The wageworker. (Lincoln, Neb.) 1904-????, 1910-05-27
UNIONS NOT TO BLAME
High Prices Cannot Justly Be
Laid at Their Doors.
KIRBY's STATEMENT REFUTED

Attempt to Saddle the Increased Cost
Of Living on Organized Lahore
Shoulders Fails For Lack Of Proof.
Facts to Consider.
President Kirby Of the Manufacture
ers' association Is reported to have
said In n recent address in the east
that the labor trust (the unionsI is the
principal cause Of high prices because
II increases wages and limits output.
This is the most absurd statement l
have seen regarding the cause of high
prices. writes D. +. Kennedy In the
American Federationist. Mr.. Kirby's
position Is untenable and utterly lack
ing In proof. The farm products have
increased more In price than any other
staple product. but there Is no union
Of farm labor. Cotton has gone sky
ward. and there Is no union Of cotton
producing labor-in fact. 1t Is the
cheapest labor In the country-and ma
chinery Is now used In picking cotton,
which Is still cheaper than the negro
labor.
I.umbermen have no unions. and lum-
Der Is high priced. Woolgrowers and to-
bacco growers have no unions. Their
labor Is cheap from the ground to the
finished product. There Is not single
trust tobacco factory organized. Sugar
uses no union labor.
The furniture industry and the
Standard OIL industry are morgan
ICED. A large part Of the stove foun-
dries are nonunion. and we note the
nonunion stoves are as high priced as
the union product.
On the other hand. we note that the
railroads. interurbans and street cars.
nearly all operated by union men.
have not Increased prices. Steel and
Iron products are decreasing in price.
These are nearly all union made.
Clothing Is nearly all made in nom
union shops. Printing Is nearly all
union. yet papers aud magazines are
cheaper and better than ever. Hats
are nearly all union made. but they
have not increased In price. The build
ings are nearly all built by union la
Dor. and yet the present is one Of the
greatest building eras in our history.
Now. Mr.. Kirby. tell us what you
base your statement on. We admit
there Is one way that the labor trust
may have contributed in a small way
to higher prices. BY raising the stand
ards Of living In the Industrial centers
1t has increased the markets some
what. Unions have enabled hundreds
Of thousands Of workingmen to move
into larger and better homes, and these
homes are better furnished. Music
dealers will tell you they now sell many
pianos to workingmen. They buy IA
greater variety and a better quality Of
food and clothing. But we assume Mr..
Kirby will not find fault with this, for
his organization stands for larger mar
kets. Besides. II it is wrong for labor
to raise the prices Of living by living
better 1t logically follows that 1t Is
wrong for his class to live high and
thereby make larger markets and high
er prices. The 10 per cent increase in
wages is more than made up by the
cheaper methods Of production and the
larger efficiency Of labor.
The labor cost Of factory product
is now only 80 per cent Of the factory
price and only Is per cent of the retail
price. An increase of Is per cent in
wages would amount to less than 2R
per cent increase In the retail price.
This Is more than offset by the i'm
proved methods. AS for the limiting of
output. statistics prove that the union
factories turn out larger per capita
product than ever before. Mr.. Kirby.
the people want facts. not unsubstan-
tiated statements. II the statements
herein are not true we invite any one
to refute them.