The Stourbridge Observer, Cradley Heath, Halesowen & District Chronicle.
Stourbridge, West Midlands, England, 1879-01-11 00:00:00

THE LABOUR QUESTION.

A Scottish Employer" writes to The Times:—

Sir,—lt were well for all that the leader in The Times of
Saturday should be pondered by our workmen. Till they
are convinced that it is for their own interest to work 57f
hours instead uf 54, there will never be peace. Victory may
rest with the masters now, but the moment trade revives
the battle will he renewed.

The men cmnot see that if markets are overstocked it
will do good to increase production. They think fewer
hours of labour and less "output 'S the way to cure the
trouble. The fewer hours men work and the less werk
doue the better: more men will be required and the value
of labour will rise. This is the firm belief of nine out of
ten workmen.

To The Times we are much indebted for directing the
attention of the men to the cost of unproductive plant.
This is the kernel of the labour question. The moment it is
fairly understood this strife will end, for it can be proved
that it is the money interest of every workman to make the
plant he uses as productive as he possibly can.
There is a point, as you justly show, when overtaxed
labour becomes less productive ; but it is very doubtful if
the addidon of half an hour to the workirg day will cause
that point to be exceeded.. It is not only the short time, it
Is the short work during the time which is doing the mischief.
Since every workman Is impressed with the belief that
the less he can do the better for his class, lie cannot he
expected to produce more th in he can help. This error
powerfully tends to hinder and hamper all who wish to see
costly plant made as productive as possible. The effect of
restricted production is to cause far too much capital to be
spent in plant. In a good time and for a little this pays,
but the moment the trade is slack thousands who should
never have been in that industry are idle and capital is lost,
for costly plant is valueless.
This error of the men not only favours foreign competi-
tion, but tends powerfully to create competition here. The
coal and iron and textile industries are all suffezing at this
moment from this root error.

If this be so, the moral degradation and Toes of health
from idleness and want are far greater than half an hour's
extra labour would occasion. Besides while hundreds are
idle at the gate the men at work cannot fail in many cases
to suffer from the tyranny of masters so disposed. To make
plant productive is the true way to profit. Profit is the
only source of wages. No strike can extort wages from a
master who is making no gain.
Lst workmen consider the effects of going short time
Suppose the hours reduced from 60 per week to 30, for the
sake of making the result more easily seen. The effect is
in the same proportion where the reduction is from 61
to 54-
.. 430

SIXTY Hot-R WORE.
Cost of plant and Axed charges ..
Wages per week • •

Total cost „ „ .. £9O
Two weeks of SO hours each would be required to do as
much work as one week of 60 hours; therefore :
Two weeks at .£3O .• .. £6O
Two weeks' wages, paying for hours wrought
same as under the 60 hour week .. .. 60
.. £l2O
30

Cost of the two short weeks ..
Llss .. • . .•

In other word; a rumufacturer going full time could sell
his productions for £9O without lose, while the other going
short would not be able to take an order under £l2O.

Sir, I again thank you for directing attention to this
questiun of idle Vant. It is, as I have said, the kernel of
the labour difficulty. The men do not undeistard it; till
they do we shall have trouble. Let men who can put the
question fairly do so, for it will need much pains to uproot
the belief so firmly held by working men—that the fewer
hours they work and the less they do in the time the better
for them.