The Wilmington morning star., 1946-01-14
Walkout OF 100000 Clio
United Steelworkers
Scheduled Monday
BY JOAN SKIDMORE

PITTSBURGH, Jan. 10. = R -
steel-hungry nation with a pent-up
demand for the fruits of peacetime
production is on the threshold oil
a strike which union spokesman
claim will shut down the steel in.
dustry.
A walkout of some 100000 CLIO.
United Steelworkers scheduled for
Monday not only would close the
widespread operations of United
States steel corporation and hun.
dreds of smaller steel companies
it would stop production at about
1000 fabricating plants and, if pro.
longed, would hit every manufac.
turer and every worker who de.
Ponds upon steel in his business
The steelworkers, whose demand
for $2-a-day "cost of living pay
raise was rejected by "big steel
local unions are involved. These
unions range in size from 10. the
smallest unit. to a huge 10000
and many smaller employers, say
that members belonging to 1885
member unit in Gary, Ind.
About $50, 1000 of its members, the
union estimates, are in the basic
industry: steel and aluminium
mills, iron ore and bauxite mines.
It prepares the metal that goes to
factories in sheets and bars, plates
and wire.
The other $4,000 to- 100000
members are employed in fabrica-
ton. Their work includes produc-
ton, maintenance, plant protection
and office and clerical tasks.
Production workers prepare
from raw metals the finished pro-
ducts with which every American
is familiar - machinery, bridges,
containers, ashtrays, coat hangers,
refrigerators,l autos and so on.
Other fabrication employees per-
form the many jobs necessary to
keeping the production wheels
turning.
Should a general strike halt
those wheels next week, some I'm
counted thousands of persons in
other industries probably soon
would be thrown out of work. A
few, in the small portion of the
fabricating industry which is I'm
organized, would lack steel with
which to work.
Others, in manufa curing plants
which may seems remote to the
steel industry, would lack neces-
sary parts to repair their machines.
Consider, for instance, the plight
of the textile industry if strike
stopped the almost steady flow OF
bobbins required by its machines.
Spokesman for steel corporations
report their companies have sra
toned steel in an attempt to
make the supply released by the
wars end spread further. But a
backlog Of orders has piled up, and
a steI strike this month woul
find the industry with practically
no finished steel on hand. Also, I'M
ion spokesman expressed belief
that organized truckers and rail
readers would refuse to handle
shipments from stockpiles during
a strike.
The fabrication Industry presents
this picture:
Topping the list of fabricators
who use huge amounts of steel is
the auto industry, troubled during
reconversion with major strike
of it's own. Even if all employees
were on the job, auto manufa cture
could not continue long without
fresh supplies of steel.
Railroads, the next biggest con-
sumer of steel, have 10000 passen
ger cars on order. Manufa cturers
have been prevented from carry
ing big inventories. and car pro-
duction probably would cease al
most simultaneously with work at
steel mills.
The container industry, supply
ing metal drums, barrels and cans,
would be hard hit soon.
Commercial construction, plans
for which have been progressing
rapidly since the wars end, has
oeen held to 40 or so per cent Of
operating capacity because steel