'in-
formed Judgment" of the particular
situation to be dealt with. The effort
here is to continue the boards policy
toward stabilization of wage rates at
levels which the board has found to
be reasonable. There will be in
creases, 1t is true, but they still are
confined generally within the condi-
tions laid down by the President
cost Of living increases up to the
"little steel" ceiling and elimination
OF substandard rates Of pay.
Chairman William H. Davis review
OF the wage stabilization policies of
the board, given in his letter to Con-
gress, undoubtedly strengthened the
War Labor Boards case. Mr.. Davis
contended that the wage increases
actually authorized by the board had
little effect on increasing the cost of
living. In only eight out OF three
thousand cases did these increases
affect prices, he said. There has been,
of course, large increase In hourly
wages rates which has contributed
to the increased cost of living. The
National Industrial Conference Board
computes the increase in average
hourly rates in twenty-five industries
at 1874 percent between August, 1889,
and February, 1943. But a great
many of these were not sanctioned
by the board. The board got started
pretty late in the game and has made
an intelligent effort to bring some
order out of the chaos of unrestricted
wage increases which have taken
place since the boom in war produc-
ton. Mr.. Byrnes' notifications, if
they themselves can be made to stick,
will give the board a freer hand to
continue that process.