Evening star., 1943-08-23
VINO Hopes TO Draw
New War Workers
From Retail Stores
Also Acts to Enroll
More Women to Meet
Bigger Foctory Demonds

Reduction of department store
and other retail store employ
ment to 1910 levels was recon-
mended by the War Manpower
Commission today as a method
of putting surplus labor to work
in war-uSeful jobs.
The policy of reducing less es-
sential activities to the 1910 levels" 4"
the War Manpower Commission
said. is one that can be adopted in
any community, providing that the
employers are in full agreement and
consistently live up to their COM
pact"
This and other methods are being
urged on communities to scrape up
the 2.6O0,0O0 additional workers re-
quired for war work by July, 1914.
Meanwhile, VINO officials re-
ported that the number of women in
industry has failed to measure up to
expecta tions. Women who took war
plant jobs have been quitting in
such numbers that production not
only has failed to keep pace with
stepped up schedules, but in some
cases has fallen off.
Voluntary Transfers Urged.
Women have been considered the
greatest source of new labor supply
Voluntary transfers of men and
women from less essential work is
considered the only other solution to
war plant needs short of a compul-
sorry labor draft.
Warning that there can be no
complacency over our manpower sit
uation," VINO Chief McNutt said
today that rock bottom" mini
mum of 2,600,O0 workers must trans
fer from less essential jobs to NUM-
tions production or to jobs in the
great number of community services
essential to health. transportation
or other vital accessories of civilian
life.
"It is easy to see why such large
scale transfers must take place"
he said. THE military services plan
to expand from 100000 to ii 300 900
between July. 1943, and July, 1914.
These men and women will be drawn
from war-useful jobs as we'll as from
other occupations.
AT the same time, as our commit
ments on the battle fronts multiply,
the war industries are required to
meet rising schedules of production.
They must replace the men drawn
into war service. replace those they
lose from accidents, normal deaths,
retirements and other kinds of turn
over, and add enough skilled work.
ers to assure that production sched-
ules are met within specified peri
DDS"
Greatest problem lies in the CEN
ters where war production is con-
centrated Mr.. McNutt pointed out.
Since these areas can accommodate
no more outsiders, they must swell
their War-useful labor forces by
drawing on local sources of labor,
either persons who have not been
employed or those working in less
essential jobs
Mr.. McUutt predicted that by next
July, As out of so of the Nations
largest population centers, in ad-
dition to great numbers of medium
and small centers, will be con-
sidered labor shortage areas.
VINO emphasized that transfer
from one war-useful job to another
is uneconomical unless the workers
skills are used to greater advantage.
In an area where laundry workers
and teachers are scarce, VINO said
transfer from either of these oc-
equations to work in a war plant
would create labor gap that must
be filled by an inexperienced person
and at the same time, the individual
who shifted to the war plant job
would have to be trained for that
work.
Workers were advised to consult
with their local United States EN-
ployment Service Office to see if their
present work was war-useful and, if
not, what other job they could fill