Denver labor bulletin., 1918-11-23

instruments Dy WHICH tne Will OF man
and the social group is expressed: By
tools the forces of nature are made to
serve a determined human purpose.
Tools are the products of thought and
efforts to achieve-they are a material
proof of development. In this war Pc
riod, users of tools have become in
dispensable agencies for carrying out
national purpose. They are the pro-
ducing arm of the government which
must serve the military arm. The
tool user who makes the shell is as es-
sential as the gunner who fires it.
1t was appreciation of this funda-
mental principle that convinced the
government that, in order to avoid
standards, labor administration must
be centralized. There resulted the
proclamation of President Wilson des-
ignating the secretary of labor as war
labor administrator. The government
has consistently maintained that pro-
duction would be furthered by main
tanning standards in industry which
promoted the health, safety and bet
terment of employees
Working Conditions Service.
In order that there might be uni
formity of standards for working con-
ditions in all industries, there was Gre
ated in the department of labor the
working conditions service. The du-
ties of this service, as briefly enumer-
ated by the secretary Of labor, are as
follows:
"To examine into working condi-
tions in war industries; to determine
Z the standards as to conditions which
should be maintained in those indus
tries; TO adopt rules embodying such
standards and explaining them; to de-
termine the best means for securing
the adoption and maintenance Of these
standards and TO cooperate with state
authorities for the above purposes
Altho the organic act creating the
department Of labor provides that the
function Of the department shall be,
among other things, to improve the
working conditions of the wage earn
ers of the United States, the depart
ment had not undertaken specifically
work of this character until the urgent
need demonstrated by war emergen-
cies IL has become increasingly evi-
dent that working conditions have
direct cause and relationship to labor
turnover. Moving many men from
civil life to military service made it
necessary to exercise the greatest wis
dom in utilizing our limited human re-
serves. The extravaganza Of a high
labor turnover has been emphasized
by prevailing high wages, thus in
creasing the costs chargeable to labor
turnover. Thus there has come a
new interest in bettering working con-
ditions and an appreciation that such
betterment has an economic advantage
and pays the employer in every sense
of the term.
Problems in Health Field.
comprise environment, relations be-
tween employer and employed-all
that makes up life within the indus
try. For administrative purposes
there are three divisions in the work
ing conditions service-division of in
dustrial hygiene and medicine, division
of labor administration and division Of
safety engineering. Since there are
in operation other agencies with the
specialized function Of dealing with
wages and hours as controversial ques-
tions between employers and employed,
they will not be dealt with as such
by this service.
The proclamation of the President
instructing all governmental depart
ments dealing with public health ques-
tions to utilize the United States pub
lie health service for that work was n
step toward unity of action and pur-
pose in health problems. Industrial
health is closely related to community
health and the general scientific prin-
ciples underlying public health prob
lens and industrial health problems
are identical. However, organization,
methods of operation, special occupa-
tional problems in the industrial health
field are fundamentally labor prob
lens, affecting directly human rela-
tionships and human activity. The
formulation of policies for dealing
with these phases of industrial health
belongs properly to the agencies en-
trusted with labor administration.
Cooperation between the depart
ment of labor and the public health
service for dealing with industrial
health problems brings a unified ma
tional health policy and action, and at
the same time renders the policy and
action practical ard in accord with
needs and ideals of those most con-
cerned. Accordingly, the secretary of
labor at the request of the working
conditions service requested the sec
retary of the treasury to authorize the
United States public health service to
detail personnel to the division of in
dustrial hygiene and medicine of the
service As result of the agreement
ant surgeon of the public health serv-
ice, was detailed to act as chief, divi-
sion of industrial hygiene and medi-
cine, working conditions service. DR..
C. d. Selby of Toledo, Ohio, will be
at the head of the section of industrial
medicine.
Help Reduce Labor Turnover.
Various employers are appreciative
of the fact that output in production