Evening star., 1943-10-17
Hope for Years Ahead
Inspires Conditions rs
By James Waldo Faucet,

of Statistics on September 10 reported
that "in spite of the continued absorp-
ton of men and women into the armed
forces, the workers employed in the
eight leading industries increased by Dol
per cent in the Is months ended July II
1t was stipulated that this figure did
not include agricultural workers. Neither
did It embrace fishermen, government
employees and professional people-doc-
tors, dentists, nurses teachers, etc.
| more important observation, how
ever, is that during little over two
| years the aggregate weekly payrolls for
the Canadian workers actually listed in
creased by 45.7 per cent This means
| that people in Canada are earning more
and that the number of those thus ad-
vantaged constantly is being added to.
In manufacturing alone the roster Of
workers increased 348 per cent and their
weekly wages 651 per cent.
| The Statistics Bureau summarized its
| conclusions in these words: THE average
! Canadian wage-earner was better off
| than he was in 1941."
| Somewhat differently expressed, the
truth is that the war has profited the
working class-that is, everybody-in
Canada. To provide against any sudden
| cataclysmlc change when the conflict
ends, Committee on Reconstruction,
described as "an advisory body which is
conducting studies and researches in the
economic and social life" of the Domin-
ion, has been set up. DR.. F. Cyril James,
principal OF McGill University, Montreal,
| is the chairman. He has as his assist
ants some of the most notably talented
scholars available When hostilities are
concluded or soon thereafter, these spe-
cialists declare, the government will have
to find civilian jobs for perhaps as many
as 100000 men and women now in uni
form and another 100000 currently
building ships, planes, tanks etc.
DR.. James explains that both in Can
ada and in the United States there will
be "a greatly expanded industrial ca
pacity, a vastly increased supply Of
skilled labor and a large potential de-
mand for goods and services" All these,
he says, imply possibility of consid-
cradle postwar prosperity" provided that
there is "a backlog of buying power in
the hands Of the public" resulting from
the present control of imitation through
the governance of wages and prices.
This management of economic cir
cunstances was discussed a few weeks
ago by James A. MacKinnon, Minister
| Of Trade and Commerce as follows:
The incidence of prices control, the
freezing of wages and salaries, rationing,
government participation in and sub
sidizing of essential industry the fixing
Of priorities and the drastic reduction
in domestic consumption of less es-
| sential products = have been insti-
tuted with one main object, viz. to
enable Canada to take more effective
part in the winning of the present
struggle" yet while Canada, as a ma
ton, is straining every sinew to play
worthwhile part in winning this victory.
the problems that will have to be faced
in the postwar period are not being
ignored
Only relatively few Americans may
remember it, but Mr. MacKinnon goes on
to remind them that: Canada and the
| United States have worked out an agree
ment, made public on December !, 1912,
by which the two countries agree to CO.
operate in plans for postwar economic
settlements along lines laid down in the
Atlantic Charter of August, 1941 The
program includes: Expansion of produc-
ton, employment, the exchange and
consumption of goods on an interna tionaI
scale for the common good and the
elimination of all forms of discrim-
inatory treatment in international COM
merce and the reduction of tariffs and
trade barriers"
Not every Canadian reasons as Mr..
MacKlnnon does, but the average man
or woman an American visitor meets in
Toronto, Ottawa Montreal or Quebec
is not depressed, does not anticipate a
panic, slump or famine after the
AXIS powers have been defeated With
out having the genius 10 express their
thought in fancy words" the people of
the Dominion echo Charlotte Whitton.
who, in her essay on Security for
Canadians" affirms: The well-served
modern state will seek first the planning
OF its economic life on the basis Of
maximum self-supporting gainful occu-
patton for all its people 1t will create
essential social utilities to assure their
maximum good health, education and
general well-being. 1t will develop
social assistance measures for the un-
| predlctable or unassessable needs that
threaten to impair their capacity for
self-support, and 1t will round out its
defenses by social insurance for those
needs arising from risks that are
susceptible to actuarial anticipation and
| underwriting
Inc connotatlons of such philosophy
are not necessarily socialistic in the
| ordinary meaning of that term. On the
contrary, they are democratic and
Hberalistic in character. They would not
reduce the people of Canada to a pro-
lerarlan condition as Marxism probably
would. Certainly, they are not
monopoly nor vested interest" of the
radicals. The main differences between
the programs of the government of
Prime Minister w. L. Mackenzie King
and the new Cooperative Common
wealth Federation, captained by M. j.
Coldwell, are matters of method. Pres
sure from the Left will influence the
policies of the Right. Meanwhile, most
Canadians appear to be content to leave
the details Of the planning to the
acknowledged experts. The determine