Evening star., 1952-06-15
Marion Needs Recipe for Keeping It's Industries Going

THE handwriting had been on
l. the wall for IS years. Early in
1852 it began to grow bolder and
harder to overlook. Finally, on the
second day of this month, the hand
writing took on a lurid glow that
commanded the attention of every
American.
The moving finger had written:
Sooner or later big industry and
big labor will come to grips in
time of crisis in key segment
of the economy. Sooner or later
America will face a strike it cannot
afford"
Since the mid-'30s, when the
Wagner Act gave unionism its first
big boost, America has been studi-
ously ducking the question raised
by that prophecy. 1t has been STALL
ing for time and hoping for the
best.
Is the current steel strike the
one America cannot afford? Per-
haps; perhaps not. If it is not, the
present crisis will blow over, and
the question raised by the hand
writing on the wall can be ducked
a little longer. But if this is strike
we cannot afford, we shall have to
find an answer now. In any event,
we cannot put of the day Of reck-
oning forever.
The VitoI Question
The vital question boils down to
this: How is the United States to
prevent economic paralysis by keep
ing a vital industry going while
union-management differences are
ironed out.
Normally, the country can afford
to allow the opposing sides to test
their economic strength along the
picket lines and in the darkened
mills. But-and here Is the big
question again in a different form
what is to be done when the
country cannot afford the tieup
that results from letting nature
take its course?
There have been attemptS-suc-
ceSSful oneS-to deal with this
question under certain specific cir
cumstanceS and in particular areas
of industry.
In time of war, the President
usually has virtually dictatorial
powers. When a plant is struck and
the national defense is endangered,
he can seize and operate it.
The Nations railroads have long
been considered vital to the coun-
try in peacetime as well as in war.
Under a 1916 act, the President
can take over operation of the
railroads whenever he considers
the national interest at stake. He
did so nearly three years ago, and
kept them running until settle
ment about a fortnight ago.
No Cure All
But there has been no answer to
the problem under all circum-
stances and in all areas. Certainly
there has been no cure-all answer
to the specific situation of half
war, half-peace that the Nation
finds itself in today. And it is in
a crisis of the present sort that
the moving fingers prediction is
most likely to come true.
In searching for an answer, many
people are driven to the conclusion
that there is, really, no answer at
all. This may or may not be true.
But there is one inescapable fact
that must be dealt with in con-
sidering the whole vital question.
There is no way in which a third
party can effectively impose solu-
tion on the principals in a labor
dispute. The third party-Govern-
ment or public-can only create a
condition that will induce or force
the two sides to bring themselves
into agreement. The final solution
can only come when, however re-
luctantly, the two parties volun-
tarily sign a contract arrived at
through collective bargaining.
To one school of thought, at least,
the problem can be broken into two
aspects. First, the optimum climate
for settlement must be created.
Second, a formula for preventing
a shutdown pending settlement
must be found.
Whether or not the steel situa-
ton, as it exists today, can be taken
as typical is a matter of opinion.
Obviously, it already has been
pretty badly bungled. Some of the
avenues to settlement which nor
mally would exist may already have
been closed in this case. What
follows, however, is an examination
of proposed solutions for the gen.
eral problem of emergency strike
control.