Evening star., 1951-12-02
The Steel Case
Whole Fabric of Wage Controls Hangs
On Outcome of CIO Move for Increases
By james Y. Newton

iNCWtOH
was $1.23 an hour. During the same
time, the price of finished steel has
risen from $40 to $82 a ton, on the
average.
Steel producers got their last price
increase a year ago. at the time the
last wage hike became effective. But
the industry claims the price boost
was not large enough to compensate
for all of the increases in cost, labor
and materials, incurred since the
start of the Korean fighting. The
industry probably would ask for
price increase even if there were not
another wage increase and the size
of the request on the Office of Price
Sterilization will depend on the COM
ing wage settlement.
Beyond question, the steel case will
wind up in the lap of the Wage Sta
bilization Board, regardless of the
size of the pay raise the producers
are willing to give Mr.. Murray's men.
BENJAMIN F. Fairless. president Of
u. S. Steel. already has said he
expects the Government to have
the final voice in deciding how much
of an increase the industry should
give. He has warned that each penny
of wage rise will mean an increase Of
$40 million year in the sales price
OF his company's products.
Serious Aspects of the Case
The prospect facing the wage
board and other economic stabiliZers
is far from an enviable one. A
strike would be unthinkable at this
time of steel supply shortages and
crisis in the rearmament program.
Yet. even more serious consequences
might result from the inflationary
pressures attending sizable boosts in
steel wages and prices.
The line the Government built
against imitation nearly a year ago
has been bent several times, both on
the price and wage end. Govern
ment recognition of the principle Of
cost-of living pay increases was one.
1t was recognition of the fact that
prices could not be held in check
entirely. It may be that the wage
board. which is clever at such
its policy wage increase of size
sufficient to satisfy the steelworkers.
But it is unlikely. The greatest
danger would seem to be that the
steel case will wind up at some
higher echelon-perhaps the White
House-Where expediancy would rule
and the wage control line be ir-
reparably damaged.
Any wage settlement made in steel
almost certainly will serve as a pat
tern for the entire country, at least
until some other labor giant estab-
fishes a new one. And in this in
stance it will not be long before an
other giant comes along.
Cool Is Next
The contract between John L.
Lewis United Mine Workers and the
soft coal industry expires next March
81. 1t can be reopened 60 days be-
fore that date. Regardless of the
size of the eventual settlement in
steel, Mr.. Lewis certainly will want
a bigger one for his miners. The
bulky shadow of John L. already
looms large in the background OF the
steel talks.
Organized labor generally is dis
satisfied with wage controls. Right
or wrong, the labor leaders believe
there has not been what they call
equality of sacrifice" in the defense
effort. They believe industry and
capital have Jared better price and
profit-wise than the workers have in
wages. Mr.. Murray is one of them,
and it would be quite a feather in
his cap as a leader of labor if he
could be the first to break the con-
troll line.
The steelworkers are making a
score of other demands including a
guaranteed annual wage, union shop
and an end of pay differences be-
tween mills in the North and South.
But the one for substantial" wage
increase poses the biggest problem.
probably the only serious one.