Evening star., 1945-02-20
President Makes
New Plea for
Job Control Law
Asks Speedy Action
On Plan Embracing
Moy Bill Principle
BY J. A. O'LEARY.

President Roosevelt today made
a new appeal to Congress for
speedy passage of manpower
legislation embracing the prin-
ciple OF the May BILL" as the
Senate Military Affairs Commit
tee met to reach a long-awaited
decision on the issue.
In brief memorandum to Senate
Majority Leader Barkley, the Presi-
dent wrote:
Il hope that legislation embrace
ing the principle of the May bill
can be speedily enacted It will
assure the armed services they can
rely on the flow of necessary sup
plies and greatly contribute to the
success Of our arms.
"F. D. r."
Opponents of the May bill, which
would empower local selectiye serv-
ice boards to draft men between Is
and As for essential jobs at home,
claimed, however, they had 10 of the
18 committee votes against that
measure as deliberations began.
O'Mahoney Offers Substitute.
All signs continued to point to
adoption of one of several pending
substitutes, all built around con-
tinuance of voluntary labor recruit.
ing under the present War Man
power Commission procedure.
The latest substitute, submitted
today by Senator OMahoney, Demo-
crat, of Wyoming, offered one new
approach to the problem by propos-
ing to regulate the volume of war
contracts going into any locality ac-
cording to the labor supply availa.
bic in that area.
Some observers felt that the Presi-
dents brief memorandum, referring
to the principle" of the May bill,
would make it possible for adminis-
tration supporters to go along with a
modified substitute for the House
bill.
In an earlier letter to the House
committee, the President had spe-
cifically indorsed the original work
or-fight bill, but even in that letter
he said prompt action now is much
more important in the war effort
than the perfecting of detail"
Would Strengthen Job Controls.
The O'Mahoney plan, like the
earlier Kilgore Wagner Ferguson
Substitute. would retain in strength
ened form the present job controls
Iof the War Manpower Commission.
With the added feature of attempt-
ing to regulate the flow of contracts
to fit the labor supply ~ any given
area.
Senator OMahoney declared that
heretofore there has been no CO.
ordination in the award of con-
tracts between the contracting of
f1cers of the Government and the
War Manpower Commission. As a
result, he said, contracts have
gone to shortage areas while exist
ing contracts were running out in
other places"
Accordingly the Wyoming Sena-
tor has provided in his substitute
that War Mobilization Director
Byrnes shall, subject to the direc-
ton of the President, coordinate
the activities of all agencies of
Government responsible for produc-
ton, procurement or manpower.
The bill continues to read as fol-
lows:
"The director shall provide,
among other things, that manpower
requirements and the availability
of monnonar shall ha rix,aY, ,,,,a
consideration in determining where
production schedules shall be in
creased or decreased and where
contracts shall be awarded or termi-
mated, and that notice shall be
given to the War Manpower Com
mission at the earliest practicable
time OF all changes or anticipated
changes in war production sched-
ules, all awards or anticipated
awards of war contracts and all
terminations or anticipated termi-
nations of war contracts, which are
likely to result in any substantial
increase or decrease of the man.
power requirements of any EN-.
ployer or any area
"All departments and agencies Of
the Government shah comply with
orders and regulations issued by the
director under authority of this sec
tion."
Follows Other Substitute.
The rest of the O'Mahoney SUBJ
stitute follows closely the wording Of
the Kilgore- Wagner-Ferguson bill by
directing VINO to continue to place
feelings on the number Of workers
any plant may employ, preserving
the labor-management committees,
and the present placement ma
(See MANPOWER, Page A-50
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