Montana labor news., 1932-07-21
PRESIDENT GREEN OF AMERICAN
FEDERATION OF LABOR SAYS
WORK DAY, WEEK SHOULD BE
REDUCED TO PROVIDE MORE JOBS.


ATLANTIC CITY, N. president Hoover should promptly onven a
national industrial conference to consider the critical aspects of the de-
preston and propose plans to remedy its most distressing features, declared
William Green, president of the American Federation of Labor, at the first
session of the summer meeting of the executive council Of the Federation
here.
"A national conference of leaders of industry and all other employing
interests should be called by the president" Mr.. Green said, at which
time he should impress upon them not only the economic gravity of the
crisis, but their patriotic obligation to meet this emergency as they would
in "a time or oil any other occasions of threatened national disaster
TEN MILLION UNEMPLOYED.
With owe ter million workers totally unemployed and the number in
creasng every week, Mr.. Green believed that the major question coming
before the conference would be the universal adjustment Of working time to
distribute available work among the largest number of employees.
"Such a conference" he said, could confer the benefit of the shorter
panies have established the fveday week for their employees already. By
this means they divide up all available work among their W employees, but
such action by a few companies has n o national effect"
"The unemployment emergency is rs great as the war emergency. Inc
nation must be saved. If W e cannot give u people more work at once,
We IA divide whatever work there is available among all and so gradually
bring the unemployed into the ranks of consumers again and perhaps start
the wheels of industry going"
UNEMPLOYED UNION MEMBERS.
Mr.. Green pointed out that % per cent of the members of the organza-
tons affiliated with the A. +. of L. ire unemployed, and that in the build
ing trades the unemployed reach So per cent.
He emphasized the necessity of the division of work being national in
scope, and said that probably because of constitutional difficulties, it could
lot be achieved by legislation. But the national industrial conference
which he urged President Hoover to call, could by agreement make the dis
tribution of work effective.
RECONSTRUCTION FINANCE CORPORATION FAILS.
With regard to the Reconstruction Finance Corporation, Mr.. Green ex-
pressed keen disappointment that its activities had not been more helpful
in providing work for the jobless. He said the corporation had probably
stabilized the banking situation, but unemployment was worse. lie be-
lieyed the masses Of the people had not benefited directly from the creation
of the corporation, but might have benefited indirectly from the work of the
corporation in the interest of the banks.
Federal funds will have to be made available for the use Of relief
agencies to meet the acute situation next winter, for conditions at that
time will be extremely bad" he added. Local relief agencies have broken
down and many states have exhausted their resources available for relief"
Referring to the recent demonstrations of the unemployed in Detroit
and St. Louis, in which a number of persons were killed and many injured,
he said responsible leaders were hoping to forestan similar incidents by
the prompt use of funds for relief.