Fulton County tribune. (Wauseon, Ohio) 1883-1925, 1917-11-02
LABOR SITUATION
Critical Situation Caused by Shortage
Is Made Much Worse by Drinks
Raids Upon Efficiency and Full
Time.

The Kansas City Star asserts that
the snip yards OF the country are to-
day operating at only 90 per cent OF
their capacity.
This is an over estimate.
There is good reason for believing
that the ship yards of the country
are averaging only 48 hours a week
and that the efficiency of their labor
ranges from so per cent at the end
and beginning of each week, to 80
per cent on Wednesdays and Thurs
days.
The New York World in a special
story from Washington carries the
following headlines: Nation May
Soon Draft Labor. Shortage Is a
Grave Problem. Lack of Workers
Seriously Felt in Ship Yards and
Other War Establishments. Women
to Be C0nscripted Too"
The story declares that there is a
labor shortage of 30 percent in the
spruce lumber industry, vital to the
airplane program.
When this nation recognized the
war made upon it by Germany, the in
dustrial organization was already
working at full capacity and was
gravely menaced by shortage Of la
Dor due to lack of immigration and
the unusual activity in all lines of man
ufacture. The war imposed upon
American industry the necessity of
continuing it's support of the Allies, of
meeting the submarine menace by a
vast ship building program, of doub-
ling the American navy, and supply
ing a great new American army dur
ing a period of mobilization and or
ganization, and eventually over dis
tance of 5000 miles.
No sooner was this problem faced
than industry lost nearly 1000, 900
men by voluntary enlistment and Sc
lection
Today a large majority of the 49,
600 establishments available for war
work are in actual distress because
no steps have been taken to make good
the loss of labor by increasing its eff
iciency and steadiness. From ship
building yards come stories of idle
hours because of lack of labor. and
of labor at a minimum of efficiency
because high wages are being taken
by beer saloons.
The more intelligent element in the
labor world appreciates the duty
thrust upon it by the unusual situa-
tion, but the less intelligent, espe-
cially the less informed element, is
working on part time, at part eff
cheney, spending its evenings in sa-
looms and drifting from place to place
in search Of variety.
The ship building program abso-
lutely depends upon putting a stop to
this at a very early date. To a less
extent the air craft program, the mu-
nitions program and the plans of sup
plv may also depend upon it.
II is significant that the preparation
of the camps for the draft was late,
that the supply Of these camps was
late. In every case the delay can be
traced to shortage OF labor or ineffi-
cient labor.
We have no fear as to the outcome
of this war. The Americans are not
a quitting breed. With their allies they
will win next summer or in the sum-
mer of 1919, but there is every reason
for grave fear that they will not be
readv to win in 1918, and that 1,000.-
900 lives and $4,000, 100000 of Amer
lean money will pay the price.
There is one thing that America can
do to increase the power of its labor.
It can close the saloonsl IF the nation
were to do that the almost unanimous
opinion Of American industrial leaders
is that delays could be stopped and an
adequate war PROGRAM be pushed to a
successful conclusion in minimum of
time.