Evening star., 1926-05-30
BY WALTER r.. McCALLUM.

l So16INxC4OANl bt0p IldS UCcI1
~ taken recently by Americas g
| ~ big business" Gathered at
~ \ the shrine Of big business, the
| home Of the Chamber of Com
merce Of the United States, in Wash.
ington, more than 1000 business men
from every nook and corner Of the
United States indorSed the principle
that the laborer Is worthy Of his hire;
that the measure Of rightful compen-
sation for the worker depends upon
the production results Of his labor.
Casting aside for all time the theory
still held in Europe and on which some
American business leaders believe the
British general strike was based. that
the daily performance of the worker
must be restricted SO that more days
wages must be paid to accomplish a
given result, American business lead
ers have indorsed the new-found prin-
ciple Of the labor leaders Of the Ma
ton that the laborer Is worth exactly
what he produces. His production
must not be curtailed to make room
for more men or to ease off q falling
market. He is literally worth just
what he creates.
Backed by A. #. of L.
This principle has been one Of the
l foundations Of the creed Of the Ameri-
can Federation Of Labor for more
than q year. But only recently has
big business given 1t its official in
dorsement. The step takes on added
Significance, coming at the very time
when British labor had cast down the
gage to the British subsidy and dole
] system, while millions Of men walked
the streets looking for work even be-
fore the strike began.
1 Slowly accommodating nvor MANY
years In the minds of worker and EN-.
| ployer this new thought-this new
| concept Of production and the value
| Of labor-haS had the direct result Of
raising American living standards
until today they are the highest in
the world and European workers cast
envious eyes at their contented, we'll
paid, steadily employed American
| brethren.
High wages make for prosperity,
and high wages can be paid only out
| was sounded by P. w. Litchfield,
president Of the Goodyear Tire and
Rubber Co., who said the thought
used to be that the first thing to cut
when profits began to shrink was
wages.
1T Is now recognized that this con-
dition should be met by increase
efficiency, elimination of waste, the
cutting down of overhead in produc.
ton and distribution.
Demand Is Reduced.
"An attempt should be made to
maintain these wages by increased
and more efficient production. because
a general cutting down of wages cur.
tails the demand for the finished prod.
ucts of industry. the demand for
which is the very lifeblood of pros.
perity."
Mr.. Litchf1eld sounded the keynote
| of the new situation In these words:
For many years it has been the
| opinion Of many that a man should
be paid for the time he puts in. He
wished to make such use of his time
| as he thought proper, being paid
| wages of fixed amount per hour.
based upon the classification under
| which he worked, rather than the
amount Of goods he produced.
"Since the beginning of the World
| War wages have advanced, but the
| purchasing power Of the wage has
come up to a greater extent than the
| cost Of living or the exchange value
| of the wage, so that today the stand
| ard of living. or the purchasing pow
er Of the wage. is approximately 80
per cent above the pre-war standard =
Seeks to Maintain Scale.
MANAGEMENT, Mr.. Litchfleld said,
does not wish to decrease wages, but
seeks to maintain them, even though
it realizes that wages can be main
tanned only through increasing the
production output per man.
Secretary of Commerce Hoover, one
of the Nations foremost economists
and the Government liaison officer be-
tween the wheels Of industry and the
executive branch, takes a precisely
similar view.
There is q marked change during
the last Is years." he says, 'in the
attitude Of employers and employees
toward wages and conditions Of labor,
especially in the larger units Of pro-
duction and service and the larger
trades unions. It is not SO many years
ago that the employer considered IL
was in his interest to use the oppor-
tunities Of unemployment and immi.
grafton to lower wages irrespective of
other considerations. The lowest
wages and the longest hours were
then conceived as the means to at
tain lowest production costs and larg-
est profits. Nor is it many years ago
that our labor unions considered that
the maximum of Jobs and the great
est security in q job were to be at
tanned by, restricting individual ef.
fort.