CHAPTER &,3 WAGES, WORKING HOURS, AND OVERTIME In making a determination of the wage structure necessary to cover the many classifications of personnel required on the Project, numerous factors had to be considered, To be in position in a competitive labor market to recruit sufficient personnel for the Project's requirements made it imperative that a wage structure be established to meet all contingencies, The original wage schedules were established and approved by the ABC following an extensive review of wage rates existing throughout the Pacific Ocean Area and California, In analyzing various wage schedules, every benefit set forth was considered, including the hourly rates, the scheduled work week, vacation provision, sick leave provision, etc, A review of existing wage schedules revealed many standard provisions as well as specific provisions to provide for the many ramifications of specific projects, A number of the wage schedules examined provided for the payment of accrued vacation leave; others provided for the payment of an incentive bonus, and still others provided various benefits including free subsistence, insurance, wage differential, etc. Projects in the Pacific Ocean Area operating under jurisdiction of Western Ocean Division were permitted to grant ten per cent "incentive" increase to employees who had completed one year of service, In setting up a wage structure, full consideration had to be, and was given the many provisions of other wage structures and the competition faced in the recruitment of adequate manpower, In promulgating the overseas wage schedules H & N made every effort to adopt wage rates con=sidered the minimum that would permit H & N to meet Jobsite personnel requirements, The wage schedules as adopted and approved by AEC in 1949 represented a compromise between the Los Angeles American Federation of Labor wage schedules and those prevalent in the Pacific Ocean Area, The hourly rates established were comparable to those approved by the Joint ArmyNavy Wage Board but were approximately forty cents per hour below the rates recognized by the Los Angeles A F of L and also were lower than the rates established for projects in Greece, Arabia and Alaska, It was recognized that some benefit provision would have to be provided in lieu of accrued vacations, free subsistence, etc., as an incentive for contract completion at the isolated location of the Project. It was finally agreed that the payment of an incentive bonus for contract completion was the type of provision that would at least match the various benefits offered on other overseas construction jobs when taken together with the $10.50 weekly subsistence charge. On this basis, a completion of contract bonus providing for the payment of an additional sum of $25.00 per week for manual employees and a sum equal to 20 per cent of the gross base salary or $25.00 per week, whichever was the greater, to nonmanual employees was incorporated in the approved wage schedules, 8-11