The Waterbury Democrat., 1942-02-12

responsibility to prove that it can
contribute something to manage
ment. Labor must therefore put an
end to any of its own practices
which are economic wastes, which
tend to curtail production which in
crease costs unnecessarily, which
are bad management. Labor leader
ship, in other words, has assumed
the responsibility of proving to
management that labor can contri-
butte as much about management as
management itself.
This is no mere battle of theory.
Labor leaders won't talk about it
much outside of labor circles, but
within the unions themselves there
is a definite conflict between the
younger, smarter, more progressive
element and the old time organizers.
These veteran local union officials
still stick to policies of limiting the
number of apprentices trained in
any given trade, keeping the number
OF women in an industry at an alb
solute minimum because women can
be hired at lower pay than men
and therefore tend to keep the wage
scales low, opposing training with
in-industry programs which tend to
upgrade skilled employees and teach
those Skills to less skilled workers
who thus become competitors for
jobs, obstructing the Introduction of
chronological advances like pre-
fabricated housing which at first
tend to be labor saving, maintain
ing "make-work" practices which
require the duplication of unproduc-
tive work, and so on.
co COOPERATION
PLANS TRIED
Department of Labor recently
made a study OF the growth of this
movement for union management
cooperation, now one of labors
principal detectives in speeding con-
version of industries from civilian
consumer goods to war production
The idea gained considerable head
way during the Coolidge boom, but
most of the early experiments were
ended by the depression of 1898,
when competition for jobs was every
wage earner's principal worry.
In some of the experiments, the
idea of labor management co-opera-
ton is carried to the extent OF hav-
ing union funds loaned. to COM
pany for expansion, the sponsoring
OF sales and advertising campaigns
to promote the company's business,
joint lobbying for legislation favor
able to an industry, and co-opera-
ton TO prevent bankruptcy of the
employer and resulting loss of jobs
for the employees.
Baltimore and Ohio Railroad was
one of the pioneers in this labor
management cooperation policy. In
1928, in one shop, b. az o. set up
system OF shop committees to eli
inmate Wasteful production. The ex-
pertinent worked, and the idea was
extended to the whole system. The
Springfield, Mass, division of West
inghouse Electric adopted a similar
program in 1887.
A die casting plant in PottstoWn,
Pa, has q production research pro-
gram, jointly financed by manage
ment and labor
Steel Workers Organizing Com
mittee since 1887 has offered a plan
OF cooperation with management in
plants where the union is recognize
ed, but few establishments have ac-
cepted 1t.
Hosiery, millinery and clothing
industries have probably advanced
this idea of labor management CO.
operation the farthest, eliminating
with the agreement OF year ago
in which the International Ladies
Garment Workers union and the
New York City dress industry set
up a program to increase efficacy
and sales.