The mirror. (Stillwater, Minn.) 1894-1925, 1913-05-22
Piece Work, VS..
Day Work.
Pendennis.
Pendennis.

GIlU6IlIllS.
Those who are striving to better
the condition of factory workers
advocate the necessity of legislation
in behalf of women who work by
the piece. 1t Is stated that speed
ing to turn out a greater amount of
work Injuries the health of women.
Ii this conclusion is true then piece
work endangers the health of men.
Let us consider briefly the feasabili-
ty of the idea.
MANY industries where machinery
is used exclusively exclude day
work as improbable to the employ
er. A machine that has maxium
output of given number of pieces
an hour looses money to the en-
ployer if the machine is not worked
to the limit. The operator of the
machine who does not keep the ma
chine supplied with work up to it's
capacity is not valuable asset to the
employer. These facts are we'll
known industrial axloms. 1t is
claimed that the operators health
suffers by speeding to keep pace
with the machine. This cannot be
denied. Piece work, where mach
inery is used, is detrimental to the
health of the worker. The long
continued strain throughout b e
days toll TO earn more wages saps
the vitality of the toiler.
Now comes the question of W ages
and consideration of the basis of
the price paid per piece. If the
wage is fixed by the amount of W ork
an average hand can turn out in a
day, then the wage is just. But if
the wage is computed from the
amount of the earnings Of the fast
worker then the wage is INSULT icient.
No matter what the wage really
amounts to, some will earn more
than others. Individual character
istics mark the success of piece
workers. Some workers become
very proficient and attain great
degree of skill, while others only &C.
quire medium limit of production
and do not increase their earning
power. You cannot legislate pro-
ficiency into individuals, nor can
workers be prevented from work
ing at piece work because their
health suffers through the efforts
made by them to increase their wag-
es. The piece workers would work
just as fast and perhaps faster if
their wages were increased. There
is limit to the wage an employer
can pay and also limit to the val
ue of an employees work. There
are two sides to every question and
sometimes three-a blind unreason-
able side. We discover some error
10 our industrial system and straight
way hasten to legislate the evil out
of existance. Let us first pause
moment and look into the matter
and see if the evil will yield to leg
islation.
Modern life requires many things
our ancestors got along without. To
supply even the necessities of life
requires the labor of many hands,
but the people demand luxuries too
and consequently increase the call
for help, to noisy clamor. The
worlds work canDot be done with
out speed, and it is folly to clog the
wheels of industry with futile legis-
lation. Men and women will work
at employment that they can make
the most money at whether the
character of their labor Injuries their
health or not. Most workers are
not permitted to choose the particu-
lar place they shall work In, nor
the kind Of work they will do. Peo-
pie work because they must have
money to live upon and it is logical
to suppose that the wage earDers
will work where the greatest wages
can be earned by the individual.
The writer has worked at many
different kinds of employment. and
is the master Of three skilled trades,
and believes that piece work is the
best method through which to re-
ward individual effort. Those who
are skillful and dexterous should