The potters herald. [volume] (East Liverpool, Ohio) 1899-1982, 1939-12-28
Labor s Stake In

Ldbor's S Stake In
Continued From Page One)
settled conditions of the last ten years
has caused those in charge Of the
preparation of the census schedules to
put more emphasis than ever before
on formulating questions which bear
directly upon social and economic
problems. These are, of course, mat
ters of paramount Importance to la
Dor.
"The four greatest problems of the
working men are all closely dealt with
by the Census, and statistical data
concerning them may be Forthcoming
after the returns are in which will
be of very real value in arriving at
partial or complete solutions of them.
These four problems are: unemploy-
ment, jobs, income and housing.
Unemployment Census Included
"The Unemployment Census of
1888, which was made by mail, is the
only recent attempt at a national un-
employment count. The Population
Census for 1910, conducted through
person-to-person check-ups by 100000
enumerators, will assemble current
figures not only Of actual unemploy
ment and the duration of the unem-
ployment period, but also hours and
weeks of work and wages or salaries
earned during the year, and amount
of self-employment by proprietors,
farmers, ETC., thus indicating more
fully than ever before the distribu-
ton of the national labor force.
"And it is on the basis of data such
as these that public emergency work
relief policies will be established, and
the plans for expansion Of employ
ment will be worked out. Unemploy-
ment is one of the evils which not
only is destructive of each mans abil-
ity to earn a living, and consequently
his indivdualism, his pride, but also
is extremely damaging to trade union
organization, resulting as it does in
competition for jobs at sub-union
rates.
Facts on Occupations Will Be Listed
"Another function of the general
population census is that of obtaining
a national record of peoples occupa
tions. These data, broken down into
practically every type of job in which
there is union, will give union lead
ers a measure of the extent of their
organizing task. Any business agent
will be greatly aided in his work if
he can get actual figures concerning
the number of plumbers, for instance,
or truckmen, in his State or his city,
and these figures will be available for
all States and for the larger cities.
"Among the other censuses taken
in 1910, along with the decennial
count of population, are the biennial
Census of Manufacturers, and the
| Census of Business which was first
taken in 1880 and again in 1888 and
| 1885. These, and the Census of Mines
and Quarries, all of which begin on
January End, offer labor invaluable
indices to job opportunities, for it is
one of the functions of these special
censuses to report the number of sal
aried and wage employees used in all
of the various industries and busi-
nesses of the country.
IA trend indicating a large in
crease in employment in manufacture
of rayon, for instance, can be seen
in the comparative figures of rayon
production for 1929 and 1887; in 1929,
66 million square yards; in 1887, 957
million.
"At the same time, the gradual in
dicate to the wide awake trade union
ist the necessity for changing OBJ
solescence of other industries will
policies on membership and appren-
ticeship in these fields. A careful
study of these reports will give labor
really clear picture of the indus
trial scene in America as it affects
the worker.
Housing Data Will BE Obtained
"Finally, the situation concerning
housing facilities has become of such
vital national interest in America
that the Bureau of the Census is for
the first time in it's history taking
complete and accurate inventory of
all dwelling units.
Accurate reports on the age of
each house or apartment or fiat will
be obtained; on the number of rooms,
the type of construction, the elements
Of sanitation which it contains (bath
tubs, running water, etc.; the owner
ship status, and, as important as any
of the above, the extent of over
crowding in each house, when there
is any.
Moreover, the survey will show
the number of vacant dwellings in the
country, together with their esti-
mated rental or sale price. This ma