Evening star., 1945-01-25
ext Of Wallace Statement Outlining Proposals for Good Life

jobs are made available to keep the
total from falling significantly below
that figure. This Is the floor below
which we must not allow employ
ment to fall.
The basic function Of your Gov
ernment in taking care of any such
slack In jobs is to see to it that pri-
vate enterprise is assisted until it
can absorb this slack. This is en-
tirely possible. During the war the
Federal, State and local governments
have found it necessary to put aside
the construction of roads, buildings
and public facilities to the value of
many billions Of dollars. We have
q need. too. for vast programs of
the type exemplified by iva.
Should Be Timed.
Some Of this construction will
have to be undertaken Immediately
after the war. A good deal OF 1t,
however, can be postponed SO that
its construction could be timed with
periods when the volume OF en-
ployment that industry, commerce
and agriculture can offer begins
to fall. We must have a reservoir OF
planned and approved Federal,
State and local projects ready to be
tapped. And when employment falls
below this floor of $4,000 jobs,
this reservoir of planned and ap-
proved public works should be
opened up to provide more jobs and
take up the slack.
Such useful and essential public
works should not produce Govern
ment relief" jobs, however. No, they
should produce private jobs This is
possible If we insist that this con-
struction be done by private firms
under contract with the Govern
ment; private firms employing labor
at the prevailing rate of wages and.
under standard labor conditions.
This assurance of a reserve of pri-
vate jobs, through constructive pub
lie works when needed to take up
the slack, will have a profound
effect on the whole direction of our
economy. In fact, the knowledge
that Government accepts this re-
sponsibility of maintaining floor
under jobs will act as an immense
stabilizing force on the whole
economy.
II.
The second economic right is "the
right to earn enough to provide food
and clothing and recreation"
America must remain pre-emi-
nently the land of high wages and
ehicient production. Every job in
America must provide enough for a
decent living.
Asks Labor Safeguards.
! During the war we have been
compelled to hold down wage in
creases that might have provoked
runaway imitation. With all the
arms and war materials we were
producing, there was only a limited
amount of consumption goods avail
able. Increasing wages without in
creasing the amount of goods avail
able to the consumer would have
been an open invitation to imitation.
However, the end of the war, even
the end of the war in Europe, will
change this picture. Then there will
be more goods available for America
to buy and 1t is only good common
sense to see that the workingman
is paid enough to buy these goods.
The gains made by labor during
the war must be retained in full.
After the last war, as part of the
process of returning to 'normalcy,"
the slogan labor must be deflated''
was adopted. This must not happen
again. This time we must make sure
that wage rates are not reduced
when the wartime demand for labor
is diverted into peacetime channels.
We must make sure that the labor
market is not broken by unemploy-
ment and wage slashes.
Would Maintain Wages.
American labor should be assured
that there are not going to be any
wage cuts after this war. What is
even more important-when the
workers hours are cut back to peace
time levels real attempt must be
made to adjust wage rates upward.
And wages should be constantly
increased as the productivity of in
dustry Is increased. An expanding
American economy can continue to
expand only If the increased pro-
ductivity is divided equitably be-
tween business and the worker. In
fact-you know, and I know-that
unless the worker does get his share
Of Americas increased production
in the form Of increased wages and
unless business gets its share in the
form of increased profits neither
will prosper and all-businessman,
wage Garner and farmer-will lose
But an increase in wages is not
the only benefit the American work
er should secure from increased
productivity. He should also bene-
At in the form of shorter hours of
work, in the form of increased
leisure and opportunities for health
full recreation. Thus, increased
wages and shorter hours 60 hand in
hand in solving prosperity the
American way.
There is one further aspect of the
wage earner'S problem that I would
like to comment on. That is his
aspiration for an annual wage or
guaranteed annual income from his
job. 1t is terribly important part
of any real attempt to implement
Americas economic bill of rights.
The size Of the wage earner's pay
envelope Is important-vitally i'm
portant to American prosperity.
But we all know that it is equally
important to know how many pay
envelopes he gets during q year.
would like to see him get guaran-
teed minimum annual wage and I
think the time has come for Ameri-
ca to begin tackling this most Diff
cult problem.
Will Be Long Task.
Now this goal cannot be attained
overnight. 1t cannot be achieved
in a manner to harm business. Nor
can it be achieved with the same
speed in every business.
But we can start on the job of