DOUGLAS UNITED NUCLEAR, INC., Subject: Confirmation hearing, Arthur A. Fletcher, Assistant Secretary of Labordesignate for Wage and Labor Standards Administration for the U.S. Department of Labor. Hon. RALPH YARBOROUGH, Chairman, Committee on Labor and Public Welfare, U.S. Senate, Washington, D.C. DEAR SENATOR: Since it is most likely that Mr. Arthur A. Fletcher, Assistant Secretary of Labor-designate, will appear before your committee sometime this month, may I submit to you from my personal associations with him a number of his outstanding qualities and achievements. From June 1967 to July 1968, Mr. Fletcher was employed as a personnel specialist with Douglas United Nuclear, Inc., Richland, Wash. While in our employ he also served as a special consultant on personnel matters to the Atomic Energy Commission and other prime contractors at this AEC facility. His responsibilities were broad-including individual counseling with all levels of management, development implementation of recruitment programs, and preemployment and postemployment counseling as all such functions were related to the minority groups. In addition he prepared and presented programs at supervisory and managerial information meetings that were oriented toward understanding the minority group employee. In these areas of responsibility he demonstrated an ability to be frank, to be understood, and to gain the confidence and cooperation of our managerial personnel. Mr. Fletcher developed and promoted to a successful implementation the Tri City Area (Richland, Pasco, and Kennewick, Wash.) Merit Employment Council. The council membership includes both small business and large industrial employers, educators, and representatives from labor organizations in this area. Through the merit employment council and other civic organizations, his success in relating to major employers the need and resulting benefits of fair employment practices has been very beneficial to employee and employer relations. As chairman of the steering committee and later following incorporation, as acting chairman of the board, I was able to judge the unusual capability of Art Fletcher to understand not only the problems of minority people but also the adjustment problems of management. He was able to obtain full and enthusiastic support of the small business and industrial leaders of the community and yet provide significant progress toward the solution of problems of the minority groups. This included not only the initial employment stage but also later stages of retention and promotion through education of all levels of management to create a proper working environment. The Tri City Area Merit Employment Council as conceived and then implemented by Art Fletcher was, I believe, somewhat unique relative to similar organizations elsewhere in the Nation. Rather than have the members of the council assume a knowledge of the problems of the community and then implement programs, Mr. Fletcher's approach was one of initially using the council as a listening body for some 40 organizations including CORE and NAACP as they presented through hearings their definitions of the problems. At the conclusion of the hearings, the inputs from the various outside organizations were then carefully examined and specific programs organized to satisfy the real needs. The success of the merit employment council that we are presently experiencing in the tri city area today can be experienced on a national level if the proper man can be placed at the helm. I believe Art Fletcher is such a man. Both before and during Mr. Fletcher's employment with Douglas United Nuclear, I followed with considerable interest his personal project of developing and promoting the first successful self-help co-op in the State of Washington. This project, which basically iucludes a complete shopping center in Pasco, Wash., was of so much interest to State and National political leaders that he was requested to present the project plans in detail to the platform committee at last summer's National Republican Convention. On July 1, 1968, Mr. Fletcher was granted a leave of absence from Douglas United Nuclear to campaign for Lieutenant Governor of the State of Washington. Without the benefit of an established political organization, he failed being elected by the narrowest margin. It is interesting to note that during his political campaign he received solid voter support from the white community. While employed by Douglas United Nuclear, Mr. Fletcher worked closely with me on several other company and community projects. In these associations I found him to be honest, understanding, an outstanding leader, and most adept at relating his ideas to others. He is also sound of judgment and a self-starter with an abundance of talent and energy. Due to these many favorable characteristics and his ability to place needed action in motion, it is my firm conviction that the Department of Labor will be rewarded by Mr. Arthur A. Fletcher's confirmation as Assistant Secretary of Labor. Yours very truly, TRI CITIES AREA MERIT EMPLOYMENT COUNCIL, Re confirmation hearing, Arthur A. Fletcher, Assistant Secretary of Labordesignate for Wage and Labor Standards Administration for the U.S. Department of Labor. Hon. RALPH YARBOROUGH, Chairman, Committee on Labor and Public Welfare, U.S. Senate, Washington, D.C. DEAR SIR: A resolution adopted unanimously by the board of directors of the Tri Cities Merit Employment Council is enclosed herewith which we respectfully request be considered in the deliberations confirming Mr. Arthur Fletcher's appointment to the position of Assistant Secretary of Labor for Wage and Labor Standards Administration of the U.S. Department of Labor. Very truly yours, BEN PHILLIPS, Chairman. TRI CITIES AREA MERIT EMPLOYMENT COUNCIL BOARD OF DIRECTORS' RESOLUTION No. 1 The board of directors at its regular meeting on April 9, 1969, unanimously adopted the following resolution: Whereas President Nixon has appointed Mr. Arthur Fletcher to the position of Assistant Secretary of Labor for Wage and Labor Standards Administration of the U.S. Department of Labor; and Whereas this Board is cognizant of Mr. Fletcher's activities, endeavors and accomplishments during his years in this area, including his connection with Higher Horizons project, East Pasco Self-Help Cooperative, merit employment council, Pasco City Council, Hanford (AEC) contractors; and Whereas Mr. Fletcher is highly regarded for his unquestioned integrity, for his boundless energy so well directed, for his high ideals, for his capability in developing ideas and prosecuting them to fulfillment, and for his talent in working with people at all levels; and Whereas this board has great confidence in Mr. Fletcher's ability and believe him to be eminently qualified for the position of Assistant Secretary of Labor for Wage and Labor Standards Administration of the U.S. Department of Labor: Now, therefore, be it Resolved, That the chairman of the board and the president of the Tri Cities Merit Employment Council be authorized and instructed to write appropriate letters urging Mr. Fletcher's confirmation. Adopted by the board of directors of the Tri City Merit Employment Council this 9th day of April 1969. H. L. LEONE, President. ATLANTIC RICHFIELD HANFORD CO., Re confirmation hearing, Arthur A. Fletcher, Assistant Secretary of Labordesignate for Wage and Labor Standards Administration for the U.S. Department of Labor. Hon. RALPH YARBOROUGH, Chairman, Committee on Labor and Public Welfare, U.S. Senate, Washington, D.C. MY DEAR SENATOR: It has been brought to my attention that Mr. A. A. Fletcher's confirmation hearing is to be held at 10 a.m., Tuesday, April 15. For your information, Mr. Fletcher has been a well-benefited citizen to the Tri Cities area. It has been my privilege of knowing and being acquainted with Art for about 21⁄2 years. During that period, he has made many accomplishments which this area can continually profit from. Upon my arrival to the Tri Cities, Art was deeply involved and greatly concerned with the recruitment and understanding of minorities. Art conducted several noteworthy seminars involving executive level personnel, middle-management, and supervisors on minority problems and how to deal with them. He was also very active in the counseling of individuals both before employment and after employment. In fact, Art was the very first person I met when I came to this area on interview. As a result of his activities with management and employees, many good and influential remarks were made. One high level executive said to me, "Since Art has been going around on the plant conducting these talks, I have really been elated and now better understand the problem." Other statements similar to this have been made which proves that Art has the ability and know-how of working with others and getting them to understand and appreciate what he is saying. One thing which is very important in his job as well as yours and mine is communication and cooperation and I strongly feel that Art possesses both. I strongly recommend him for the position for which he is being considered for. With this in mind, I will await a reply through the news media of his confirmation. Very truly yours, R. L. BEASLEY, Specialist, Manpower Development. The CHAIRMAN. Of course, among these many duties delegated to your position are those relating to health and safety of workers. I introduced a bill in the last Congress, the Occupational Safety and Health Act, and it had strong resistance. We had numerous hearings on it but we were unable to get it acted on in the Senate. There has been a change in the chairmanship of the Labor Subcommittee and I anticipate some bill will be introduced in the not too distant future. There are 75 million industrial workers in America averaging 7 million hurt a year, 2,200,000 of those are injured enough to be classified as disabled for some period of time. Either temporary or permanent or partial total disability. And there were some, I believe, 14,500 killed. We have a terrible record of lack of industrial safety in America. I want you to look with sympathy on that legislation. It is not pending. I don't ask you to express an opinion. But that is one of your duties, as you also know, the Fair Labor Standards Act Minimum Wage Law. You will have jurisdiction over the administration of that law. You will supervise it, though the primary jurisdiction will be under the direction of the Administrator of the wage and hour law whom we will hear next. There are many things that are so important that if we questioned you about all of them, we would have you here the rest of the day and probably tomorrow. There is need for one body in the Federal Government to monitor and identify all of the problems-working and living conditions, problems and needs of workers including the problems of the consumers and to initiate or to get other agencies to initiate appropriate action to deal with these problems and needs. And this Department is to perform this role. The position you are nominated for has an interest and responsibility for equal pay, child labor, safety and occupational health, workmen's compensation, enforcement, practice and research, and to approve the administration and coordination of these activities and insure more capability among the program activities in several bureaus. Have you seen this memorandum yet? Mr. FLETCHER. Yes. The CHAIRMAN. You know what a tremendous job it is that has been assigned to you. It takes in the whole complex of Federal workers in America. You have, I think, one of the most difficult, demanding, exacting, and challenging executive jobs in the Government. Due to the hour and the others that we have, I will not ask some of the things that I had in mind. But I do want to ask your general attitude about the health and safety problems of workers in America, since you have read the memorandum and you have doubtless given that some consideration. Do you have any statement you are prepared to make at this time or do you want to give that more study? Mr. FLETCHER. I am not prepared to make a statement beyond the simple fact we must have tremendous improvement in this area. I am already working with a committee, a House committee at the Labor Department, and we are in the process of drafting our recommendations that will be aimed toward improving the whole business of occupational safety and health in American industry. The CHAIRMAN. I want to ask you one other matter. You have stated here, in answer to a question by Senator Kennedy, that you are familiar with the problems, the job discrimination and other problems of the black community. I want to mention another minority in America, our Spanish speaking, partly Puerto Rican in New York, Cubans in Florida, and primarily Mexican-Americans concentrated along the southern border of the United States from the Gulf of Mexico to the Pacific, who have now spread out to where there are numbers of them in Detroit, Chicago, and other industrial States. Senator KENNEDY. Would the Senator also include Eskimos and Indians? The CHAIRMAN. Yes; I will include Eskimos and Indians. Indeed, the problems of the latter more nearly proximate the problems of the Mexican-Americans than the black Americans, because the black Americans speak English and the Mexican-Americans have a language barrier. They often don't speak English. In my State the average earnings of the Mexican-Americans are far less than the average earnings of the black man, and I want to know if you have given consideration to their problems and will in carrying out these duties? Mr. FLETCHER. I would like to say in response to the language barrier, sometimes they say we black Americans have a language barrier too. I might say, Senator, that the first three manpower projects that were conducted in the State of Washington, the one that was organized and the two that I helped to organize, were those that were the first to train Latin Americans. They are called Latin Americans in the State of Washington. I had a major hand in getting persons there in that State to help the Latin Americans organize the project, help run it, and they sustain it. And in addition to that I have given some help to the problem of the Indians at the Yakima Reservation in Yakima, Wash. So I am familiar with the whole system of manpower development training as it affects minorities. And I might say that I have had the privilege of training some poor whites too. So I just don't conclude or assume that the only ones that need the benefit from the kinds of programs that I have had an opportunity to be involved with or help make decisions are aimed at any one ethnic group. I am talking about making these programs feasible and operational for all Americans to benefit therefor. The CHAIRMAN. In my own State we have a population of 11 million. We have 1,100,000 Negroes, 1,006,000 Mexican-Americans. And we have more poor Anglo-whites in Texas than either Negroes or Latin Americans, simply because there are many more Anglo-whites. And the problem of the poverty stricken is not a problem of any one race, though the problem is accentuated for certain minority races. They have more difficulty in finding employment, in getting the jobs. So I think you have a very difficult position ahead of you. The next witness that we will hear is Mr. Robert D. Moran, who has been appointed to be Administrator of the Wage and Hour Division of the Department of Labor. Senator KENNEDY. Mr. Chairman, I would just like to introduce Mr. Moran to the members of the committee. He has served in Massachusetts, as the record quite clearly shows, in a variety of different capacities. He has been a thoughtful citizen and a concerned citizen and I think his is an extremely worthwhile appointment by the administration. I feel he can fill the responsibilities well, and I want to welcome him to this committee. The CHAIRMAN. Mr. Moran, I have ordered printed at this point in the record your biographical sketch. (The documents referred to follow:) BIOGRAPHY OF ROBERT D. MORAN, NOMINATED TO BE ADMINISTRATOR OF THE WAGE AND HOUR AND PUBLIC CONTRACTS DIVISIONS Born: Brewer, Maine, October 25, 1929. Wife: The former Joan Ellen Leonard, of Washington, D.C. Degrees: B.A., public management, University of Maine, 1950; LL.B., Boston School of Law, 1952; has also done graduate work at Georgetown Law School, The Judge Advocate General's School, American International College, Industrial College of the Armed Forces, and Cornell University. Jobs held: 1952 to present, except for periods of military and government service: Attorney in private practice in Springfield, Mass.; 1954-56: Lawyer on the staffs of the Assistant Secretary of Defense for Manpower and Personnel and the Assistant Secretary of Defense for Legislative and Public Affairs; 1961-66: Public Administrator, Hampden County, Mass.; 1966 to present: Held the three related Commonwealth of Massachusetts posts of Chairman of the Minimum Wage Commission, Chairman of the State Board of Conciliation and Arbitration, and Associate Commissioner of the Department of Labor and Industries. Other positions: 1968 to present: Member, Board of Special Advisors to the American Arbitration Association's New England Plan (for settlement of labor disputes in the public service); 1968 to present: Member, New York State Public Employment Relations Board, Panel of Arbitration; 1968 to present: National Mediation Board, Panel of Arbitrators; 1968 to present: New York City Office of Collective Bargaining. Memberships in professional organizations: Industrial Relations Research Association; Association of Labor Mediation Agencies; Boston Bar Association; Massachusetts Bar Association and the Labor Arbitration Panels Maintained by the Federal Mediation and Conciliation Service; American Arbitration Association. Writings: Author (with others) Massachusetts Municipal Collective Bargaining Manual, Boston College Bureau of Public Affairs, 1968; "State Subsidized Arbitration," October 1968 edition of The Labor Law Journal; "Collective Bargaining in the Public Service," June 1967 edition of Massachusetts Law Quarterly (noted by Supreme Judicial Court of Massachusetts, Medford vs. State Labor Relations Committee, 1968 Mass. A.S. 23). |