Evening star., 1944-05-30
Union Charges
Navy 'BungIing'
|At Brewster
Frunkensteen AssoiIs
Contract Cancellation
At Senate Hearing
BY ]. A. O'LEARY.

Dy - Hs " AL<AAs4.
The order canceling Navy
contracts with the Brewster
Aeronautical Corp. on July /,
leaving more than 10000 EN-
ployes facing idleness, was de-
scribed as consistent with the
bungling which has character
lied the handling of manpower
problems throughout the war"
by Richard T. Frankensteen,
union representative, before a
Senate Military Affairs Subcom-
mittee today.
As the hearing opened, approxi-
mately 5000 workers at the Brew
ster plant at Long Island City
continued "stay-in" demonstra-
ton at the factory in protest against
termination of the Navy contract.
Mr.. Frankensteen,~ vice president
of the United Automobile Workers.
CIO, took the stand after President
Lockwood, new head of the Brewster
corporation, read letter from the
Navy Department stating it was
believed wiser to apply reduction
in the output of Corsair fighter
planes, all on the Brewster contract,
than to apply proportionate cut
on the several companies making
that plane.
Senator Murray, Democrat, Of
Montana, presiding, brought out by
questioning company officials that
Government agencies had no other
work planned In advance for the
Brewster corporation when the
Navy decided to halt plane produc-
ton at its two plants at Long Island
and at townsville, Pa.
Brigade Basis"
'In general" Mr.. Frankensteen
told the committee, 'manpower
problems have been handled on a
|fire-brigade basis-do nothing until
you had a five-alarm fire-each
emergency by itself"
Mr.. Lockwood read to the COM
mittee the letter MIR. Frankensteen
wrote the company yesterday, in
which the union workers offered to
remain at work without pay to en-
able the company to obtain other
work which will aid in the war
effort and keep intact a vital war
production plant"
MIR. Frankensteen testified, This
is a prime example of the anarchy
In procurement programs which
labor has warned against since 194l."
Two Bills Before Committee.
The committee has before it two
bills designed to foresee and meet
such readjustment problems ex-
pected to arise on a large scale in
the postwar period, and in calling
the hearing Senator Murray said
this shutdown may yet prove a
test-tdbe case, whereby Congress
can judge the adequacy of the ex-
ecutive agencies precent programs
on rehabilitation and reconversion.
Urging passage of the Kilgore in
dustrial demobilization bill, MIR.
Frankensteen said that if it was a
law now, the strategic decision to
Wv doWn Oll SOI odtIS WOQIu Stllk
have been made by military authori-
ties, but instead of an arbitrary de.
cision by one bureau, consultations
would have been required among
Government agencies.
The decision as to the location of
the cutback would have been made
by the War Production Board, with
regard to alternative uses of the
plant for other war purposes or
civilian needs, the witness said.
No Program Ready.
Company officials testified they
had urged the Navy to let them
continue until they had turned out
the 1,000th plane, which would have
given them about four months in
which to obtain other work, but
that the July cancellation is based
on stopping at the 750th plane.
WAS there no other program
ready by any of the procurement
agencies to take its placer" Senator
Murray asked, referring to cancel
lation of the Navy work.
That is right" replied D. c. Pea
cock, vice president of Brewster,
who pointed out that it takes time
tn rptnO1 q factorxy for otbor ,uorL