Dear George: What I am trying to say below is not to be interpreted as any effort to inject the government into the current strike situation in the steel industry.1 I merely have put together in my own mind a "formula" that makes sense to me. Admittedly I have no intimate acquaintanceship with the steel business, but I do necessarily study daily a whole list of reports and I do have a good many indications of differing convictions and opinions which have induced me to set forth the bare bones of what would seem to be fair to everybody.
1. A firm agreement for correction of local labor practices which do not seem to accord with the need for efficiency and fairness.2
2. To give the average worker about six cents raise an hour either in the form of fringe benefits or in cash. While the pattern of increases for all industry so far this year has been on the order of a nine cents an hour minimum, yet the statistics show that the steel workers have been somewhat ahead of the average, and a six cent raise would seem to be somewhat fairer.3
3. To give the public some slight benefit arising out of the high steel income by granting a reduction, say, of about $2 per ton. This would have, in my opinion, a more salutary effect in keeping down inflation than the mere announcement of a "hold the line" policy.4
This letter needs no answer or acknowledgment--indeed I hope you will do nothing but read and consider it merely as an honest personal opinion of my own, based upon such information as I can obtain and the interpretations that I make of the facts. I rather feel that neither side would accept such a suggestion, which could be some evidence that it at least has some minimum value.5
Give my love to Pam, As ever
P.S. Do not answer.
