The Washington times. [volume] (Washington [D.C.]) 1902-1939, 1937-07-16
ONE EMPLOYER
|SENC0URAGED
BY WORKERS
BY B. C. FORBES

employing thousands OF men mace
these statements to me in course
Of conversation:
81 have been Spending . lot
Of time mingling with our work
erS. feel greatly encouraged.
$50 far ~ I could ASCERTAIN
the majority Of them do mot
want to join any union, to pay
any dues to anybody whatsoever.
/ could uncover no G. !. o. lean
ingS.
He went on:
'My opinion Il that the C. /. o.
movement has probably reached
its apex. When you think Of
1t, efforts to uniOnize workers
have been going on in this cOun-
try for many years. Yet the fact
remains that only . small Per
centaRe Of all employees have
ever chosen to join up. II the
majority of wOrkmen had been
uniOn.minded, they would have
attached themselves to union or
carnations before now.
Besides, have not . great
many business concerns ad-
vanced wages voluntarily during
the last two years? And has
there not also been voluntary
shortening Of work hours?
"The logical deduction, Is I
see it, is that the urge to en-
roll in unions Is likely to sub
side-at least unless . change
Is made in the way labor lead
ers act, unless they and their
unions see fit, or are compelled,
to give complete accounting for
what they do with the enormous
funds collected from members"
The next few months are likely
to yield decisive developments
unionwiSe-one way or the other
Some Of my friends are buying
stocks.
Not all second quarter corpora
ton reports will come UP to Wall
Streets expectations. Some will
But not q few keen diSappoint'
mentS are foreshadowed. In many
instances net profits have not kept
pace with gross revenues. Higher
wages, shorter hours, taxes, to say
nothing Of strikes, have all con
tributed to this result.
A Washington official informs me
that it has lately been drummed
into them that President RooSe
welt is very much in earnest in
seeking to cut down spending.
How much salary can . CHIEF
executive be worth?
The sOundeSt answer Is: "It
all depends on what he can &C
cOmplish."
The difference between red ink
and black ink, between dividends
and no dividends, between success
and bankruptcy nearly always is
determined by the character anc
ability of directing head.
The latest illustration that has
come to my attention is Fisk Tire
When Col. Charles E. Speaks took
the presidential helm q year ago
it had been for q long time grub
bing along on the wrong side Of
the ledger-it had lost money
too, in the first half Of last year
In the next six months, it re
turned net profit Of $243,643
and earned more than 100000
in the first quarter Of this year
Meanwhile, the dealer organiza
ton has been doubled. Today 8,
O0O, 900 pounds Of rubber and 1,
500, 900 pounds Of cotton arr
needed for its monthly require
ments. The company employs up
wards Of 1000 people in its OWL
mill in New Bedford Mass tx
furnish cotton cord.
That's some managerial trans
formation!
New York streets are still honey
combed with picketS exhibiting
placardS announcing that such
and-Such concern refuses to EN-
ploy union workers. They-ther'
are usually only two-march W
and down on the sidewalk. ThiI
sight is becoming so commonplace
that nobody seems even to reaC
the signs. Very rarely does on
see o policeman stationed outsid'
picketed places.
Copyright, 1897. by B. c. Forbes.)
Treasury Condition