The daily worker. [volume] (Chicago, Ill.) 1924-1958, 1933-01-04
Bosses Back New
Scheme to Slash
Funds for "Relief"

FnnUS TOf RetteJ
Herbert Hoover and other big
business Spokesman have been
saying this for the past three years.
And, today, they are being echoed
by the liberal sponsors of this
Association in an effort to explain
away the miserable relief that thus
far has been doled out by the city
and state.
HOW THE SCHEME
WORKS
The operation of the plan is as
follows: The city is to be divided
into districts where local exchanges
are to be set up. Workers residing
i'll these districts are to be enrolled
in these exchanges. A Central Ex-
change will act as clearing house
for local exchanges. Some of the
significant functions of the local
exchanges will be ito facilitate, in
every possible way, exchange
through the Central Exchange of
the labor members of the local for
the labor or products of other locals
or of farmers and other individuals
outside the Mutual Exchange Or
gsnization." Another is ito offer
the labor of members at current
wage scales in exchange for bonds
of going concerns, thus enabling
the unemployed to risk labor
against industry's promise to pay"
The phrase "at current wage scales"
shows clearly that the Association
intends to pay its workers at the
starvation wage scales now in exis-
tence.
The, Association intends to solve
the shelter problem by offering
property owners "a certain number
of hours of services of members Of
the Exchange System to maintain
or improve the premises occupied,
or any other properties which he
(the property owner may design
ate;" or cash payment of taxes or
time" the workers live in his house,
or credits on the Mutual Exchange
for purpose Of food or commodi-
ties"
WHAT effect will this scheme
W have on the employed work.
ers? Will their conditions be i'm
proved or worsened? According to
the Association, Composition in
the open market is to be strictly
avoided SO long as relief funds are
necessary to finance the Mutual
Exchanges. The unemployed will
exchange services and the products
of their labor on barter basis
(and will themselves consume all
they produce. ID 1t is antici-
pated, however, that once produc-
ton and consumption have been
set in motion under this plan, ways
will be found to finance these en-
terprises so that, as far as possible,
the unemployed will be restored to
a self-supporting basis" (2)
TO CUT WAGES OF
EMPLOYED WORKERS
In other words, aft-l the initial
effort, the System will go into COM
petition with employed labor. But
the Association vigorously denies
this possibility. 1t says, Since the
destitute now have no money
whatever and therefore no pur-
chasing power, and since their
products and labor will all be used
by themselves or by persons ex-
changing goods or services for the
goods or services supplied by the
System, this plan will in no way
come into competition with COM
mercial business" This is indeed
a clumsy excuse. In the first place
the relief that the city is now
forced to give the unemployed en-
ables the latter to command a GER
tain amount of purchasing power;
this is admitted by the Association
itself to be equal to per cent of
the total retail sales in New York
City. Secondly, as the last half
Of the quotation shows, it will come
into competition with commercial
business, resulting in general low
ering of wages in the industries af-
fected, commensurate with the
success of the scheme. For the
(2) In the original report, this
phrase in parenthesis was, signifi-
caJttly, crossed out, indicating
clearly thai the unemployed are
to be exnsosted by thess friends
g1 kA ~ a