Toledo union journal. [volume] (Toledo, Ohio) 1942-current, 1945-11-09
Washington
'LaborReport
BY Bradford V. Carter
EXPECTATIONS


Labor Management Confer
ence. Candid appraisal of its
potentialities is definitely in
order.
You can't get away from the
stubborn fact that the Admin
istration has not been able to
come forth with anything like
a reconversion post war pro-
gram that has made sense. In
stead, it has played up each
improvisation after the other
as the answer to all that ails
us.
First there was the execu-
tive order that permitted man.
agement TO grant wage in
creases if no price increases
were involved. That was a
dud. There were no wage in
creases given that labor didn't
have to fight for.
Then it was the reorganiza-
ton of the Labor Department
under Schwellenbach that con-
tanned the magical formula.
That sputtered out too.
WAGE POLICY
Last week the President
went on the air with his long
awaited d wage price policy
speech. The general drift of
opinion on the policy was, l
am afraid, rather Indifferent.
That holds both for labor and
management circles. The feel
ing was that the President
was trying to satisfy every
body and ended up by satisfy
ing nobody.
Now the Labor Manage
ment Conference is being
touted as the solution to all
our doubts and problems. OF
course, 1t will do no such
thing.
There is one striking differ
ence between this Conference
and the labor management
conference which Immediately
followed Pearl Harbor. The
most important is that the rec
concentrations of the earlier
conference could be given the
virtual force of law under the
Presidents wartime powers.
This will not be possible ex-
cept on the most limited basis
ith the recommendations
which will emanate from the
current Conference. The one
meaningful proposal W h c h
will emerge is likely to be the
establishment of voluntary
government arbitration ma
chinery along the lines laid
out by Senator Brien Mac
Mahon OF Connecticut.
NOT COMMITTED
1t is worth recognizing too
that the management repre-
Sentatives are not in a position
to commit anybody TO their
program except themselves.
The National Association of
Manufacturers and the Cham
ber OF Commerce can voice
sentiments of good will, but
on things that count, every
businessman is law unto
himself
This Is in marked contrast
to the standing OF labor rep
resentatives present. The larg-
est bulk OF union membership
in the United States will be di-
rectly represented through the
presidents of the important
international unions. AS re-
Sponsible leaders they know
precisely how far they can go
in getting the membership to
go along with program. 1t
seems likely that the labor
representatives can make far
more binding commitment to
whatever is decided than can
the management spokeSmen.
1t should be said that much
careful preparation has gone
into organization of the con-
ference. In that respect, the
conference is better set to
think through its deliberations
and decisions.
A recommendation from the
conference that a scheme of
government financed volun-
tary machinery be set up, will
undoubtedly be all to the good.
1t may put unions who have
been mulcted by excessive
arbitration fees in a better
frame OF mind on this subject.
There may therefore be
greater reliance on non-Strike
methods of settling disputes.
For the most part, however,
the real issues in dispute
how to check the drastic de-
cline in workers income and
how to attain full employment
will not be subjects which
are likely to come to the Off
cial attention of the confer