The sub., 1943-10-21
Mach. Shop Office
By Ogden Driggs

the trOSCS nave Cerm1naCeU our garden club activities, conversa- tions drop to a whisper at the ap- proach of your correspondent, and there is in general such 8 calm as
 would indicate a real storm abrew- ing in the MSO. However, the
 storm never breaks although we hang on from issue to issue in
 hopes.
 A few days ago a friend stopped us and with a broad grin an- nounced that he had read the col umn. We acknowledged the com-
 pliment graciously, although with an unmistakable swelling of the chest, when he added that it wasn't really that good, but with the ma terial at our disposal 1t was prob ably all right. We have wept on Lou Aliens shoulder to guest write or ghoSt-write to save the situation, but he is too smart
 So, after extending hearty wei come to Randall B. Newbury, who has just become entangled in Les Tourtellotte'S troupe, we shall di- gress from our usual obituaries to something nearer the writer's heart.
 Iris rumored (number 1O15-D that management is really coming f0 0r fnh ch raise the Union considerably in the esteem of the employees of the Boat Company. In view of this added influence of the Union 1t seems an appropriate time to men, ton any ideas that might be con- Structive.
 We believe unions have now come of age and should become re- sponsible and respectable. Right issues are not settled by violence. A union conducted on the highest moral plane can, in our opinion, be a tremendous success. We be- lieve in the freedom of choice, and therefore must oppose coercion of O G1OSOO S11OP. 41OWCVC1s I1C1C 1S no reason in the world why this Union cannot be so good that no one can afford not to join.
 The greatest single universal praise the Union can provide ex- clusively for it's members is in ser vices and savings it can offer. If, for sake of argument, members paid dues of dollar a week, it is obvious the Union could spend $52.O0 in the course of a year to far greater advantage than could a single individual.
 Would it not be far easier to ac- Quire new members if the Union provided a service station at the parking space where members cars could be kept in condition for small annual fee? Legal aid, hos pitalization, medical aid, and in- Surance that would really cover all expenses, possibly day nurser- ies in certain communities, recre- ational and vacation facilities are only a few of the legitimate activi- ties of union. It is the direct re- spOnSibility of the union to see to it that some postwar activity is determined upon for the obvious benefit of employees and the com munity as whole. Otherwise, a man would do well to make a name for himself elsewhere.
 And in dealing with manage ment, it is important to put first things first and push the most inn portant, constructive suggestion to minimize friction. A quantity of constantly idle machinery in shop that is farming out more and more work calls for an explanation from the management before ab- senteeism is criticised. The hard est job in the world is to loaf, yet if work is not provided, the men can hardly be blamed
 The psychological angle of what makes a worker really produce should be thoroughly analysed. The attitude of the personnel de- partment towards workers is very important, and in dire need of thorough revision. If workers can only be found by scraping the bot tom of the barrel, chances are that conditions in the plant are such that only those at the bottom of the barrel will stick with the job. The labor market is competitive.