Word: steel
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Dates: during 1960-1969
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...During steel's last labor negotiations three years ago, a national strike was averted only by the Johnson Administration's last-minute intervention. Brought to the White House to bargain, the two sides finally agreed on wage increases amounting to 3.7% a year. Since then, however, Steelworkers have seen those gains largely wiped out by an 8.8% jump in consumer prices. With living costs still climbing, the union is now seeking, as Vice President Joseph P. Molony puts it, "whopping" wage increases...
Poor Lighting. Steel companies have experienced economic problems of their own. Hurt by the cost of new equipment, competition from foreign imports, and the slowdown of the economy during last year's first half, most steelmakers suffered sharp earnings declines in 1967. Sales of United States Steel Corp., the industry leader, dropped 8% to $4.07 billion; profits were down by 31% to $172.5 million. Business at most companies has perked up in recent months, but that is partly because of customer stockpiling in anticipation of a strike. Inventories built up by steel users now stand at 30 million tons...
...industry is particularly concerned about inroads made by foreign steelmakers, which have increased their share of the U.S. market from 12.5% last year to an anticipated 15% in 1968. One advantage for foreign companies, particularly Japanese, is lower labor costs. In the early 1950s, U.S. steel companies paid $2 an hour more in wages and fringe benefits than their Japanese counterparts. Today, with the average steelworker receiving wages and benefits totaling $4.93 an hour, the gap has grown to about...
Serious & Difficult. In the aftermath of the aluminum settlement, that industry's leaders, Alcoa, Reynolds and Kaiser, promptly raised prices by 4% on primary ingots as well as a number of fabricated products. A hefty settlement in the current negotiations, similarly, is almost sure to result in steel price increases, which will make it even more difficult for U.S. steelmakers to compete against foreign companies. The union contends that the best way to combat the problem is by imposing quotas on steel imports, but that solution, obviously favored by the companies as well, runs afoul of the Administration...
...steel price rise, by increasing costs for automakers and other durable-goods manufacturers, would also aggravate the very inflation that the union is using as a bargaining point. On the other hand, a prolonged strike would both slow down the economy and hinder the Viet Nam war effort. In view of that, it is possible that Washington may once again intervene in steel negotiations when the deadline approaches. Meanwhile, says Chief Industry Negotiator R. Conrad Cooper, a U.S. Steel executive vice president, "I see very, very serious and difficult problems ahead...