Ask the Scholar
Document scope · 1 page
Scholar
Ask about this object, its catalog metadata, its source description, or the page inventory.
For page-specific OCR and visual context, open one of the page chats.
Source Description
This file contains:
New York Times article, Morhouse Given Convention Post, by W.H. Lawrence. 1 pg. Not scanned. [Newspaper], 3/4/1960
Unknown newspaper article, Clouds on Nixon Horizon, by William White. 1 pg. Not scanned. [Newspaper], 2/15/1960
The Christian Monitor article, Picking a President, by Richard Strout. 1 pg. Not scanned. [Newspaper], n.d.
Herald Tribune article, The Defecting Negro Vote, by Rowland Evans Jr. 1 pg. Not Scanned. [Newspaper], 2/5/1960
Wall Street Journal notes about New Hampshire primary and Nixon's emissary. 1 pg. Not scanned. [Newspaper], 2/5/1960
Sunday Star article, Nixon Hits Kennedy's Criticism of President, by Cecil Holland. 2 pgs. Not scanned. [Newspaper], 1/17/1960
Washing Post note "Nixon Club Set in Middle West." 1 pg. Not scanned. [Newspaper], 2/10/1960
New York Herald article, Rockefeller Still Backed in California, by Earl Mazo. 1 pg. not scanned. [Newspaper], 2/11/1960
Herald Tribune article, Rockefeller Backs Plan California Fight, by unknown author. 1 pg. Not scanned. [Newspaper], 2/10/1960
Unknown Newspaper article, Nixon to Tour Byways, by William White. 1 pg. Not scanned. [Newspaper], 2/9/1960
Evening Star article, Pressures on Nixon Rising, by William White. 1 pg. Not scanned. [Newspaper], 2/12/1960
Washington Star article, Nixon Battle Plan, by unknown author. 1 pg. Not scanned. [Newspaper], 1/30/1960
Washington Post article, Nixon and Staff, by Carroll Kilpatrick. 1 pg. Not scanned. [Newspaper], 2/4/1960
Washington Post article, Undeclared Ike Satisfied With Nixon, by Jack Bell. 1 pg. Not scanned. [Newspaper], 2/14/1960
Evening Star article, The Political Mill, by Gould Lincoln. 1 pg. Not scanned. [Newspaper], 2/4/1960
Washington Post article, Abuse Alone Can't Topple Mr. Nixon, by Marquis Childs. 1 pg. Not scanned. [Newspaper], 2/3/1960
Washington Post article, Nixon Enters Indiana GOP Primary To Make Sure of State's Delegates, by unknown author. 1 pg. Not scanned. [Newspaper], 2/3/1960
Evening Star article, Democrats Debating Tactics to Beat Nixon, by David Broder. 1 pg. Not scanned. [Newspaper], 2/1/1960
Evening Star article, Nixon Running Mate? Few Have Any Ideas, by unknown author. 1 pg. Not scanned. [Newspaper], 1/31/1960
New York Herald Tribune article, Nixon Gets Back Stolen Steal, by unknown author. 1 pg. Not scanned. [Newspaper], 2/2/1960
New York Times article, The String in Mr. Nixon's Bow, by James Reston. 1 pg. Not scanned. [Newspaper], 1/31/1960
Wall Street Journal article, Democrats vs. Nixon, by Robert Novak. 2 pgs. Not scanned. [Newspaper], 2/1/1960
New York herald Tribune article, Theft of Nixon's Official Seal at Dinner Revealed, by unknown author. 1 pg. Not scanned. [Newspaper], 1/2/1960
Washington Post article, Limited Divorce, by unknown author. 1 pg. Not scanned. [Newspaper], 1/29/1960
Washington Post article, Confident Nixon Ignores Jibe, by Marquis Childs. 1 pg. Not scanned. [Newspaper], 1/29/1960
Evening Star article, The Old and the New Nixon, by Doris Fleeson. 1 pg. Not scanned. [Newspaper], 1/28/1960
New York Herald Tribune letter to the editor, Editorial Ruins Digestion, by S.B. Weeks. 1 pg. Not scanned. [Newspaper], 1/27/1960
Unknown newspaper article, Nixon Maintains Lead, 55-45, Over Stevenson, by George Gallup. 1 pg. Not scanned. [Newspaper], 1/27/1960
Washington Post notes "Nixon Club Formed" and "Nixon in the Dark On Midwest Tour" by unknown authors. 1 pg. Not scanned. [Newspaper], 1/28/1960
New York Times article, Nixon in Illinois Race, by unknown author. 1 pg. Not scanned. [Newspaper], 1/26/1960
New York Herald Tribune article, Democrats Make Nixon Main Target, by David Wise. 2 pgs. Not scanned. [Newspaper], 1/24/1960
New York Herald Tribune article, Nixon Takes Over, by Joseph Alsop. 1 pg. Not scanned. [Newspaper], 1/20/1960
Evening Star article, Nixon's Pre-Convention Strategy, by Doris Fleeson. 1 pg. Not scanned. [Newspaper], 1/21/1960
Unknown newspaper article, Nixon Making Early Political Hay, by Ralph McGill. 1 pg. Not scanned. [Newspaper], n.d.
Washington Post article, Lodge Second to Nixon Since Rockefeller Quit, by George gallup. 1 pg. Not scanned. [Newspaper], 1/21/1960
Washington Post article, Nixon to Deal Gently With Opponents, Stress Policies of Administration, by Carroll Kilpatrick. 1 pg. Not scanned. [Newspaper], 1/19/1960
Copy of a letter from Richard Nixon to Alexander Jones (Casey) concerning a steel settlement. 5 pgs. [Letter], 1/21/1960
Scholar Source Context
Document identity
localId
26127378
label
WHSF: Returned, 48-9
core
doc
dtoType
document
citationUrl
pageCount
1
Source metadata
id
26127378
sourceUrl
contentType
document
title
WHSF: Returned, 48-9
description
This file contains:
New York Times article, Morhouse Given Convention Post, by W.H. Lawrence. 1 pg. Not scanned. [Newspaper], 3/4/1960
Unknown newspaper article, Clouds on Nixon Horizon, by William White. 1 pg. Not scanned. [Newspaper], 2/15/1960
The Christian Monitor article, Picking a President, by Richard Strout. 1 pg. Not scanned. [Newspaper], n.d.
Herald Tribune article, The Defecting Negro Vote, by Rowland Evans Jr. 1 pg. Not Scanned. [Newspaper], 2/5/1960
Wall Street Journal notes about New Hampshire primary and Nixon's emissary. 1 pg. Not scanned. [Newspaper], 2/5/1960
Sunday Star article, Nixon Hits Kennedy's Criticism of President, by Cecil Holland. 2 pgs. Not scanned. [Newspaper], 1/17/1960
Washing Post note "Nixon Club Set in Middle West." 1 pg. Not scanned. [Newspaper], 2/10/1960
New York Herald article, Rockefeller Still Backed in California, by Earl Mazo. 1 pg. not scanned. [Newspaper], 2/11/1960
Herald Tribune article, Rockefeller Backs Plan California Fight, by unknown author. 1 pg. Not scanned. [Newspaper], 2/10/1960
Unknown Newspaper article, Nixon to Tour Byways, by William White. 1 pg. Not scanned. [Newspaper], 2/9/1960
Evening Star article, Pressures on Nixon Rising, by William White. 1 pg. Not scanned. [Newspaper], 2/12/1960
Washington Star article, Nixon Battle Plan, by unknown author. 1 pg. Not scanned. [Newspaper], 1/30/1960
Washington Post article, Nixon and Staff, by Carroll Kilpatrick. 1 pg. Not scanned. [Newspaper], 2/4/1960
Washington Post article, Undeclared Ike Satisfied With Nixon, by Jack Bell. 1 pg. Not scanned. [Newspaper], 2/14/1960
Evening Star article, The Political Mill, by Gould Lincoln. 1 pg. Not scanned. [Newspaper], 2/4/1960
Washington Post article, Abuse Alone Can't Topple Mr. Nixon, by Marquis Childs. 1 pg. Not scanned. [Newspaper], 2/3/1960
Washington Post article, Nixon Enters Indiana GOP Primary To Make Sure of State's Delegates, by unknown author. 1 pg. Not scanned. [Newspaper], 2/3/1960
Evening Star article, Democrats Debating Tactics to Beat Nixon, by David Broder. 1 pg. Not scanned. [Newspaper], 2/1/1960
Evening Star article, Nixon Running Mate? Few Have Any Ideas, by unknown author. 1 pg. Not scanned. [Newspaper], 1/31/1960
New York Herald Tribune article, Nixon Gets Back Stolen Steal, by unknown author. 1 pg. Not scanned. [Newspaper], 2/2/1960
New York Times article, The String in Mr. Nixon's Bow, by James Reston. 1 pg. Not scanned. [Newspaper], 1/31/1960
Wall Street Journal article, Democrats vs. Nixon, by Robert Novak. 2 pgs. Not scanned. [Newspaper], 2/1/1960
New York herald Tribune article, Theft of Nixon's Official Seal at Dinner Revealed, by unknown author. 1 pg. Not scanned. [Newspaper], 1/2/1960
Washington Post article, Limited Divorce, by unknown author. 1 pg. Not scanned. [Newspaper], 1/29/1960
Washington Post article, Confident Nixon Ignores Jibe, by Marquis Childs. 1 pg. Not scanned. [Newspaper], 1/29/1960
Evening Star article, The Old and the New Nixon, by Doris Fleeson. 1 pg. Not scanned. [Newspaper], 1/28/1960
New York Herald Tribune letter to the editor, Editorial Ruins Digestion, by S.B. Weeks. 1 pg. Not scanned. [Newspaper], 1/27/1960
Unknown newspaper article, Nixon Maintains Lead, 55-45, Over Stevenson, by George Gallup. 1 pg. Not scanned. [Newspaper], 1/27/1960
Washington Post notes "Nixon Club Formed" and "Nixon in the Dark On Midwest Tour" by unknown authors. 1 pg. Not scanned. [Newspaper], 1/28/1960
New York Times article, Nixon in Illinois Race, by unknown author. 1 pg. Not scanned. [Newspaper], 1/26/1960
New York Herald Tribune article, Democrats Make Nixon Main Target, by David Wise. 2 pgs. Not scanned. [Newspaper], 1/24/1960
New York Herald Tribune article, Nixon Takes Over, by Joseph Alsop. 1 pg. Not scanned. [Newspaper], 1/20/1960
Evening Star article, Nixon's Pre-Convention Strategy, by Doris Fleeson. 1 pg. Not scanned. [Newspaper], 1/21/1960
Unknown newspaper article, Nixon Making Early Political Hay, by Ralph McGill. 1 pg. Not scanned. [Newspaper], n.d.
Washington Post article, Lodge Second to Nixon Since Rockefeller Quit, by George gallup. 1 pg. Not scanned. [Newspaper], 1/21/1960
Washington Post article, Nixon to Deal Gently With Opponents, Stress Policies of Administration, by Carroll Kilpatrick. 1 pg. Not scanned. [Newspaper], 1/19/1960
Copy of a letter from Richard Nixon to Alexander Jones (Casey) concerning a steel settlement. 5 pgs. [Letter], 1/21/1960
citationUrl
collections
Richard M. Nixon's Returned Materials Collection
Returned White House Special Files
imageCount
1
hasImages
yes
source
import
hasTranscription
no
Source extras
naId
26127378
generalNotes
This archival description was reviewed and not revised as part of the NARA reparative description initiative on January 30, 2024. The word “Negro” was determined to be part of the name of a published newspaper article. Original archival records have not been altered.
levelOfDescription
fileUnit
recordType
description
ocrSource
nara-archive
Single page context
seq
1
pageIndex
0
type
document
mediaId
d05bd17a3693a5fc
ocrText
Richard Nixon Presidential Library
White House Special Files Collection
Folder List
Box Number
Folder Number
Document Date
Document Type
Document Description
48
9
03/04/1960
Newspaper
New York Times article, Morhouse Given
Convention Post, by W.H. Lawrence. 1 pg.
Not scanned.
48
9
02/15/1960
Newspaper
Unknown newspaper article, Clouds on
Nixon Horizon, by William White. 1 pg. Not
scanned.
48
9
n.d.
Newspaper
The Christian Monitor article, Picking a
President, by Richard Strout. 1 pg. Not
scanned.
48
9
02/05/1960
Newspaper
Herald Tribune article, The Defecting Negro
Vote, by Rowland Evans Jr. 1 pg. Not
Scanned.
48
9
02/05/1960
Newspaper
Wall Street Journal notes about New
Hampshire primary and Nixon's emissary. 1
pg. Not scanned.
48
9
01/17/1960
Newspaper
Sunday Star article, Nixon Hits Kennedy's
Criticism of President, by Cecil Holland. 2
pgs. Not scanned.
Wednesday, June 06, 2007
Page 1 of 6
Box Number Folder Number Document Date
Document Type
Document Description
48
9
02/10/1960
Newspaper
Washing Post note "Nixon Club Set in
Middle West." 1 pg. Not scanned.
48
9
02/11/1960
Newspaper
New York Herald article, Rockefeller Still
Backed in California, by Earl Mazo. 1 pg.
not scanned.
48
9
02/10/1960
Newspaper
Herlad Tribune article, Rockefeller Backs
Plan California Fight, by unknown author. 1
pg. Not scanned.
48
9
02/09/1960
Newspaper
Unknown Newspaper article, Nixon to Tour
Byways, by William White. 1 pg. Not
scanned.
48
9
02/12/1960
Newspaper
Evening Star article, Pressures on Nixon
Rising, by William White. 1 pg. Not scanned.
48
9
1/30/1960
Newspaper
Washington Star article, Nixon Battle Plan,
by unknown author. 1 pg. Not scanned.
48
9
02/04/1960
Newspaper
Washington Post article, Nixon and Staff, by
Carroll Kilpatrick. 1 pg. Not scanned.
Wednesday, June 06, 2007
Page 2 of 6
Box Number Folder Number Document Date
Document Type
Document Description
48
9
02/14/1960
Newspaper
Washington Post article, Undeclared Ike
Satisfied With Nixon, by Jack Bell. 1 pg. Not
scanned.
48
9
02/04/1960
Newspaper
Evening Star article, The Political Mill, by
Gould Lincoln. 1 pg. Not scanned.
48
9
02/03/1960
Newspaper
Washington Post article, Abuse Alone Can't
Topple Mr. Nixon, by Marquis Childs. 1 pg.
Not scanned.
48
9
02/03/1960
Newspaper
Washinton Post article, Nixon Enters Indiana
GOP Primary To Make Sure of State's
Delegates, by unknown author. 1 pg. Not
scanned.
48
9
02/01/1960
Newspaper
Evwning Star article, Democrats Debating
Tactics to Beat Nixon, by David Broder. 1
pg. Not scanned.
48
9
01/31/1960
Newspaper
Evening Star article, Nixon Running Mate?
Few Have Any Ideas, by unknown author. 1
pg. Not scanned.
48
9
02/02/1960
Newspaper
New York Herlad Tribune article, Nixon
Gets Back Stolen Steal, by unknown author.
1 pg. Not scanned.
Wednesday, June 06, 2007
Page 3 of 6
Box Number Folder Number Document Date
Document Type
Document Description
48
9
01/31/1960
Newspaper
New York Times article, The String in Mr.
Nixon's Bow, by James Reston. 1 pg. Not
scanned.
48
9
02/01/1960
Newspaper
Wall Street Journal article, Democrats vs.
Nixon, by Robert Novak. 2 pgs. Not scanned.
48
9
01/02/1960
Newspaper
New York herald Tribune article, Theft of
Nixon's Official Seal at Dinner Revealed, by
unknown author. 1 pg. Not scanned.
48
9
01/29/1960
Newspaper
Washington Post article, Limited Divorce, by
unknown author. 1 pg. Not scanned.
48
9
01/29/1960
Newspaper
Washington Post article, Confident Nixon
Ignores Jibe, by Marquis Childs. 1 pg. Not
scanned.
48
9
01/28/1960
Newspaper
Evening Star article, The Old and the New
Nixon, by Doris Fleeson. 1 pg. Not scanned.
48
9
01/27/1960
Newspaper
New York Herald Tribune letter to the editor,
Editorial Ruins Digestion, by S.B. Weeks. 1
pg. Not scanned.
Wednesday, June 06, 2007
Page 4 of 6
Box
Number Folder Number
Document Date
Document Type
Document Description
48
9
01/27/1960
Newspaper
Unknown newspaper article, Nixon
Maintains Lead, 55-45, Over Stevenson, by
George Gallup. 1 pg. Not scanned.
48
9
01/28/1960
Newspaper
Washington Post notes "Nixon Club
Formed" and "Nixon in the Dark On
Midwest Tour" by unknown authors. 1 pg.
Not scanned.
48
9
01/26/1960
Newspaper
New York Times article, Nixon in Illinois
Race, by unknown author. 1 pg. Not scanned.
48
9
01/24/1960
Newspaper
New York Herlad Tribune article, Democrats
Make Nixon Main Target, by David Wise. 2
pgs. Not scanned.
48
9
01/20/1960
Newspaper
New York Herald Tribune article, Nixon
Takes Over, by Joseph Alsop. 1 pg. Not
scanned.
48
9
01/21/1960
Newspaper
Evening Star article, Nixon's Pre-Convention
Strategy, by Doris Fleeson. 1 pg. Not
scanned.
48
9
n.d.
Newspaper
Unknown newspaper article, Nixon Making
Early Political Hay, by Ralph McGill. 1 pg.
Not scanned.
Wednesday, June 06, 2007
Page 5 of 6
Box Number Folder Number Document Date
Document Type
Document Description
48
9
01/21/1960
Newspaper
Washington Post article, Lodge Second to
Nixon Since Rockefeller Quit, by George
gallup. 1 pg. Not scanned.
48
9
01/19/1960
Newspaper
Washington Post article, Nixon to Deal
Gently With Opponents, Stress Policies of
Administration, by Carroll Kilpatrick. 1 pg.
Not scanned.
48
9
01/21/1960
Letter
Copy of a letter from Richard Nixon to
Alexander Jones (Casey) concerning a steel
settlement. 5 pgs.
Wednesday, June 06, 2007
Page 6 of 6
COPY
OFFICE OF THE VICE PRESIDENT
Washington
January 21, 1960
Mr. Alexander F. Jones
Executive Editor
Syracuse Herald-Journal
Syracuse 1, New York
Dear Casey:
I greatly appreciated your letter of January 5 and particularly the candor
and frankness with which you discussed the steel settlement.
I realize that a number of questions have been raised as to the settlement
and the role that Secretary Mitchell and I played with regard to it. I think per-
haps the best way to answer those questions is to review the factors which led
to our mediation efforts and the alternatives which confronted us.
As you will recall, just before the President left on his trip abroad, he
said in his television address to the nation: "It is up to labor and management
to adjust responsibly and equitably their differences
what great news
it would be if, during the course of this journey, I should receive word of a
settlement of this steel controversy that is fair to the workers, fair to manage-
ment and above all fair to the American people."
The first question the Secretary and I undertook to explore was whether
the President's expressed desire for a settlement could be realized without
some new mediation action on our part. Our preliminary discussions with rep-
resentatives of both sides convinced us that there was no chance whatever for a
settlement unless some new initiative was undertaken to bring them together.
We, therefore, asked Mr. Blough and other top management representa-
tives and Mr. McDonald and other representatives of the union whether they
wished us to attempt to mediate the dispute. While both sides indicated that they
did not feel there was too much hope that they could reach a negotiated settle-
ment, they agreed that such a procedure was worth trying and that they would
cooperate to the extent possible. This was the origin of the meetings which took
place in my home in which Secretary Mitchell, Mr. Blough, Mr. McDonald,
Mr. Goldberg and I participated.
At the beginning of these negotiations, the possibilities of settlement
seemed hopeless. The companies' offer was for a wage-benefit package which
the companies estimated would add 31¢ to their costs over a period of thirty
months. In addition, the companies asked for revision of Section 2B of the
- 2 -
contract so that management would have more control over local work prac-
tices which they felt was essential for increased efficiency.
The union completely opposed any changes in the work practices pro-
vision of the contract. On the economic side, Mr. McDonald at our first
meeting bluntly stated, "I cannot settle with the steel companies for less than
the amount that I received from Can and Aluminum without a strike.' I think
it is important at this point to recall that our negotiations began the week that
he had completed his negotiation of the Aluminum contract. And the companies'
computation of what McDonald contended was the Can and Aluminum pattern was
an increased wage-benefit cost of 52¢ for thirty months.
In other words, at the beginning of the negotiations, the companies were
offering a 31¢ increase over 30 months as against 52¢ demanded by the union
and the parties were in complete disagreement on the local work practices
issue. During our first few meetings we made very little progress. At a
meeting in my home two days before Christmas, the negotiations reached a
point where both sides refused to move any further in the direction of an agree-
ment and there seemed to be a hopeless deadlock.
It was at that point that the Secretary and I talked to Mr. Blough and
Mr. McDonald separately and asked whether they thought it might be useful if
we were to consult individually with each party and recommend an amount in
between their two positions which each would be completely free to accept or
reject if he saw fit.
Both agreed that this course of action might be helpful and after two
days of intense negotiations and discussions and consultation with the President,
we recommended the figure of 41¢ which both the union and management volun-
tarily accepted. As far as the work practices issue was concerned, the best
that we were able to get the union to agree to was to set up a study commission
with a neutral chairman.
I realize that a number of questions have been raised as to why we
recommended the amount that we did. I think the answers to those questions
can be found when we examine the bargaining position of each party.
Mr. McDonald came to these negotiations in a stronger position than the
companies. He had just won from Aluminum and Can without a strike higher
settlements than the one he eventually agreed to accept with the steel companies.
Polls that he had taken (and incidentally, the polls the companies had taken sub-
stantiated his claims in this respect) indicated that the union members would
vote down the companies' last offer by a majority of over 90%. He also be-
lieved that if the dispute were not settled and had to be sent to the Congress by
the President he would do better in a Congress heavily dominated by members
elected with union support in an election year than would the companies. Con-
sidering the strong bargaining position of the union, their agreement to a settle-
ment which was less than the pattern that they had been able to negotiate with
Can and Aluminum was, in my opinion, a major achievement.
- 3 -
Looking at the settlement fromthe standpoint of the companies, no one
questions but that they agreed to an amount which was greater than they thought
could be absorbed by increased worker productivity, though it is entirely con-
ceivable that the rising efficiency between now and 1962 could offset the increase
in labor costs during this period. In addition, the companies failed to win sub-
stantial concessions on the work rules issue. But company representatives have
pointed out some of these positive factors which led them to agree to the recom-
mended settlement.
1. The amount they settled for was lower than any offer they had been
able to get from the union during the cour se of their negotiations up to that time.
2. It was less than 1/2 of the post-war pattern in wage-benefit increases
in the steel industry, For example, in the last steel contract the wage-benefit
increase was 81¢ for three years as compared with 41¢ for thirty months on
this occasion.
3. As Conrad Cooper, the chief negotiator for the companies has stated,
the amount of this settlement was 30% less in company costs than would have
been the case had the Can, Aluminum and Kaiser patterns been applied to steel.
In other words, this settlement rather than setting off a new pattern of higher
wage increases was actually lower than the pattern in wage settlements already
established in 1959 and checked, rather than increased, the so-called "ripple"
of increased wage costs.
4. The cost of living escalator provision, which had resulted in a 17¢
wage increase over the three years of the previous contract, was finally limited
in this contract to a maximum of 6¢ over thirty months. In addition, it is pro-
vided that if the insurance costs which the company has assumed under the con-
tract prove to be greater than the amount estimated, the excess costs will be
deducted from any cost of living increases which may have accrued.
A basic question which many have raised is whether a better result in
the end would have been achieved had the Secretary and I not offered our good
offices for mediation of the dispute at this time. This, of course, is a matter
of judgment on which there can be an honest disagreement of opinion. I can only
indicate my own appraisal as to what would have happened had we not acted as
we did.
In my opinion, the price the union would have insisted upon would inevi-
tably have gone up rather than down. It seems only logical to conclude that after
the union had won an overwhelming victory rejecting the companies' last offer
they would have insisted on an even higher settlement than they accepted at the
present time. I also believe that if the parties had failed to agree after the
union rejected the companies' last offer and the President, as required by law,
had submitted the dispute to Congress any government-imposed settlement that
the Congress would have brought about through compulsory arbitration, plant
seizure or some other government device, would have been higher than the one
agreed upon at this point.
- 4 -
I recognize that there are those who have suggested that it would have
been better in the long run to allow the issue to go to the Congress so that the
Congress could meet head-on the whole question of too much power in the hands
of the union as well as management. I can only say that any objective observer
would have to agree that there could be nothing more irresponsible than to place
before the Congress in an election year the complicated and potentially explosive
issue of labor-management relations.
In my opinion, the result would not only have been a government-imposed
settlement of this dispute but a real possibility of the enactment of permanent
legislation which would have provided for some form of government-imposed
compulsory arbitration in all major labor disputes. I don't need to tell you that
government arbitration means government wage fixing and that government wage
fixing inevitably means government price fixing. Once we get into this vicious
circle not only collective bargaining but the productive private enterprise sys-
tem, as we know it, is doomed.
I would be the last to contend that there could not be honest differences
of opinion as to the wisdom of the course of action the Secretary and I followed
in mediating this dispute. But after weighing all the factors involved, we con-
cluded that our failure to do everything possible to bring about a voluntary settle-
ment at this time would have been highly detrimental to the public interest.
As Chairman of the Cabinet Committee on Price Stability for Economic
Growth, I am acutely aware of the dangers of inflation which can arise from
wage increases that consistently exceed increases in productivity. But on the
plus side it should be noted that while the wage-benefit increase was greater
than the companies wanted to pay, this was the first contract since the war in
which the increase was such that the companies did not find it necessary to
increase prices at the time the contract went into force. Whether price
increases can be avoided in the future will depend to a great extent upon how
the union and the companies carry out the President's injunction in his State of
the Union message that
"the national interest demands that in the period
of industrial peace which has been assured by the new contract, both manage-
ment and labor make every possible effort to increase efficiency and productiv-
ity in the manufacture of steel so that price increases can be avoided."
Incidentally, I believe that one of the constructive results of the long
fight the companies made on the work rule issue was that it focused nationwide
attention on the critical necessity of increasing our efficiency and productivity
if we are to maintain our competitive position in the world.
As I told the representatives of the major companies and the union at a
dinner in my home after the settlement, the people of the country will not
tolerate another massive struggle of this type in the steel industry. Their
interest, as well as that of the country at large, will be at stake as they explore
every possible means of increasing productivity, reducing costs, and improving
relations between union and management during the period of this contract.
- 5 -
For my part, I intend to continue my studies of this problem with a
view to determining what legislative action might be taken which would provide
better protection for the public interest in the settlement of labor-management
disputes and at the same time not impair the basic strength of our private
enterprise economy.
With every good wish,
Sincerely,
(signed)
Richard Nixon