intervention. These have included renewals of contracts covering vital AEC operations in Hanford, Chicago, Miamisburg, and Brookhaven.

In November 1950, the President appointed three additional members to the Panel. They are: Frank P. Douglass, Oklahoma City attorney and former chairman of the National Mediation Board; John T. Dunlop, Harvard University professor and heretofore a consultant to the Panel; and Godfrey P. Schmidt, New York City attorney. The appointment of new members was made at the Panel's request to expedite the handling of critical problems that arise on short notice. It is expected that in the future, the Panel chairman will designate one or more Panel members to serve in a particular dispute.

PROGRAM SECURITY AND LABOR-MANAGEMENT

RELATIONS

The security requirements of the program as applied to the field of labor relations raise some other problems. The overriding responsibility of the Commission for protecting the security of the program has led to situations which contradict normal collective bargaining practices. The Commission must retain final authority in the area of security. It has attempted to carry out this responsibility with the least possible interference in normal collective bargaining. Nevertheless, the security of the program remains the paramount consideration. Loyalty of union officials. Consistent with the Atomic Energy Act and the Labor Management Relations Act of 1947, it is the settled policy of the Atomic Energy Commission that atomic energy facilities be operated in a manner best calculated to assure that those who participate in the program are loyal to the United States. This policy is specifically intended to include persons having line responsibility in respect to collective bargaining whether or not any access to retricted data or areas is involved.

Ordinarily, no access is involved in the upper ranks of union representation but line responsibility for contract administration is present. In such cases, the statutory requirement of full FBI investigation and clearance by AEC is not applicable and has not as a general practice been resorted to. However, if information is available concerning alleged Communist affiliation or association of union officers who are in a position where they exercise administrative, negotiating or disciplinary authority over employees on classified atomic energy work, the Atomic Energy Commission will review the situation, offer the union officials an opportunity to clear up the matter, and will take such steps as may be appropriate to improve the situation.

In 1948, when a serious question of loyalty to the United States arose in respect to certain officials of the United Electrical Workers, then affiliated with the CIO, the General Electric Co. was directed to cease recognizing the union as representative of atomic energy workers in Schenectady. The union officials were not themselves employees of the contractor, but they did exercise authority over employees and it was therefore considered that a threat to the security of the pro

gram might exist. (This action was reported in AEC's Fifth Semiannual Report.1)

Security and NLRB activities. One of the recommendations of the President's Commission was that "management and labor at Government-owned, privately operated atomic energy installations make every endeavor to determine bargaining units and representatives by agreement and consent elections in preference to contested proceedings before the National Labor Relations Board." This is the kind of procedure NLRB uses when the parties can agree regarding such matters as the definition of the bargaining unit and the time and place of the election. When there is no agreement, the formal procedure is used, including a public hearing with a decision by the NLRB and direction of election.

Hearings of this sort are normally open to the public, as is the record of the hearing. When atomic energy cases first were allowed to come before the board, secrecy was insisted upon. By September 1948, however, the Atomic Energy Commission had worked out methods for holding these hearings in a normal way, open to the public, without endangering security.

A panel of NLRB trial examiners has been cleared for access to classified material so that if it is alleged that information needed to support a position is classified, the trial examiner can talk privately with the party making this allegation, consider the materiality of the information and explore fully whether it can be presented in unclassified form. A representative of the Commission attends the hearings to assist on security questions. With the exception of these safeguards, the hearings now are carried out just as in any other industry and it has been possible for the NLRB to make its determinations without any classified material whatever coming into the open hearings.

Questions of preventing publication of restricted data are avoided in NLRB consent procedures, as recommended by the Panel, but some problems do arise. Union representatives not employed in the plants ordinarily represent employees in conferences where consent procedures are discussed. These representatives may not have received security clearance. It has sometimes been necessary to defer discussion of certain matters for separate conferences between employee and management representatives who have had security clearance. Bargaining representatives have objected to this since it deprives them of the skill and experience of paid union representatives. Similar questions have arisen concerning security clearance of company and union attorneys in legal proceedings. The Commission is still examining this problem and endeavoring to work out improved procedures which will permit the maximum freedom of collective bargaining without endangering security.

In most cases, however, negotiations can be completed without referring to such "classified" material.

Mediators cleared. The assistant director of the Federal Mediation and Conciliation Service has received full investigation and security

'Fifth Semiannual Report "Atomic Energy Development 1947-1948," Superintendent of Documents, Washington 25, D. C., 45 cents.

clearance. Sometimes it has been necessary to disclose classified information to him so that he could decide the proper instructions to give his conciliators. One or two commissioners regularly assigned to cases at larger atomic energy installations, also have been cleared. Contract problems. Problems of maintenance of secrecy arise in many forms in connection with contract administration. For example, the number of union stewards may be influenced by the degree of compartmentalization in the plant, and by security restrictions on the movement of employees within the plant. Normal channels for appeal of grievances may be modified to observe such security compartments. In general, problems arising from compartmentalization have not proved too troublesome.

Normally, labor contracts provide for arbitration of disputes arising out of interpretation or application of the contract. Early in the administration of the program, labor contracts specified that arbitrators would be chosen by the Government agency having jurisdiction. A small panel of arbitrators was investigated and cleared at Oak Ridge and such a panel is still available in cases where classified information is involved. Many proceedings are carried on before uncleared arbitrators because no questions of classified information arise. REIMBURSEMENT OF LABOR EXPENSE OF COST-TYPE CONTRACTORS

In its administration of the labor expense of cost-type contractors, the Commission has a double responsibility:

a) To assure that employment conditions—including salaries, wages, and such benefits as vacations, pensions and similar benefits-are adequate to attract and hold a well qualified work force throughout the industry. Vigorous research and production programs depend on success in this effort.

b) To assure that tax money is prudently spent in meeting the industry's payroll.

When the AEC assumed its responsibility for the industry in 1947, it continued the procedures used by the Manhattan Engineer Districtprior review and approval of all contractor's wage, salary and benefit schedules which the Government reimbursed. Applying the recommendations of the various advisory groups, as reported previously, the Commission on April 29, 1949 announced its policy on labor expense in the "Interim Statement of the AEC in Respect to its Role in Labor-Management Relations at Atomic Energy Installations." 5 This policy was specifically directed to matters of labor costs arising out of collective bargaining, but it applies equally to the whole area of labor costs for AEC cost contractors. It defines the Commission responsibility and stresses normal development of labor-management relationships.

In announcing its policy of minimum supervision over contractors consistent with fulfilling its own responsibilities, the Commission

Complete text in Appendix 12, Sixth Semiannual Report, Superintendent of Documents, Washington 25, D. C., 45 cents.

agreed to issue a statement which would substitute general principles for close supervision, which would establish guides to contractors and employee organizations, and provide a framework within which wages, salary and benefit schedules could be worked out with reasonable assurance of AEC approval. This policy was being worked out in late 1950.

Services To Curb Accidents And Fires

The prevention of fires and accidents is of greater than ordinary importance in the atomic energy program, not only because of the key role of the industry in national security, but also because of special hazards connected with the atomic energy operations. In the Atomic Energy Act of 1946, the Congress specifically charged the Atomic Energy Commission with taking necessary steps to protect life and property from hazards arising out of its work.

Protection of people, financial savings and protection of invaluable production and other facilities are not the sole objectives of the safety effort. Labor and employer relations benefit, better morale and greater productivity often result.

7

The AEC's Eighth Semiannual Report to the Congress sets forth many of the unique problems that arise within the industry from activities such as the production of fissionable materials and laboratory research in the field; it states the methods that have been applied in the successful control of the large-scale handling of radioactive materials and the attendant hazards. Less novel, but nevertheless extremely important, is the problem of preventing losses from more ordinary types of hazards and accidents-electricity and falls, motor vehicle accidents and burns. Fire prevention takes on a special significance when the safety of unique equipment is involved, or where flames may release radioactive materials.

Each of the contractors through whom the Atomic Energy Commission carries out its work has a responsibility for carrying out its operations safely. The AEC stipulates the standards that are to be complied with, assists in safety engineering and fire prevention planning, maintains records for comparison and evaluation of occurrences of accidents or fires, investigates serious mishaps, provides advisory

Throughout the Atomic Energy Act of 1946, there are provisions relating to safety and the protection of health in the atomic energy program. Examples of such provisions are the following:

SEC. 3. (a) The Commission is authorized and directed to make arrangements for the conduct of research and development activities relating to-(5) the protection of health during research and production activities

Such arrangement shall contain such provisions to protect health, to minimize danger from explosion and other hazards to life or property,

SEC. 4. (c) (2) (Production of Fissionable Materials): Any contract entered into under this section shall contain provisions obligating the contractor. . . to comply with all

safety and security regulations which may be prescribed by the Commission.

SEC. 5. (a) (4) The Commission shall not distribute any material to any applicant, and shall recall any distributed material from any applicant, who is not equipped to observe or who fails to observe such safety standards to protect health and to minimize danger from explosion or other hazard to life or property as may be established by the Commission. SEC. 5. (c) (2) The Commission shall not distribute any byproduct material to any applicant, who is not equipped to observe or who fails to observe such safety standards to protect health as may be established by the Commission

SEC. 12. (a) In the performance of its functions, the Commission is authorized to(2) establish by regulation or order such standards and instructions to govern the possessions and use of fissionable and byproduct materials as the Commission may deem necessary or desirable to protect health or to minimize danger from explosions and other hazards to life or property:

"Control of Radiation Hazards in the Atomic Energy Programs," Superintendent of Documents, Washington 25, D. C., 55 cents.

services and, through the staff of its operations offices, supervises the contractors' fulfillment of required standards.

During the years 1947-50, inclusive, 29 fatal accidents occurred in all operations of the Commission from the ordinary type of industrial and construction accident. During that period, no fatalities from radiation were reported.

Since 1943, an estimated savings of 17 million dollars was accomplished by fire prevention, since the loss was that much below what it would have been had national averages of losses occurred in atomic energy installations.

In 1949, three major AEC contractors earned National Safety Council Awards for Distinguished Services to Safety and two received the Joseph A. Holmes Safety Association (U. S. Bureau of Mines) Award for excellent safety performance. The three AEC communities, Los Alamos, N. Mex.; Oak Ridge, Tenn.; and Richland, Wash., have been given recognition for various outstanding performances in activities such as traffic control, fire prevention, school safety, traffic law enforcement, and pedestrian protection from such organizations as the National Safety Council, National Fire Protective Association, U. S. Chamber of Commerce, International Association of Chiefs of Police, and American Automobile Association.

The contractors performing the work for the Commission have built a tradition of accident prevention based upon pre-evaluation of the hazards and experience from past losses. As atomic energy operations are introduced to industry, the work done during this development stage should provide a ground work which will help make their operations safe.

SAFETY SERVICES

Contracts contain clauses requiring that contractors carry out their work without danger to employees and to the public. Standard contract provisions for safe operations are included in research and construction contracts. Operations contracts contain clauses, negotiated to fit the conditions of the particular operating agreement. The construction contract safety clause refers to guides and regulations for minimum safety provision in buildings, construction, equipment, and practices. Essentially these are the same standards developed by the American Standards Association, Bureau of Standards, National Safety Council, National Fire Protection Association, and other national standardizing bodies.

The nationally accepted American Standards Association method of reporting and compiling personal injury rates which evaluates the need for accident prevention work is followed in order to be consistent with industry in general. Similarly, motor vehicle accident records are maintained in line with national practices for industry and municipalities. AEC makes periodic audits of the records of its offices and contractors to insure uniform application of these standards, and as a basis for developing corrective recommendations.

The Commission requires investigation of all serious accidents to be submitted directly to the General Manager. The development of programs is also encouraged by personal contact in the every-day dealings between management and contract personnel. Exchange