LABOR: Kokomo's Count

The moment U.S. arms manufacturers began to step up their operations to Franklin Roosevelt's 168-hour week, they ran into the most discouraging shortage of all: skilled labor. A spotty reality for months, it became serious when key industries like machine tool manufacture tried to add a third and fourth shift. In many cases foremen, lead men and supervisors have had to work 70 hours a week to keep things going.

Direct war industries, figures OPM, now employ 4,000,000 workers, by June will employ 6,000,000, by June 1943, 9,000,000. Of these, only 25%...

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