The labor world. [volume] (Duluth, Minn.) 1896-current, 1917-05-26
.LAB0R'S DEFENSE
COMMITTEE MEETS
Given Over to Answering Ques-
on British War Time Indus
trial Arrangements.

The recent meeting of the labor
committee of the advisory committee
of the national council of defense was
chiefly given over to the answering
of questions on British wartime in
dustrial arrangements, by James
Thomas and Charles Bowerman,
members of Parliament from the La
Dor Party. Thomas is strongly in
favor of war to a finish. When
the Canadian delegates, particularly
J. c. Waters, president of the Can
adian Trades and Labor congress,
stated that Premier Lloyd George
had ignored their repeated appeals
for square deal for labor in the
production Of British munitions in
Canada, Thomas did not offer them
his f1elp in changing the premier's
failure to control the Canadian gov
eminent.
'"Tine and time again. said Wat
ers, with intense earnestness, 1.-The
workers of Canada have been almost
at the point of bringing about civil
war, to such an extent have their
appeals for some guaranty of condi-
tons for the future been ignored"
It may be significant that Waters
was loudly applauded by a majority
of the committee when he declared
that until the government should give
such guaranty the workers Of Can
ada would feel obliged to stand on
guard over their own rights, refusing
to concede anything to their employ
ers.
British and Canadians.
That the British workers, in con-
trast to the Canadians, have won
from Lloyd George, was related by
Thomas in great detail. The biggest
item in the list is a guaranty of their
old jobs back, or equally good ones,
after the war. In order that there
may be no mobs of unemployed ex-
soldiers to disturb the public peace,
at the close Of hostilities, the gov
eminent is to hold the men in the
army and navy until their jobs are
actually secured and ready. In view
Of the fact that 100000 British
workingmen now have guns In their
hands, the wisdom of this policy is
easily grasped. Many Of the men,
bers Of the committee were of the
opinion that the United States gov
ernment would find the same plan
desirable when our own forces are
brought home from Europe.
Thomas explained that
A million more members are re-
ported by the British trade unions
now than before the war began.
Women Now Members.
Fifty thousand women are men,
bers of the Railwaymen's Union,
which refused to admit them until at
ter the war started.
A million and quarter Of won1-
en- who had never done manual labor
for wages are now in British indus
tries, and they draw the same scale
of pay as men formerly were given
for the same work.
Crippled soldiers are given Jobs
suitable to their abilities, at wages
equal to those demanded by able
bodied men. They have their pen
sions in addition to their wages. Pen
sions, and all payments made to the
families of soldiers, are understood
on both sides to be a public obliga-
ton. in return for services already
rendered by the soldier.
Local boards of Cancellation and ar
bitration are maintained everywhere,
to settle industrial disputes.
Over-work has had terrible conse-
quences, in weakening the physical
constitutions of the munitions work.
ers. Early in the war many thous-
ands Of men and women worked 10
and even 100 hours per week, for
months at time. Today the hours
are greatly reduced, and Sunday
work is almost wholly abolished.
Thomas believes that the melt
ing pot" of association of all class
es Of men in the army during the
war will tend toward better under
standing between employers and
workers, and that the big problem
of poverty will be much nearer solu-
ton.