The Waterbury Democrat., 1943-09-07
Catholic Thought And Opinion
By REV. JOSEPH F. DONNELLY

BubukSAo pAAAo1OPAAt A0E V CU0pl0 VI hours, asked him: How did they elect Q man like you president of the Chamber of Con1rnerce?"
 MT. Johnson seems in the van- guard of an awakening American business. He is friendly towards labor leaders and he wants capital and labor to cooperate more or less as equals. His three plants in seat- tie function as closed shops. The most recent expression of his ad. vanced business theory was written in the N. r. Times magazine of August 22.
 T am not for going back to the good old days'," he wrote. ''More. over I am not convinced that we could if we would. For whom were they goodp doubt if they were good for anybody. Business has paid the price of it's cpmplacency. has learned it's lesson. It must have a positive, forwafd-loolSing attitude to keep in tune with eur dynamic economy. .."
 NEW POLICY
 "Collective bargaining" he writes in another paragraph, lis accepted today as . desirable part of the system; fifteen years ago 1t was the businessmail's anatheYna.
 And think of that word plan ming. Fifteen years ago he looked upon planning as socialistic. Now he sees that Q well-planned business or marketing venture Is the most profitable kind. It is nothing more that the introduction of or- derly thinking into an, area in which nasty, unconsidered decision has been the rule"
 A few months ago in the lead arti- cle in Readers Digest MT. Johnson went 50 far as to defend the right of government to step in when busi- ness has failed to live up to It's ob- ligations. It is the light of the bit- terly hostile attitude of business towards government interference in the past, and It's loyal allegiance to Adam Smiths laissez-faire, either the Chamber of Commerce iS radical ly changing or MT. Smith may ex- pect to be discreetly sacked.
 ANOTHER SIGN
 But almost equally hopeful was the presidential address of Edwin c. Nourse of the Brookings Institute to the American Economic Associa- ton. Reading it one finds an afanity to the program of Leo XIII and Plus xI not only in the ideas but even in the language.
 Of the position of labor In the conduct of industry he takes the hitherto almost heritical position that labor should share in manage ment, that collective bargaining ex- tends beyond the administration of work prices. He says that the spirit of war and struggle between the two is out of place for the two parties are mutually indispensable or func- tionally equal" He insists that there must be honesty in the dealings be- tween the two. Business must give labor the facts of the industry and there should be 0 private but group organized direction of business" !" How much this last sounds like the occupational grouping of Q recon- structed society as outlines by PtuA XII
 NEW LEADERS
 Another Idea of President Nourse which has already been recognised by labor aS Q need is his assertion that experts and professional Spe- claMsts are needed by labor to guide the collective bargaining into right and mutually satisfactory channels
 The labor leader who has been shaped by much pounding is highly valuable when labor union Is or ganizing and seeking recognition But c broader and more constructive leadership is called for in the pro- gress of collective bargaining and many times the hot.blooded warrior does not meet the test.
 Tn this vein and both far-sighted and true is the suggestion of Clinton Golden, assistant to the president of the Steel Workers of America and Harold Ruttenberg, former research director Of the Steel Workers, the joint authors of The Dynamics of Industrial Democracy" who look tc the day when 1t will not be the ex- ceptional union leader who brings to the conference table special uni- verSity training to defend the rights of the rank and file. Already Har- yard and other institutions of learn ing are offering courses and scholar ships to union leaders.