FULL UTILIZATION OF MANPOWER MONDAY, APRIL 12, 1943 COMMITTEE ON MILITARY AFFAIRS, The committee met at 10:30 a. m., Hon. Andrew J. May, chairman, presiding. The CHAIRMAN. Let the committee please be in order. I want to make a very brief statement before we proceed. Today was set apart as a day to hear the foremen's organization and we anticipated at the time the hearing was set that we would be able to give them the whole day, including the afternoon. Since then the House leadership has scheduled the Kilday bill for hearing on the floor of the House, and the House convenes at 12 o'clock. Being in charge of that bill as chairman of this committee, I will have to go to the House floor at that time. But I am going to make it possible for these gentlemen who represent the foremen's organization to give us all the testimony you can this morning and in addition to that you may revise any of your statements to any extent you wish and supplement them in any way you wish. FURTHER STATEMENT OF W. ALLEN NELSON, ACTING PRESIDENT ASSOCIATION OF The CHAIRMAN. Mr. Nelson, general counsel for the foremen's organization, will you come around and call the first witness you have available and in the order in which you desire to do it? Mr. NELSON. Mr. W. Allen Nelson had not completed his statement and he had some documentary matter that I think the committee would be interested in and, therefore, he will resume at this time. The CHAIRMAN. Very well, sir. Come around, Mr. Nelson. If the documents are very lengthy, Mr. Nelson, you might save the trouble of reading them and insert them into the record. Mr. W. ALLEN NELSON. That is what I would like to do. I had not intended to read them. Mr. Chairman and members of the committee, at the conclusion of my statement on Wednesday I had gotten to the point where we had met with the top management of the company, that is, the Ford Motor Co., and had embarked on our process of dealing with the company as an organization Out of that original meeting a joint committee made up of 8 members of the Foremen's Association, each being foremen, and 8 members from the building superintendents' group representing the management was constituted by mutual consent and the problems of the foremen were taken before that committee from then on. That was started in July, I believe, of 1942. A number of problems were brought before this committee and discussed, not always settled to our liking but eventually this committee undertook the job of negotiating a rate and classification agreement. In other words, we had found that the pay rates of various foremen in various buildings varied for similar jobs and this condition created a feeling of dissatisfaction among those foremen who were under the average rate. It took us nearly 3 months of patient negotiation to arrive at an agreement that we could sign. The 16 members of the committee, 8 foremen and 8 superintendents, finally arrived at an agreement that we have entitled an "Agreement on Foreman's Wage Schedule." I will not read this, but it sets up a definite classification for each type of foreman in the plant. The CHAIRMAN. It may be made part of the record. (The agreement is as follows:) AGREEMENT ON FOREMEN'S WAGE SCHEDULE 1. Ford Motor Co., a Delaware corporation, of Dearborn, Mich., its successors or assigns, hereinafter known as the Company, as employer, and Ford Chapter No. 1 of Foremen's Association of America, a voluntary association, of 5746 Schaefer Road, Dearborn, Mich., hereinafter known as the Association, as representative of those foreman employees of said employer who have authorized the Association to represent them, hereinafter referred to as foremen, agree as follows: 2. That this agreement shall govern the relations between said company and the Association on all items included herein. 3. The Company and the Association will from time to time meet at the request of either party to negotiate with respect to wage or salary rates on classifications of foremen's work not covered by this agreement. Any agreements arrived at may be added hereto as numbered and dated supplements, none of which may extend beyond the term of this agreement as hereinafter limited. 4. That not less than 30 days before the termination of this agreement, upon the written request of either party hereto, said parties will meet and in good faith negotiate a renewal thereof or amendments or additions thereto or a termination of this agreement. 5. That this agreement and all items included herein shall be effective on and after the date of this agreement; Provided, however, That it is understood and agreed that no increases shall be paid to any of the employees involved as a result of this agreement until the wage and salary rates and classifications set up in this agreement have been approved by the National War Labor Board and that such rates and classifications are subject to such approval. Both parties hereby agree to submit such rates and classifications to the National War Labor Board for its consideration and approval with a request that they be approved as of November 5, 1942. In all events the orders of the National War Labor Board in this respect shall be followed by both parties, and, if the Board declines to grant said joint request, this agreement shall thereupon become null and void. 6. That a schedule of salaries and hourly rates of pay for foremen is hereby agreed upon as follows: A. Employees commonly known as foremen whose duties require them to supervise other employees shall be designated under classifications hereinafter numbered 1 to 6, both inclusive; Provided, That where this schedule is not properly applicable the joint committee may make other classifications, said schedule being as follows: B. (1B) The first column serially numbers the agreed classifications and designations. (2B) The second column states briefly the agreed name and function of each of the six agreed classifications. (3B) The third column states the approximate number of men each foreman should supervise to qualify for the classification to which he is assigned. (4B) The fourth column states the minimum rate for foremen above the highest negotiated rate for any operation under each class of supervision, excluding special rated employees. (5B) With respect to paragraph 6, 3B, it is agreed that the nature of the work and the degree of responsibility carried by each foreman shall be taken into consideration in classifying him, and that in the event of a disagreement on a foreman's classification an appeal may be made to the joint committee. (6B) With respect to paragraph 6, 4B, it is agreed that where there are less than 25 percent or more of special rated employees (such as job setters, leaders, free lance, follow up, relief man, etc.) under the supervision of the foremen in question the rate will be based on the highest paid operation under his supervision, but that if there are under his supervision 25 percent or more of special rated employees the rate shall be based on the highest negotiated rate of such special rated employees, if the rate of such special rated employees is higher than the highest negotiated rate for any operation under the supervision of the foreman whose rate of pay is considered. (7B) It is agreed that as an illustration of the application of the foregoing schedule and rules, if an employee is promoted to a job foremanship of work where the highest paid operation is of a drill press on the spread rate of $1 to $1.10 per hour, he would within 30 days of that promotion receive 15 cents per hour above the highest negotiated rate paid to an operation under his supervision, or to $1.25 per hour, and within the following 30 days he will be paid an additional 5 cents per hour, and an additional 5 cents per hour will be paid him within 6 months from the date of his promotion upon recommendation of his department head and superintendent, subject, however, to an appeal from a denial thereof to the joint committee. C. It is agreed that there shall be excepted from the operation and application of the schedule herein above set forth (par. 6B) all foremen supervising employees who are classified as follows: Chip pullers and chip handlers, clean-up departments, bale handlers, textile sorters, paper cleaners, lumber handlers, concrete busters, track men, garbage disposal, car washers, greasers, pumpmen, attendants, dust collectors, baggers, loaders, truckers, ladle dumper, conveyor slag and stone, clinker conveyor, and all laborers, and thas as to such foremen there shall be applied a schedule or rate of pay as follows: 7. It is agreed that all foremen whose rate of pay is fixed by the schedule hereinabove set forth in paragraph 6D shall be given an opportunity to transfer to higher paying jobs of any kind for which they can qualify, provided there is an opening. 8. Excepting the job foreman affected by and classified hereinabove, all job foremen who have been in the employ of Ford Motor Co. as foremen for the period of 1 year or more prior to the date of this agreement shall immediately receive the 25 cents per hour differential provided for in schedule 6B hereinabove set forth if they are receiving less than that amount on the date of this agreement. 9. The pay rates of general foremen shall be increased upon recommendation of their superintendents. 10. No foreman shall receive a reduction in pay by reason of the execution of this agreement provided only that he continues to perform similar duties after the execution thereof. 11. Foremen skilled in specific lines of work who are placed on lower paid jobs for the purpose of instruction or developing the job shall retain their original rates or be allowed to return to their original position. 12. The proposed rates listed for foremen in schedules B and D hereinabove set forth are to be minimum rates paid by said employer, but it is agreed that on recommendation of a department head on the basis of ability or responsibility carried, higher rates may be paid without changing the classification of foremen. 13. That this agreement shall remain in full force and effect for 1 year immediately and continuously following November 5, 1942; and shall remain in force from year to year unless modified, terminated, or amended. IN WITNESS WHEREOF, the employer and employee parties hereinabove named hereunto set their signatures at Dearborn, Mich., on November -, 1942, by their representatives respectively thereunto duly authorized. FORD CHAPTER NO. 1, FOREMAN'S ASSOCIATION OF AMERICA, (signed) ROBERT H. KEYS, W. ALLEN NELSON, Vice President. CARL E. BRown, Mr. W. ALLEN NELSON. In a big industry like Ford's it was found necessary to designate six different classifications for their foremanship. This is possibly a larger list than is used in the average plant but it was found necessary in the Ford plant. Under this rate and classification agreement working through the joint committee we undertook to compose differences in opinion as to what each individual foreman was classified as and that job is still in the process of completion. It has taken months to examine the job of every one of those 9,000 foremen both from the company standpoint and from the point of his fellow foremen and place him in the classification lists properly. Last Friday after I left here the first payments under this agreement came through in the pay envelopes of the foremen in the B building and some in the tool and die building. Those payments represent back pay under the agreement to November 5, 1942, the date upon which this agreement was arrived at. And in the case of the tool and die and maintenance foremen there had been a 10-cent raise for part of the |