Evening star., 1938-06-06
MACHINES FAIL
TOCUT AUTO Jobs
Iron Age Editor Doubts
chronological Theory
of Unemployment.
speeisl Dispatch to The Star.

DETROIT, June g. Use of
constantly improved machinery by
automobile manufacturers has resulted
| in no chronological displacement
whatever of LABOR in the aggregate,
J. H. Van Deventer. editor of the
Iron Age, today told the Economic
Club here. Instead, he said, better
machinery has actually made more
jobs and the automotive industry,
most highly mechanical in the world,
| has done more than its share to re-
duce unemployment.
Offering hitherto unpublished fig
| ures obtained in a broad employment
survey Of the industry as conclusive
answer to frequent claims that the
machine is largely responsible for
| the depression, Mr.. Van Deventer
urged industry generally to explore
the automotive industry's accomplish
ments.
Records of the United States Cen
sus and Labor Statistics Bureaus show,
| the editor said, the astonishing fact
that each automobile produced in
1929 provided only 4.3 man-weeks of
employment to labor, while each car
made in 1887 provided Sc man-weeks.
| And from 1929 to 1897 the automobile
industry, instead of destroying jobs,
created jobs two and one-half times
| faster than the rate of population
increase and definitely proved, he said,
the compatibility of men and ma
chimes"
Since many critics of industry, like
Gov. George H. Earle of Pennsylvania,
| who recently declared this wholesale
| destruction of jobs has been going
on for years." blames the machine for
| unemployment, it Is particularly ap-
propriate to show what the highly
efficient automotive industry has done
| to its human material" Mr.. Van
Deventer said in his address on AN
Economic Appraisal of the Motor Car
| Industry"
Gains Are Divided.
whether by chance, whether by
| the blind force of competition or
| whether by superior executive caliber
| in it's management is immaterial, but
this industry has hit upon perpet-
uating principle which others will do
well to study. 1t has" the editor said.
| learned how to divide its efficiency
gains among its customers, its workers
and its investors.
Here is an industry which, even
during the troublesome times since
1929, has benefited its Customers by
| $738, 900. 900, its workers by $644. .0O0,-
900 and its investors by $40O, 600, 600.
OF each dollar of wealth represented
by these gains, it has given 46 cents
to its customers, Al cents to its work.
ers and 13 cents to its investors.
Thus not less than 81 cents out Of
each newly created dollar of wealth
has gone directly into increased mass
consuming power"
Indicating that the automotive in
dustry's experience definitely skaters
the scarcity theory and proves that
q useful ccnsumable product creates
purchasing power and wealth, the
speaker told how q total of $84, ,000,-
100000 Of dollars of wages, or more
than five times the value Of all the
gold mined in the world from 1900
to 1888, have sprung from the golden
| fields Of Michigan" To produce such
| wealth an industry must have q useful
product and operate with constantly
increasing efficiency. he concluded.
VI. 49, .u&sx s.n-l -l.x~ =
| vancing through improved machinery,
has followed an ef1ciency formula
more cio&f5y and more consistently