Milford chronicle., 1943-04-16
SOLDIERS AT FRONT CAN'T
WAIT

One OF the most perplexing prob
lens confronting the nations wal
production plants today is personal
absenteeism. This question and
means OF solving it are receiving
the attention OF high government
tai authorities, for the combined
absenteeism in all our war plants
in any one day represents a stag
gering total of lost man-hours OF
work.
Closely associated with absen-
teeism is the factor OF rapidly
changing production schedules
caused by the shifting fortunes Of
war. Officials admit that much alb
senteeism may be attributed di-
rectly to employees belief that If a
plant reduces its working sched-
ule from seven or six days a week
to four or three days, then it is Of
minor importance whether a work
er takes a day of now and then.
Nothing could be further from
the truth, and il would be wise for
every company to explain to its
employees just what production
schedules mean in the light of pro-
ducing goods for a nation fighting
global war. The fact is that re-
gardless of whether a plant is OPP
Grating "a hours day and seven
days a week, or eight hours day
and three days week, the arma-
ment being turned out at that plant
must be equivalent to all that poss-
IDLY could be produced during the
time it is operating.
There has come to hand an un-
usually clear explanation of why
such production conditions exist.
1t was made by E. F. Fisher, gem
eral manager of the Fisher Body
Division of General Motors, in re-
marks to employees when the Fish
er tank plants won the Army-Navy
"E." It would be well if these words
could be transmitted to every pro-
duction worker in the United
States.
Says Mr.. Fisher: There have
occurred in this and other of our I
plants what may have appeared
to you to be inexcusable Interrupt
tions in work. Ii certainly does not .
appear on the surface to be efficient
operation when we work long
hours of overtime and then find 1t
necessary to close down for a day
or two while waiting for materials
or necessary tool changes. Unless
all the facts are known such face
abouts may easily be interpreted
as managerial blunders, poor plan
ming, or even governmental ineffi-
cheney.
But we cannot operate, in war,
on the steady flow basis to which
we are accustomed in peace time.
Frequently engineering changes
are required Immediately to meet
the continually changing condi-
lions ON the fighting front. Ere
luently materials must be quickly
transferred to other and, for the
line being. more important pro-
ects. Sometimes schedules must
De changed in the middle of a days
PRODUCTION to meet an emergency
"That is war. That is what we
III are up against. But let us re-
member that the soldiers at the
ront cannot wait. When our boys
n the foxholes are running low on
munitions they can't take a few
lays off to wait for more. They
must fire every gun as long as it
will fire.
THAT is exactly what we on the
front must do-work to
each day with all the
at our command. Mate
ial shortage may have handicap
ed us yesterday; tomorrow the
overnment might find it neces-
ary to alter our entire program.
our job today is to
e on the job, producing all We
an the best we know how. Re
ardless of the consequences, we
lust gear our production to the
yer changing requirements of the
len at the front-not to the con-
enience of those of us working
afely at home"
This logical explanation might
,ell be given to every American
'orker.