The Wage Stabilization Board was set up by President Harry Truman within the United States Department of Labor

United States Department of Labor

The United States Department of Labor is a Cabinet department of the United States government responsible for occupational safety, wage and hour standards, unemployment insurance benefits, re-employment services, and some economic statistics. Many U.S. states also have such departments. The...

, in December 1945, to take over the work of the National War Labor Board

National War Labor Board

The National War Labor Board was a federal agency created in April 1918 by President Woodrow Wilson. It was composed of twelve representatives from business and labor, and co-chaired by Former President William Howard Taft. Its purpose was to arbitrate disputes between workers and employers in...

. It was replaced by another board of the same name in September 1950, and abolished at the end of April 1953.

It handled disputes about wages and job conditions in fields essential to national defense; it was most active during the Korean War

Korean War

The Korean War was a conventional war between South Korea, supported by the United Nations, and North Korea, supported by the People's Republic of China , with military material aid from the Soviet Union...