The potters herald. [volume] (East Liverpool, Ohio) 1899-1982, 1942-09-17
Labor News From Brituin

nominees in his zone bur the poll was
secret and suitable places We're pro-
vided by the management as polling
booths in each zone.
The Committee thus elected got to
work at once under the chairmanship
of director of the company, who ex-
Dlained that the management repre-
scntatives were all drawn from i'm
pOrtant departments of production,
whilst some Of the employee repre-
sentatives We're shop stewards, but all
were elected by and responsible to
their fellow workers. He emphasized
the responsibilities attached to their
election, and urged that nothing must
deter members of the Committee from
bringing forward matters tending 10
save man hours and increase produc-
ton
Another example of how resOurceful
cooperation revOlutiOnized workshop
organization is afforded by an engineer
ing establishment in the Northwest
region. This plant did not exist two
years ago. 1t was built, planned out,
and had it's machinery fixed and fooled
up whilst the labor personnel was be-
ing engaged and trained. Engagement
of labor incidentally went on in a
peting for the best of the available
skilled labor. The plant started with a
| labor personnel comprising about I per
cent of skilled operatives, over 40 per
cent of unskilled and semi-skiled
workers over 80 per cent of the work
ers were females, and the staff in
cluded about ; per cent of apprentices.
! With so small a percentage of skilled
| operatives and SO high proportion of
woman labor. the problem in this plant
was to find methods Of utilizing un-
skilled labor
Here is one example of how this was
done. The women are engaged on making
crankS, shaft screws, spiders and hubs
for several types of airplanes. The
weight of these cOmponents is approx
heavy for a woman to lift. CnSkilled
men were therefore trained to feed the
machines, tightening chucks or crankS
and releasing the cOmponents This left
the woman free to do the operating. As
one man could look after six machines
all the batteries were kept running
and by this method the shop is pro
ducing 400 completed componentS pc,
week, and the output is still increasing
From high speed engineering practic.
to the harvest fields is Il considerable
stride. Here is an incident showing how
new techniques and primative customs
are mingled in this war Total supplies
of feeding stutfs for livestock are be
ing substantially reduced. The reduc
tion affects mainly the rations for pigs
and poultry This in turn affects foot
rations for the farm workers. Pigs anc
poultry play large part in the domes
tic economy of the countryside.
The wife of branch secretary of the
farm workers union had a brainwave
She wrote to the Union suggesting thai
eggs counted for much in the farm
workers home, and asked why the
farmer should not be asked to encour
age Il revival of the old custom o
cleaning after harvest, the cleaning:
to be used for poultry ratiOns. She sai(
that after the corn was cut in her dis
trict last year very little raking Wa:
done owing to shortage of time ant
labor. Many valuable tons of corn wer,
plOughed in. Women in the village.
would gladly have gathered Il lot o
it for their hens.
The Union acted promptly upon thi:
practical suggestion. At its request tn,
National Farmers Union undertook t,
circulariZe its county branches aSllin:
all farmers to allow their workers