Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1927-12-18
AUSTRALIA TO EMULATE
Z. s. In LABOR PROBLEM
Recent Industrial Commission FavOrs
Plan for Increased Efficiency and
Closer Cooperation With Capital.

OF the system Of company unions
and the open shop the mission stated
that in all instances the system ap-
peared to be establishing a better
spirit Of cooperation and understand.
ing There were no instances of EN-.
ployeS being compelled to become
members of company unions or o.
the denial of rights TO members OF
trade unions.
The Australians were especially IL
terested in the efforts Of manUfac-
turers to spread out their operations
over the entire year, rather than t.
speed up production and be forced
later to close down their plants be
cause of uncertain markets and create
a serious unemployment problem.
American merchants and producers,
they learned have benefited from les
sons learned during the war in tho
way of stabilizing production and
balancing employment, and the policy
has been of great assistance in easing
the labor problems with regard to
| turnover of emploves.
Smaller stocks of goods are being
carried, under this system, and orders
( are made for short periods only. In
many of the plants inspected, the
| prime minister was told, the dismissal
/ of men was being avoided either by
! shortening hours or restricting the
! weeks work to three or more days.
/ This method obviously was adopted.
| it was pointed out with a view TO
| avoid laying off men and women, as
/ against the practice carried out by
some factories of working the plant
/ full blast for several months and
! then closing down. Employers are
realizing that labor turnover is a
serious problem. and thoughtful minds
are endeavoring to find a solution in
these and other ways.
Keyed to Efficiency.
The report asserted there is no
doubt that the insistent propaganda
conducted by American publicists for
better management in industry has
| been a material factor in keying
executives to the necessity for eff
| cheney. The keenness of the execu-
| tives in this respect is passed on
through subordinates until it per.
| meates the whole establishment.
The mission found that the growth
among employers and employees Of the
realization of their mutual dependence
upon each other has been most
marked in the last five years.
1T was about 1922" the investiga-
tors explained, that it first began to
be generally recognized by the repre-
sentatives of both labor and capital
that each must consider the others
point of view, that the manufacturer
would not work without profit and
that the workman must obtain suffi-
Gent wages to enable him to live
| decently.
Employer and employee then settled
down to work. The employer set out
to improve his buildings and plants
and markets, and the employee set out
to increase his earnings by increasing
his production. The result was that
the Nations purchasing power re.
vived. trade increased, the earnings
of the workmen rose. and this in turn
increased the demand for goods
Two econmoic facts have since
been increasingly recognized in the
United States, namely. that increased
earnings mean increased purchasing
power and that cheaper production
means an increased range of buyers"