The daily monitor leader. [volume] (Mount Clemens, Mich.) 1942-19??, 1944-02-04
. BEHIND THE SCENES
IN WASHINGTON .

town which tied up the manu-
facture OF mosquito netting
vital need for all troops In tropi-
cal countries. There are only a
few looms in the country which
can produce this netting. Yet a
30-day strike just ended in this
one mill threw the Army's pro-
curement program of this ma
terial. which was already behind
schedule, more than two months
IN arrears.
For the leaders of organized
labor, Judge Patterson processes
TO have the highest regard. He
believes they were sincere in
their no-strike pledge, and he
believes that labor leaders are
sincere when they order their
unions to rturn TO work after
unauthorized strikes have been
called. But the inability of these
labor leaders to prevent strikes
Is, 10 the understandings way
of thinking, proof of the fact
that they need the backing Of a
national service law TO enforce
their pledges.
In the case Of coal strike or
a rail strike or. similar work
stoppage in a major national in
dustry, Judge Patterson believes
1t would be necessary to follow
the course outlined by the
President in recent emergencies
namely, the drafting of men
IN those industries and order
ing them to work as soldiers at
their old jobs. ~
Inequities which nat on |
service legislation might entail,
the undersecretary of war is in
clined to regard as trlfling in
war time. Differences in wage
scales in the major industries
are not great, he asserts, and
certainly not great enough to
throw any one group outside its
accustomed standard of living
If forced TO do similar work in
another industry. Wage ceilings
are fixed by government regula-
ton and cannot advance. War
contractors are, in effect. all
working for the government
themselves. In cost plus-fixed-
fee contracts this is absolutely
the case and in fixed price con-
tracts it is the same in effect as
long as the government has its
power to renegotiate contracts,
recovering excess profits.
COMMUNITY NEEDS FIRST
This situation is, of course,
not true, Judge Patterson is
frank TO admit, in the cases of
contracts not let directly by the
government, or in the operation
OF essential civilian services
such as bus lines or laundries.
But here again the need of the
community in war time is the
thing to which he is inclined to
gives the first consideration, and
the right of the government in
such cases to assign workers to
the essential industries is consid-
cred of first importance.
II the Austin Wadsworth bill
should be the national service
act passed by Congress. the adj
mlnistration of that law would
not be in the hands of the War
Department, but under ma
tional service administrators who
would be civilian. The entire
workings of the act would be
managed by civilians, necess-
sarily. The views expressed
above are therefore not the
opinions of the official who
would administer such a law.
But they are the views OF the
government official who would
be most interested in seeing a
national service law well adj
ministered, an official who be-
Iieves that present voluntary
methods of manpower control
are not adequate and have not
succeeded, an official who be-
lieves that national service
law Is possible OF enforcement
in this country without impair
ment OF the rights of a demo-
cratic people.