Evening star., 1944-04-03
Industrial Deferment
Conference Resumed; ;
Blow 10 Rubber Eased
Dewey Says Tire Plants
Will Keep Enough Young
Men to Avert Disaster

AS the Interagency Deferment
Committee prepared to meet
again this afternoon in another
attempt to reach agreement as
to the industries to be recon-
mended for preferential draft
treatment for men under 26,
Rubber Director Bradley Dewey
announced the rubber industry
now expects deferments for
enough skilled young men to
avert the national disaster" he
predicted earlier had these men
been taken into the armed serv-
ices.
1t will be the first meeting o.
the committee of war program
heads since the stormy session Fri.
day in which the claims of sew
eral important industries, including
food, communications and logging
for special draft consideration were
thrown out.
Chairman Paul V. McNutt of the
War ManpoWer Commission, head
OF the interagency committee, ex-
|pects to have completed by tonight
the list of industries, or activities
in which Selective Service will re-
Iceive recommendations for contin.
ued deferment. After that the com
mittee will attempt the more diff
cult task of naming the actual
plants to receive deferments.
Rubber Plants Face Problem.
Mr.. Dewey indicated the COM
mlttee had agreed to deferment OF
about 1,700 men under 26 in the
synthetic rubber and rubber prod
uctS industries. He warned, how
ever, that under the rules laid down
by the committee. the rubber pro-
gram will lose many valuable young
men.
Unless they are replaced with
suitable new personnel their loss
will seriously harm parts of the
rubber program, Mr.. Dewey added
referring to the job facing man
power officials in replacing the
drafted workers.
The rubber directors review OF
the manpoWer situation in the rub
Der industry was presented as a sup
plement to his fifth progress report
of two weeks ago At that time he
said that barring certain develop
ments, such as the loss of skilled
manpoWer, rubber output would be
sufficient to meet war and essential
home-front needs.
A survey of the industry shows.
Mr.. Dewey said, that the cancella-
ton OF deferments for all men un-
der 26 in rubber except the 1.7OO
will take approximately per cent of
OF the workers from the rubber
goods and reclaimed rubber manu-
featuring industry and about 5 per
cent from synthetic rubber manu-
featuring plants.
Many Technicians in Industry.
Most of the 100 young men to
be retained in the industry are
qualified chemists and engineers.
Names of most of the group already
have been submitted to selective
service along with 100 others for
whom short-term defermentS are
sought.
The War Production Board will
recommend deferments for essential
men in plants making certain ma
terials for the rubber program. such
as alcohol, carbon black, chemicals.
rayon and cotton tire cords, Mr.
Dewey said.
Some rubber plants will be hit
harder than others, Mr. Dewey
added, because of the varying ages
of plants, their location and type
of work. He did not name plants
in this category
The drive to release young men
IN industry for combat duty in the.
armed forces will take 6.257 more
workers from the rubber program
the director said. The industry
already has sent about 10000 into
the armed services.
Mr.. DeWey's survey pointed out
the rather startling fact that 2,766I
of the 6,257 young rubber workers
who are being made available to the
armed forces are less than % years
old. This large number in theI
youngest age groups had not been
called despite the fact that less than
2 per cent of them had occupational
deferments. The figure does not in
clude 4-Fs.