The people's voice. [volume] (Helena, Mont.) 1939-1969, 1945-09-07
WHY UNEMPLOYMENT?

Tn a previous issue of The Voice, attention called
to the strike by industries being staged to fight
limitation extortion of profits from the consuming public
which the Office Price Administration enforcing The
General Electric and the radio producing companies were
According reliable reports 100000 workers were de-
prved of work and by the stdown strike OF the rado
manufacturers General Electric apparently intends to
washing machines for which there is an urgent
need but state that the machines will not be placed on the
until the free to set its own prices on them
And it is reasonable assume that such prices when
fixed will include tremendous profits to the company mat
is "free enterprise" in operation.
We have remarked that the radio manufacturing work
ers deprived of jobs might well undertake the manufacturing
of radios instead of walking the streets unemployed
waiting for comparative small group like the present owners
of the manufacturing facilities permission to
limited profits out of the buying public The workers failure
to this shows lack of organizations in fact shows lack OF
intelligent evaluation of their own ability.
It that the workers possess the skill required in
the of manufacturing They would otherwise not
employed It is equally certain that the so-caed
could not produce radios without their services
All that these manufacturers have ever done TO distribute
the production With the present existing demand dsD
ton complex problem.
It is we'll known that we the government factory
buildings production tools and machinery galore Why do not
the radio workers. and other workers unemployed cooperate
in the purchasefrom themselves the
facilities manufacturing radios and other products
for which there existing demand Evidently they lack
understanding, Imagination and organization.
for example that each of the 100000 I'M
employed ration manufacturing workers could contribute $25
each as capital investment which should be too far
fetched assumption this tme when they have been
uary employed for quite time the past at good
This would amount to SIS 900 900 and should be enough
good downpayment at least factory and equipment and
margin of operating capital to start with Perhaps all
of these workers could work in the plant but it
certainly probable that those not employed could get work
in branches of industry which supply materials to that
particular plant
entire country has stake in this Assuming that the
average of the 100000 workers presently unemployed
only SIS per day. This means loss of $1O0OOOO in pur
chasing for each day they unemployed And aside
from that the social Implications the effect the families
the unemployed and the unemployed themselves of the
lack the amount of security they had while employed
cannot be national e dollars and cents
1t is predicted that in short time shall have eight
million unemployed workers in the country We believe it is
high for the leaders of great labor organizations to
stop damnng the indusra for not providing jobs and
undertake have labor supply its jobs Call this
munism if you like and make the most of it, Everyone
that the national cannot stand under the
weight that number of unemployed for length of time
may fit the unreasoning of scarcity and high
prices for short time but may be safely asserted
that it hazardous and entirely out of place in de-
mocracy such
is time to think and to act Let fight for de-
mocracy and make it work