The potters herald. [volume] (East Liverpool, Ohio) 1899-1982, 1950-11-23


got President Ben Fairless of the
US Steel Corporation on the defen-
sive, if his Nov. 16 remarks to the
American Petroleum Institute are
any indication.
Fairless was on the defensive
against organized labor, govern
ment, the general public, the past,
the future and the oil industry at
the same time.
No question about it, Big Steel's
chief said, the Steelworkers are go
ing to get a wage raise. But ne
was pretty grudging, nonetheless.
Latest government index showed
the costs of living was "almost ex-
actly what it was on the day when
our workers got their last pay in
crease" he insisted. However, ne
was willing. to give his employees a
boost, he said, because Whether
we like it or not, the fifth round of
wage increases is already well
under way in this country"
The union has not revealed the
increase it is asking of Big Steel,
but Fairless used 10 cents to
prove" that wage increase would
make an increase in the price of
steel imperative. He put it this
way:
A 15-cent boost would cost US
Steel $132 million, or about Sc a
ton. The cost of "outside" mater
ials the company has to buy to
make steel has gone up $88 million
year. Add the two and you get
1920 million.
That is more than the company
can afford from its profits ($178,-
821 $40 for the first nine months
of 1950), Fairless insisted. Out of
profits, the company has to pay
dividends and pay for expansion of
steel capacity, he said. Why, he
observed piously, 1920 million "is
nearly twice as much money as the
owners of US Steel (stockholders)
have ever received from US in any
year of our entire history. 1t is
more money, in fact than all the
dividends we have paid to all our
stockholders in the last two and a
half years put together" (ClO
economists and statisticians say the
figures give a different picture.)
But even if Big Steel did raise
the price of it's product, the in
crease would be a tiny one that
would have virtually no effect on
anything, said Fairless, striking at
the theory that steel prices are
basic to the entire economy.
Steel costs about nickel a pound
(less than candy barr, he said. A
10 percent rise would be half a cent
a pound. Less than one percent in
the price of an automobile, bat
tleship or a bridge; an extra four
cents for a $22 automatic toaster;
go cents more for a washing ma
chine, or $1.50 more for refriger-
ator. Pouf, you'd never notice it.
Gentlemen" said Fairless piously,
81 yield to no man in my desire to
prevent initiation"
Meanwhile, there would be
enough steel for everyone includ-
ing the oil industry which is hard
pressed for pipe, the industrialist
said, but he added a couple of great
big "ifs". There mustn't be a steel
strike "(Gentlemen, America can
not afford another steel strike.
Any shortages now existing are
"due to the fact that strikes have
cost our nation 20 million tons of
steel since VI day.") In addition,
nothing must be allowed to block
the industry's expansion program.
Gust who would block it, Fairless
didn't say.)
Actually, Fairless added some
further "ifs" without calling them
that. It's a matter of what is
meant by enough" steel. "There is
not enough steel, at present, to
satisfy the maximum wants of
everybody" he declared. "But there
is a great deal more steel than is
necessary to meet Americas min
imum needs"