The labor world., 1899-05-13
1.-THE WAGE QUESTION:
Shorter Workday Must
Come to Take Care 81 I'm
employed.
A WRITER in one of the local
~ papers, recently remarked that 4
BY D. A. Petre.

A WRITER in one of the local
~ papers, recently remarked that
" when good times and prosperity.
were prevalent in the land that strikes
were more plentiful; and drew the
deduction that. the working classes
sought to reap advantage over their
prosperous employers by demanding
higher wages. To most minds train
ed to ordinary logic, this writer never
stated a greater truism. No one with
an ounce of brains and disposition
to do what is right, will question the
right of employees to expect corre-
spending advance. in wages when by
the natural condition Of increased dee
mand for labor the products Of fac
tories have advanced in value due to 1
their effort. Under the law of supply
and demand the average employer
would increase or diminish his labor
ers or else reduce the pay roll, and its
is reasonable to believe on the other
hand that, when better opportli-S
mites are offered to the employer that
the worker should enjoy a propor-sg
tional increase in his wages; and
when he is refused natural right ,s
discomfort is sure to follow. But the !
average working man, does not grasp
the situation at all; he has got to bear
in mind that competition regulates
not only prices of eommo odities. but
also the value Of a days work. 81
will now see how this is brought
about, Notwithstanding the fact that
times may be better, and that the
working man considers himself 81 en-S
titled to higher wages. It must be-
borne in mind that under the present
system of labor-saving machinery and.
the condensation of business enter
prises, which we call trusts, that hum
dfeds of thousands of men and wc-
men are being driven off the farm.
out of the workshop, and from the e5s
various business concerns of the coln-
try. It is easy, therefore, to UNDER.
stand that with a vast army Of peo-Il
pie unemployed, looking for the other
fellows job, that the problem Of rais-ss
ing wages is one of difficult solution.
Even if all the men employed and ,lilsss il NJ
were to belong to auni0nsS
and agree to work for only one wage
rate, it is easy to see that not al 81;
them could obtain employment, when
there are not positions to fll; the idle
men would soon quit the union, and
again become competitors, becausc
they would have to live somehow, So I#S
think it will become plain to most men
that competition will never raise Wagg-f
es, or anything else. What working
men need to do in order to raise wages
or even keep them where they are.
and give employment to all, would be-
to advocate shorter working hours.
We cannot think of curtailing produc-
tior. SO long as the demand remains,
neither can we destroy or cease to
manufacture machinery, but we can
by shortening a days work turn out
just as many wares, affording an op-
portunity for larger number Of er-ss
forced idlers to gain an honest liyeli;-
hood. No man working for himself is Il
going to be fool enough to spend teii
hours at job when by a little thought
and better facilities be can do it. in
eight hours: neither will a manufnc-
turer employ ten men to complete aS
certain work when he can buy a ma
chine and accomplish the same result
with just two men. When people will
learn to distinguish the difference be-
tween demand and competition
they will look at the wage question
from a different standpoint. But un-
der a system of shorter hours and
constant employment we would do
away largely with the idea of compe-
tition, and arrive closer to a plan OF 4
cooperation which would tend to do
away with strikes and lock-outs. To
further extend this line of argument
however, would be launching out into
the heresy of socialistic thought ESQ
much to be dreaded) which Is Seems
ingly getting grip in our own coun-9;
try, so for the present we will medi-
tate.