The labor journal. [volume] (Everett, Wash.) 1909-1976, 1921-11-04
WHO CAN PREVENT
UNEMPLOYMENT?

Trenton, N. j., Oct. 26.-"In MAX
ing war against unemployment
America must adopt the same STRAIT
egy that has proved effective during
the past ten years in combating in
dustrial accidents" declared John b.
Andrews, secretary of the American
Association for Labor Legislation and
an active member of the Presidents
Conference on Unemployment, in an
address this morning at the annual
New Jersey Conference for Social
Welfare. Col. Lewis T. Bryant, state
labor commissioner, presided over the
session which was devoted to dis
cussion of family standards as af
fected by unemployment.
"Under the stimulus of workmen's
compensation laws, industry has or
ganized big safety first campaigns
that are steadily reducing the num-
Der of accidents" DR.. Andrews said:
Unemployment compensation laws
will provide similar incentive to in
dustrial managers to reduce unem-
ployment' by cutting down seasonal
fluctuations, reducing labor turnover
and otherwise regulating production"
Bituminous coal mining. he added,
offers striking example of costly
under-employment. Out of a pos
sible 308 days work in a year, the
miners have been given on the aver
age only 215 days he said, while in
1898 they worked only III days and
in the past year, the worst of all,
the had work for only ITO days.
The recent findings of the engin-
eers' committee on the elimination
of waste in industry appointed by
Mr.. Hoover, as well as the recon-
mendations of the Presidents Con-
ference on Unemployment, strongly
emphasize industry's responsibility
for unemployment, according to DR..
Andrews, who said that in a few
progressive manufacturing plants un-
employment had already been prac-
tically eliminated by intelligent plan
ming.
He quoted Ernest G. Draper, pres
ident of the American Creosoting
company and officer of the New
Jersey State Chamber of Commerce,
as saying, in favor of unemployment
compensation laws, that the high
peaks and low hollows of seasonal
trade, followed by orgies of firing
and hiring again are Indefinitely
more expensive than more or less
stabilized production.
Industry has a two-fold duty in
the present crisis" DR.. Andrews
continued. at must lend full CO.
operation to mayors emergency COM
mittees in finding jobs and in ward
ing off hunger and other evil results
of the existing depression, and at
the same time give full recognition
to it's own responsibility by setting
in motion without further delay these
industrial forces that alone can per-
manently prevent unemployment. An
unemployment crisis is precisely the
time to begin the work of perman-
ent prevention"
DR.. Andrews praised the work of
the state system of employment
bureaus in New Jersey and several
other states, but declared that Am
erica would continue to be hampered
in it's efforts to relieve and pre-
vent unemployment until Congress
enacted the long delayed legislation
providing for an adequate, federal
state employment service.
Meantime, he said, in organizing
all the resources ofthe nation to
meet the immediate need of relief
measures, committees, while speed
ing up available public work to
furnish badly needed employment
this winter, should not forget that
lack of earnings accentuates pov-
erty all along the line and calls for
increased relief work in all the Or
dinary cases of destitution, such as
that due to sickness.
Family standards of living" he
dustrial conditions and with savings
exhausted, the strain becomes un-
endurable when industrial depres-
sion results in a second winter of
widespread unemployment"