PRODUCTION IN U.S.

Southland Times, Issue 24821, 13 August 1942, Page 5

PRODUCTION IN U.S.

Reported Shortages Of Materials

(Sec. 6.30 p.m.) WASHINGTON, August 11. At a Press conference President Roosevelt was asked many questions about lagging war production, particularly about the threatened shutdown of 1000 war plants because of shortages of materials. The President replied that he would have to ask the Army, the Navy and Mr Donald Nelson (chairman of the War Production Board) before authentication of the report was possible. A reporter: What would you think or a union steward in a war plant who deliberately told a worker to produce less than a fair day’s work? . Mr Roosevelt wanted to know who had done that. The reporter replied that it had happened in Flint and Muskegon (Michigan). Mr Roosevelt suggested that the questioner dig up the facts and names, whereupon he would look into the matAnother reporter asked the_ President’s opinion on various wild cat strikes, which were occurring almost daily, although they were opposed by union officers. “Where?,” Mr Roosevelt asked. The reporter replied: “There was one yesterday in a Pittsburgh steel mill.’ Asked if he had seen the War Labour Board statement the treason laws might have to be invoked if jurisdictional strikes continued, Mr Roosevelt asked for further particulars. Asked about a conference on the stabilization of wages in aircraft plants IjL-AkSTALINGRAP- miles

which had fizzled out, Mr Roosevelt said he had not heard anything of it. According to a spokesman of the War Production Board, aircraft production in the United States may not reach the President’s goal of 60,000 planes this year, but it will come close to it. The spokesman said that he believed that the flow of aircraft .would reach. 8000 a month by the end of the year to balance the lower production earlier. The spokesman said that America’s outlook was good for achieving the ship-building goal for 1942 of 10,000,000 tons, although building was somewhat behind'schedule. The situation in regard to tanks, where the goal is 45,000 machines, was the same.