The labor journal. [volume] (Everett, Wash.) 1909-1976, 1917-12-28
PART Ii.
Industrial Democracy

! ity of economic opportunity and that
shall be responsive to the peoples
will AS a result of the industrial
development of the past century,
conditioned by special privilege, a
small minority of our citizens have
come to control a large majority of
our capital The artificial monopo-
lies of transportation and communi-
cation, the natural monopolies of,
land, lumber, minerals and water
power, and the great bulk of the
manufacturing machinery of the ma
ton are owned and controlled by
this minority and are available to the
workers and to the public only on
the sufference of privileged class
of owners. Therefore we favor a
policy of public ownership to be pro-
gressively applied to the organized
industries of the nation. AS steps
toward the realization of this indus
trial democracy we urge:
0 Extinction of Land Monopoly:
Removal of the fundamental evil of
land monopoly by taxation of it's
rental values, this taxation to be
progressively increased and taxation
of improvements to be gradually
abolished.
(2) Public Ownership: Public
ownership and democratic control of
coal and metal mines, water power,
natural gas and oil wells, steam and
electric railroads, telegraph and tel
ephone services, water works, light
and power plants, terminal ware
houses and elevators, and all other
public utilities and basic industries
whose operations depend on fran
chises, or that require large-scale
operation on non-competitive or
centralized basis.
60 Experimental Public Owner
ship: In order that the efficacy of
public ownership may be impartially
tested in those industries in which
it's efficacy is now in dispute, we
advocate a policy of careful expert
mentation by the government in the
public ownership and operation Of
representative industries, and espe-
cially those in which the necessaries
of life are produced. We urge that
this third class of government in
dustries be conducted in every case
in fair competition with those that
are privately owned, to the end that
the relative merits of public owner
ship and private ownership may be
separately and scientifically deter
mined.
(4) Private Industry: Industrial
democracy aims not only to guaran-
tee equality of economic opportun-
ity, but also to encourage the fullest
individual liberty and initiative in
industrial enterprise 1t is desirable
that our citizens should be free to
venture their earnings in the up
building of new forms of industry,
and the net incomes which result
from such undertakings should not
be regarded indiscriminately as I'M
earned increment. Often such net
incomes are but fair wages due for
the useful experiment performed and
the social service rendered. We do
not object to the continuance of
private enterprise in such fields so
long as the gains derived therefrom
are earned.
(5) The Democratic Management
OF Public Utilities: The capitalist
system, despite it's many injustices,
has developed two instrumentalities
that are Of large economic value:
The industrial corporation and the
trade union. Any form of public
ownership which should neglect those
lnstrumentalities and give over the
management of our industries to
mere political bureaucracy would
arouse the well-merited opposition
OF all classes. Both the workers and
the expert business managers of
industry must be protected from I'M
enlightened tyranny of public Off
Gals and similarly the body of citi
zens as a whole must be protected
from monopolistic extortions on the
part Of industrial groups. The chief
industries should be controlled bv
administrative boards upon which
the workers, the managers and the
government should all be repre-
scented.
90 The Farm Problem: The till
Ter Of the soil is menaced upon the
one hand by the privately owned
means of transportation, storage and