Rock Island Argus. (Rock Island, Ill.) 1893-1920, 1916-05-26
CRITICAL STAGE
IS NOWREACHED
IN LABOR CAUSE
Fate of Tavenner Bill Aimed at Taylor
System is Hanging in the
Balance.
INTERESTS WELL ORGANIZED
Stubborn Fight Against Measure OF
Freedom From Industrial
Tyranny.
INTERESTS WELL ORGANIZED
BY GEORGE 7. WEST.


(Member of the committee on indus
trial relations0
Washington. May 26.-The most i'm
portant legislative battle now being
waged by the organized labor move
ment of the country is in a critical
stage.
Unless those on the firing line are
supported whole heartedly and with
energy. it will result in a victory for
the interests that profit from indus
trial tyranny, from system that
leaves the wage earnel helpless to-
protest while his health and energy
all he has in the world-are sacrificed
in the race for profits.
Tayenner Bill in Balance.
The National Association of Manu-
facturers is rallying every conscience
less board of trade and chamber OF
commerce in the country to defeat
the Tavenner bill, prohibiting the use
of the stop watch, the gag. the shackle
and the lash on labor employed IN ar
senalS, navy yards and gun factor
les.
human practices in government plants,
they will point to the United States
government as approving the Taylor
and other schemes of scientific man
agement," thereby gaining a material
advantage in their campaign to intro
duce these schemes universally into
private plants.
Labors fight against the Taylor sys-
TEN is made extremely difficult be-
cause so many liberal-minded men fail
to understand the menace concealed
in this plausible scheme to economic
energy and increase production.
The commission on industrial rela-
lions spent thousands of dollars in an
investigation of scientific manage
ment." The conclusions reached by
disinterested investigators and stud
ents should be read by any man who
doubts that these so-called system arc
today the gravest danger facing the
workers in their struggle for freedom
and well-being. Briefly, the commits
sion found:
% That the cardinal principle Of
scientific management" is the pittins
OF each workman against the fellow
workman at his side in a race fol
greater and greater output per minut;
and hour and day.
That constant dread of discharge i
deliberately implanted in every work
er's mind in order to drive him for
ward at top speed.
90 That this killing competition O
worker against worker is the mos
efficient scheme ever devised TO brea
down organization among employee
by creating interests that are rot com
mon, but absolutely the reverse o
common.
"a That it is a fact. proved owe
and over again, that employers Operat
ing under scientific management re
duce the basic rate of pay to abou
that prevailing before the system wa
introduced, as soon as they hav
speeded up their employees to tn
point where the latter are earnin
more than the prevailing rate @
wages, as a result of their increase
speed and productiveness. In othe
words, the workers share of their in
creased production is taken away fror
them as soon as the standard has bee
set and the employers have demon
strated that the increased rate is i'm
possible.
90 After the basic rate has bee
reduced. the employee must keep u
the same nerve-racking race, or h
will not receive even the lower rate.
To Scrap the Race.
In the words of Andrew Furusetl
they will scrap the whole human rae
unless some power stops them"
If organized labor had establishe
its right to exist and were stron
enough to take an equal voice in ad
ministering sO-Called scientific man
agement systems, it might be differ
ent story But with labor alread
fighting against odds for the right t
organize the net result of the TaylO
system if generally adopted would b
simply to destroy unionism and leav
the workers helpless.
If society loses any advantage fror
the rejection of stop watch method.
the blame must be laid where it be
longs-On an organization of industr
directed solely to the piling up of pr
yate profits, with utter disregard TO
the welfare either OF wage earners o
Of society.
The house committee on labor ha
recommended that the Tavenner bill
prohibiting the stop watch be passed
The vote in the lower house ma
come at any time. Letters TO con
gressmen and senators will helI