The Butler County press. [volume] (Hamilton, Ohio) 1900-1946, 1942-08-07
FACING
THE -
FACTS
With PHILIP PEARL

Too many people are trying to make
hay while the war lasts. Everybody is
trying to take his bit, from petty
profteering to wholesale hoggery.
And, as usual, the workers are caught
in the middle.
Price control and rent control were
supposed to stop raids on the poor
mans pocketbook. But the raids still
continue. The cost of living is still
going up. Mr.. Henderson's ceilings
are full of holes. They are made of
rubber in many instances or they just
don't cover enough territory.
Now the worker has nothing to sell
but his labor. He can't cheaper his
product "on account of the war" He
can't offer less expensive service for
greater profit ''on account of priori-
ties" On the contrary, he has to work
harder and produce more to win the
war. He is giving more and getting
less.
Yet when the worker, MIXED dry by
myriad profteers, asks for higher
wages so he and his family can get
enough to eat and carry on, great
hue and cry is raised about Initiation"
To say that higher wages cause in
fiation is just as foolish and evil as
Hitler's contention that Holland and
Belgium were menacing Germany's
borders.
No 'Pie" for Labor
Higher wages are not the cause but
the inevitable result of imitation. La
Dor is not invading the national econ
omy for purposes of plunder. 1t is
standing it's ground in sheer self
defense. Labor is not getting any
"pie." 1t is being handed crust.
Before going any further with this
statement of facts, let US admit that
we are not an expert economist. In
fact, we have deep and instructive
distrust of professional economists,
knowing from past experience how
figures may be juggled to prove any
| lie.
| But it seems to us matter of plain
common-sens that American workers
today are earning lot more than
they are getting. In other words, their
productivity has increased tremen-
dously. One has only to read news
paper reports of ships being built in
half the time previously required to
get concrete proof of this point. And
this increased productivity is not linn
tied to shipyards. Every war industry
is breaking production records and
beating production schedules.
Now labor is paid on time basis.
So if workers produce an article in
less time, it follows that the labor
cost per unit must be cut down. And
since the number of units produced
has mounted SO greatly, the savings
in labor costs are CORRESPONDENCE
heightened.
All of this is incontrovertible. But
while this is happening and while la
Dor is saving the government and in.
dustry many millions of dollars, the
real wages of the workers are being
slashed by profteering and initiation
And that means that while the work
ers are earning more, they are getting
less.
The Same Old Greed
Unless the workers are given par
of the savings in labor costs which
they are achieving by their own toll
America will be killing the goose tha
lays the golden egg.
4 It takes money to live and keel
strong and healthy. The workers ar
earning this money. But they are no
getting it. Therefore, the more thei
standards are reduced the less eficien
their work will become.
The answer is obvious-pay tn
workers little more toward wha