Evening star., 1934-04-26
SLOAN DEPL0RES
DRASTIC HOUR CUT
Says 30.Hour Week Pro-
posaI Will Boost Prices
HarmfuIIy.
By the Associated Press.

BOSTON, April 26-Alfred p.
Sloan, jr., president Of General Motors
Corporation, is not in harmony with
the proposal for a mandatory 30-hour
week.
He says he believes collective bar
gaining a step forward in American
industrial life, and he also favors the
proposal now before Congress to place
in the Presidents hands the authority
to deal, as business man, with other
countries with respect to foreign
trade.
Our problem today, as he sees it, is
not one of overproduction, but one of
grave maladjustment; he doubts that
under normal circumstances it will be
necessary "or desirable" to establish
ways of Stabilizing the price structure,
and, above all, he urges support of the
President "to the full extent of our
ability and resources"
Opposes Hour Cut.
"I find myself entirely out of har-
mony with the thinking so prevalent
that the hours of labor should be
reduced to absorb our unemployment"
he said today before a luncheon
gathering at the Boston Chamber of
Commerce.
II am entirely out of harmony with
the thought that the number of man.
hours of labor is definite and that the
unemployment question is solved by
dividing the number of man-hours by
the number of workers. No greater
fallacy exists. Around this thinking
comes the proposal for a mandatory
30-hour week. I do not believe in
the principle underlying that proposal
On the contrary, I am convinced that
the total amount of possible produc-
tive work in the United States can be
definitely expanded with continually
improving standard of living.
Favors Wage Minimum.
mo reasonable individual can dis
agree as to the desirability Of q min
imum wage, Of the elimination OF
child labor, of a gradual reduction
in the hours of labor through evo-
lution-a reduction on an economic
basis and coincident with a decline
in the cost of production.
"On the other hand, arbitrary re-
OuClIO1l0 dlC u1loOulldB 4O4 CNCh II
accompanied by corresponding in
crease in the wage rate, while pro-
viding some more jobs at the moment,
they are bound to result in reduc-
tion in the purchasing power of the
individual worker. This is because
of the resulting increase in cost and
the inevitable increase in selling
prices"
Income Real Problem.
Is" . Entirely aside from the eco
nomic question, the fact remains that
the American worker in most indus
tries IS no longer concerned with an
important reduction in hours. He is
concerned with an opportunity to
work a reasonable number of hours at
a fair and equitable rate in order to
be able to buy those things which he
has found to be essential to his happi-
ness and well-being."
Denies Overproduction.
Mr.. Sloan expressed "little patience"
with the principle that the less we
produce the more prosperous We be-
come.
"Overproduction in general Is i'm
possible until every one who is willing
to work has at least those things to
which he is entitled, on the basis of
the value of his work. If this be
true, and I believe it is, there is no
overproduction of old things-and
there is certainly a vast opportunity
for production of new things.
If we could only instiIl in the minds
of all that we were not at the end but
at the beginning of our development
there would result a tremendous
broadening of our vision and an ap-
probation of the vast opportunities
that are before U.s."
The new relationship between man.
agement and the worker, which has