United automobile worker. [volume], January 15, 1944, Page PAGE 2, Image 2

About United automobile worker. [volume] (Detroit, Mich.) 1936-1957

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PAGE 2
UAW Moves for Industry-Wide Agreement
Union Seeks to End
Pay Differentials;
Survey Is Ordered
CHICAGO— An intensive drive to win an industry
wide wage agreement based on equal pay for equal work
was instituted by the international executive board of the
UAW-CIO at a special one-day meeting here.
Pursuant to instructions by the Buffalo convention of
the union, R. J. Thomas, UAW-CIO president said, work
will be started at once to collect all necessary wage data.
A proposed master wage agreement will then be submitted
to the War Labor Board.
SIX-SUBDIVISIONS CREATED
The board decided that the four International officers shall
appoint a person who will work in conjunction with the union’s
research department to collect the necessary wage data applicable
to each of seven sub-divisions of the automotive-aircraft in
dustry.
The sub division will be:
I—Tank production, heavy mechanized units, * trucks and
jeeps and similar units, 2—Engine production, including aircraft,
truck and diesel. 3-Wing and fuselage, fabrication and assembly.
4—Guns, shell and general ordnance. s—Forges and foundries.
6—Tool and die, patternmakers, maintenance and related skilled
trades.
CONFERENCES TO BE HELD
Upon completion of the job of collecting the statistics, the
International union will call conferences of representatives of
workers in the respective sub-divisions. These will be working
conferences at which the wage situation will be canvassed and
recommendations on wage rates drawn up.
The sub-divisional conference will elect a chairman or rep
resentative. The six men thus chosen will compose, together with
the four International officers, a top negotiating committee. This
committee will prepare a proposed master wage agreement and
will press for its adoption by the War Labor Board.
GENERAL WAGE ADJUSTMENT DEMANDED
Parallel with action to secure an industry wide agreement,
the International Union will initiate an industry wide demand
for a cost of living adjustment equal to the amount required
to bring about the relationship between wages and the cost of
living that existed at the time the War Labor Board fixed wages
in our indusry under the Little Steel formula, the UAW Board
decided.
New wage contracts, it was recommended, should contain a
w’age clause providing for automatic wage adjustments equal
to any increase in living cost at the time such increase in living
cost occurs. Method of computing living cost indexes shall be
mutually agreed to between the parties to the contract.
As a part of this joint wage program, it was also decided,
the International shall initiate steps to insure industry wide
application of the following points:
(a) 48 hour guaranteed work week or 48 hour guaranteed
weekly wage.
(b) Creation of a post war employment security fund.
(c) Provision for severance pay.
(d) |I.OO per hour minimum.
(e) Provisions for the establishment of a guaranteed annual
w’age.
UA W and Machinists
Sign No-Raiding Pact
CHICAGO —The UAW-CIO,
largest union in the CIO, and the
International Association of Ma
chinists, largest affiliate of the
AFL, have reached an agreement
banning raids by either organiza
tion in any plant in which the
other organization has been estab
lished by contract or by National
Labor Relations Board certifica
tion.
The agreement is expected to
end differences which have im
peded progress in drives of the
unions to organize the aircraft in
dustry.
The agreement, as approved by
the UAW-CIO international exec
utive board here, and signed by
officers of the UAW and the IAM,
follows:
“In the interest of the Nation
al War program and as an aid to
uninterrupted production in
vital war industries, the UAW
CIO and the IAofM-AFL hereby
agree that for the War’s dura
tion the following policy and
understanding shall prevail:
“Where one of the named or
ganizations has established a
contractual relationship with an
UNITED AUTOMOBILE WORKER DETROIT MICHIGAN JANUARY 15 1944
employer or has been certified
as the collective bargaining
agency by the NLRB, the other
organization shall not in any
way interfere with this rela
tionship by having its officers,
representatives or members so
licit or accept membership ap
plications or authorization cards;
or cause or promote campaigns
of any nature designed to dis
turb such relationship.
“It is the hope of both organ
izations that this policy will re
sult in a better understanding
between them and will eventu
ally lead to a United Labor
movement and make possible
the further expansion of the
trade union movement among
the unorganized workers.**
Signers for the International
Association of Machinists were:
H. W. BROWN, President; ERIC
PETERSON and D. S. LYONS;
for the UAW-CIO: R. J. THOM
AS, President; GEO. F. ADDES,
Secretary-Treasurer; WALTER P.
REUTHER and RICHARD T.
FRANKENSTEEN, Vice-Presi
dents.
Blood
for th.
Armed Forces
% .kF i vAflVlßfl -Tl!
A a fWKar
Enlist- through Your Union
As a Rod Cross Blood Donor
Union locals recruiting volunteer donors of blood for the armed
forces may obtain a new Red Cross folder (cover shown above)
through local Red Cross Blood Donor Centers. Issued in connection
with the Blood Donor Honor Roll Plan and designed for mass distribu
tion among union members, the folder contains messages from national
labor leaders, pictures and suggestions on an organized program of
enlisting donors through union committees.
Workers
Warned on
Double Tax
By MAURICE SUGAR
General Counsel UAW-CIO
Under the Social Security law.
the wages of workers are subject
to a Social Security tax upon the
amount received up to, but not ex
ceeding, $3,000 a year.
It is not infrequent for a worker
to be employed by more than one
Labor
and
The Law
from all M>f the employers for
whom he has worked.
TOO MUCH COLLECTED
Since each employer is obliged
to deduct Social Security tax, it
folows that in such cases the com
bined taxes deducted from the
workers' pay will exceed the
amount he is obligated to pay
under the law.
Under these circumstances the
worker is entitled to a refund
from the Treasury Department of
the excess tax which has been
withheld from his wages.
There are two requirements re
specting the worker’s application
for the refund: (1) the claim must
be made after the calendar year
in which the work was performed
and (2) the claim must be made
within two years after the cal
endar year in which the wages
were paid.
FORMS AVAILABLE
The Bureau of Internal Revenue
provides forms for the application
for such a refund. Get Form No.
MS, which is to be filled out and
signed by the worker, and get
Form No. SS-9, which is to be
filled out and signed by the em
ployers from whom the wages
were received.
These forms may be obtained
employer dur
ing the course
of a calendar
year, receiving
from each em
ployer less than
$3,000 for the
calendar year
but receiving in
excess of $3,000
New Advances
By UAW-GIO
In the South
BALTIMORE, Md.— UAW-CIO
has been designated as the ex
clusive bargaining agent for the
plant protection employees for the
Bellanca Aircraft Corporation in
Wilmington, Delaware, it is an
nounced by Thornes J. Stanley,
UAW regional director.
There are fifty-four guards
within the Unit. All of the Plant
Protection People are dues pay
ing members of Local Union 840.
This Unit was organized in a
whirlwind campaign, lasting only
7 days. Credit should go to Ben
Ambroch, Acting President of
Local 840, Walter Pyle, financial
Secretary, Joseph Keller, Trustee,
William Mason, Charles Epstein,
and members of the Plant Protec
tion unit.
UAW-CIO, through a close
check of the pay-roll of Fruehauf
Trailor Company, Birmingham,
Alabama was certified as the ex
clusive Decem
ber 24, involving 175 members.
This organizational campaign was
handled by International Repre
sentative William Goodman.
Certification is pending of the
plant protection and firemen at
Bechtel-MeCome-Parsons in Bir
mingham, which we have organ
ized. This organizational campaign
was also handled by Inti. Rep.
Goodman.
Emil Arthur Pieper
Anyone knowing the where
abouts of Emil Arthur Pieper, age
42, machinist, is asked to notify
his brother Arthur, at 54 Central
Avenue, Oshkosh, Wisconsin. It
is necessary to locate him in order
to settle an estate. Information
may also be sent to Local 291.
UAW-CIO, in Oshkosh.
from the 3ureau of Internal Rev
enue in Washington or at its
branch offices in the various cities.
When properly filled out they
should be mailed or delivered to
the Bureau of Internal Revenue.
WLB SETS >
AIRCRAFT
Richard T. Frankenstein, UAW
CIO vice-president and director
of its aircraft division, reports
that the War Labor Board has
voted unanimously to appoint a
tri-partite panel to hold hearings
in Los Angeles in January to hear
evidence presented by the UAW
CIO on requests for revision of
wage rate schedules in seven air
craft companies in that area.
The panel also will hear the
reply of the companies to the pe
titions of the union.
The panel will report to the
WLB “on the relation of the
claimg in the petitions to the wage
stabilization program and to the
stabilization of the general level
of wages for the Southern Califor
nia Aircraft Industry for the dura
tion of the emergency.”
The WLB also unanimously
voted to instruct its West Coast
Aircraft Committee to undertake
immediately “an all-over study,
including necessary hearings and
examinations of work in progress,
of the job evaluations and job
descriptions of the Southern Cali
fornia Aircraft Industry plan.”
This resolution of the- Board
also stated:
“The purpose of this study is to
determine what adjustments and
changes are necessary or desir
able to perfect the Southern Cali
fornia Aircraft Indutsry evalua
tion plan and to provide a report
to the Board which will enable it
to determine the extent to which
such adjustments can be made
within the limits of the stabiliza
tion program.”
A joint petition was filed with
the War Labor Board on October
9,1943, by the UAW-CIO, Interna
tional Association of Machinists
and the United Aircraft Welders
asking the Board to amend its
directive order of March 3 in the
West Coast Airframe Company
cases by requiring (1) an over-all
study and revision of the SCAI
job evaluation plan and (2) an
immediate upward revision of the
rates assigned to particular labor
grades.
The UAW-CIO in its petition
sought (1) elimination of the
range of wage rates for labor
grades 9,8, 7 and 6 and the estab
lishment of flat rates at the pres
ent maximum rate in each grade;
(2) the elimination of present
hiring-in rate of 60c to 75c and
fixing a substitute rate of 80c, at
the same time establishing labor
grade 10 at a flat rate of 80c; (3)
for grades 1,2, 3 and 4 a raise
in the standard maximum to the
top specialist rate and an increase
of minima to maintain existing
differentials; (4) specification of
a 10c differential for second shift.
UAW-CIO Opens Drive
At Vultee In Penn.
ALLENTOWN, F».—The UAW
CIO drive to organize Vultee Air
craft workers is off to a good start
with substantial numbers of sig
natures already obtained, Richard
T. Frankensteen, vice president
and director of the union’s air
craft department announces.
The drive is under the direction
of International Representative
William Gibson. ,
Three other Vultee plants are
part of the UAW, and Gibson re
ports employes here display
interest in joining their felloy
workers to be represented byjlfiV,
union which has upped air£aa|K
wages approximately 35c an,hour
straight time. Other Vultee plants
represented by the UAW are lo
cated in Downey, California,
Grand Rapids, and Wayne, Michi
gan.