The Michigan chronicle. [volume] (Detroit, Mich.) 1936-current, 1945-02-17
THE FACTS
m OUR NEWS

S~s>~s>~~s~~s~~~~~~~~
The Possibility Of Full Employ
ment After The War - Many peo-
pie In this country are living in
a dream world about the question
Of full employment after the war.
Everybody Is talking about the fact
that we must have no more de-
pressions after this war II the
! American way Of life Is to survive.
This would be funny II II were not
so tragic. II Is tragic because the
returning soldier will expect Amer
lean politicians and business men
TO live up to the promises made
them. II Is tragic also because
people on the home front will ex-
pect the opportunity to work and
earn a living In decency and Sc
curity, because Of what their sons
have done on a foreign battle
field. Tragic. In the third place,
because nobody who has the au-
thority and the power to do so Is
planning for a full employment
after the war. 49,.
Our industrial and, political lead
ers are doing a lot of wishful
thinking about full employment
Our law makers are acting in re-
lationship TO this question as il II
were something that came about
with the manipulation OF some
mystical process
Certain of our law makers in
Washington are saying now that
the only way we can have full en-
plOyment is to leave business free
TO guarantee full employment
Business is claiming that IL can
give full employment II govern
ment will leave II free to do So
Business maintains that the great
savings of the masses Of people
made by the purchase Of war bonds
will stimulate buying. and there
fore create jobs to meet the de-
mands of the general public. They
argue further that labor cost will
he lower after the war. and there
fore the manufacturer of consump-
ton goods Is in a better position
to meet competition and to guaran-
tee goods. Business people argue
further that new discoveries of
gadgets and other material pro-
cesses for creating consumption
goods will give hundreds of thou
sands of jobs to people.
This premise as advanced by
American business and some poll
tcians IN this country must4imme-
diately be examined by the people
OF this country IL the people Of
this country are TO guarantee 70
themselves economic security IN
postwar world
In the first place. the savings
that people are building up through
the purchase of war bonds will
not he available for the purchase
of consumption goods II the people
who have saved are not given
immediate assurance after the war
that they will have the oppor-
tunity TO work. In other words,
IL has been estimated that II will
take anywhere from three months
to six months to change over from
the manufacture Of war materials
to the consumption goods manufac-
ture. II this Is true. people will
Immediately begin to horde their
savings to put of as. long as they
can a sense of insecurity.
This. in turn. will force indus
try 10 wait before it goes into a
wholesale production that will give
many jobs TO people. This waiting
period can easily be the undoing
of American industry and the
American way of life which so
many of us feel is~important
Soldiers will not stand for this
waiting period when they want
Jobs and security for themselves
and their families. Their minds
will be filled with tales of hOrding
by the civilian of money earned
at the expense Of the men who
gave up opportunity and life. This
thinking on the part Of the vets
cran will have to be met with
actual work opportunities.
Business maintains also that gov
eminent has hampered its expan-
sion. This statement must be
looked into very carefully by the
American people. What business
really means by this statement is
that government in many instances
has prevented il from setting up It's
own machinery 10 work against
what il calls tho insecurity of the
market. Business has done this
through It's numerous cartelS which
prevents certain types Of goods
from having 10 20 through the
ri2ors Of competition TO survive.
When this * true. profit can al
ways be guaranteed TO the mem
bers OF the cartel without cuaran-
teein5' proportionate number Of
jobs.
The one agency in the life Of our
country today that can guarantee
full employment after the war Is
the United States Government.
This does not mean that the United
states Government has to 60 into
business either, The Congress Of
the United States should now be
dealing with a plan whereby 1t
can say TO every returning veteran
and every able bodied civilian that
jobs will he guaranteed. To illus
tratc The point. let us take the
hank crash that swept the country
during our last depression After
this bank crash. people lost con-
fdence in our banking institutions.
The Federal government immcdi-
aicly used the power OF the Con-
2resS 10 guarantee the savings OF
people placed in private banks.
To the amazement Of people who
opposed the Federal government
making such a guarantee. the Fed
cral government has rarely had to
make good its guarantee. This Is
true because the very fact that the
people guarantee their own saw
ings through their Federal gov
eminent makes il unnecessary for
the Federal government to ever do
more than to set up a plan and TO
issue a statement that II will secure