The Washington herald., 1922-09-21
Million Americans Will Profit
By Abolition of 12-Hour Day
Committee on Work Periods of Engineers Council
Urges Change to Eight-Hour Period.

compromise was made whereby
the rate per hour was increased
sufficiently to make the daily earn
ings equivalent to a ten-hour day.
In other cases a twenty-five per
cent increase In the rate per nour
met with the approval Of the men.
There Is natural divergence
of opinion as to the advantages and
disadvantages of the three-shift
operation, but the weight OF he
statements are in favor of the
three-shift operation.
The evidence Is conclusive that
the extra leisure of the men unde r
the shorter working day is used TO
good advantage. 1t is spent in
gardening. truck-farming and IN
doing odd jobs which otherwise
would have to be paid for OF
would not be done at all.
"A few plants have reverted TO
the two-shift operation after q
trial of the three-shift system
This proportion to the number
continuing operation on three
shifts is so small as to be neg
ligible. The weight of evidence
shows that when a plant changes
to the three-shift operation It IS
very unlikely that II will revert
to the former system"
The engineering investigation
lasted nearly two years. Leading
continuous industries and work I
ing groups covered included iron
and steel. non-ferrous metals. glass
Portland cement. lime. brick. pot
terry. heavy chemicals. fertilizers.
explosives. dyes. Industrial alcohol.
wood distillation. refined corn
products. soap. glue. drugs, electro
chemical industries, sugar. table
salt. petroleum. cottonseed oil.
other oils. paper. -four. rubber
breakfast foods. automobiles. tex
tiles. mines. power. gas, water
supply, ice. shipping. railroads.
street railways. telegraph and tel
ephone. malls and express. police
men. iremen and watchmen.
Practically every section Of the
country was visited by the invcsti-
Gators. Among the areas investI-
gated. IL is stated in the report.
were: New York City. Buffalo,
Metuchen. y. J.; Camden. y. J. glass
manufacturing points in southern
New Jersey: Bethlehem. Allentown.
Nazareth. Palmerton and other
points in the LehiEh Valley Of Penn
sylvania: philadelphia and nearby
Pennsylvania points: Pittsburgh and
numerous cities within a radius of
forty miles: sharon. Pa: Washing
ton n. G: Richmond. Atlanta Bir-
nringham: Chattanooga and Rich
ard city. Tenn: Copper Hill and
Knoxville. Tenn: Newell and New
cumberland. W. Va: New Fort. Ky:
Cleveland. Akron. Youngstown. Cam
ton. Ohio; East Liverpool. Ohio:
columbus. Cincinnati and suburbs
Middletown. Ohio: Franklin. Ohio:
Mismisburg and West Carrollton.
Ohio: Dayton Toledo. Detroit. Micn-
'gan cities along ST. Clair River:
Saginaw, Battlecreek. Kalamazoo.
Terre Haute. Chicago. Gary, Dan
Vile. ILL.,; Granite City. Ill: Min
neapolis. ST. Louis. Kansas City.
kans.; Denver and Pueblo.
Warning that the change from
twelve hours to eight hours must
not be made too suddenly and that
the management must be able TO
influence thoroughly against tardi-
ness, absence. deliberate Sinking
and misuse of extra hours of free
time the report referring to the
steel industry continues:
The United States has the most
profitable iron and steel industry in
the world. making mJre money and
more output than all the rest of the
world put together and exporting
its product in successful competition
with foreign countries
"The majority OF managers and
executives with whom the matter
was discussed believe that the good
OF the industry can be better served
by eliminating the twelve-hour day
than by increasing dividends pro-
vided means of labor-saving devices
and in other ways. this step can be
taken without serious injury TO the
industry"