The Omaha guide., 1945-06-16
The
Tou4~
Rep@AA
{ in WASHINGTON
BY Wolfer Sheod
\ WNU Correspondent
Mail From Home
WNU Washington Bureau
62I Union Trust Building.

week was swamped with postcards
and letters favoring the pay increase
for postal employees, testifying to
the efficacy Of the postal employees
organization. Next came "~gripes"
against the beleaguered OPA and
then there was a sorinkling of in
quiries concerning unemployment.
And that's important and leads to
the question. what is being done
in your community to combat any
prospective unemployment"
That there will be unemployment
OF both men and women during these
next few months Of cutbacks and re-
conversion is certain Workers viii
be laid off in certain war industries.
In other industries work time will be
shifted back to the 40-hour week with
a resultant decrease in overall pay
OF about 20 per cent.
1t is estimated here, however, that
approximately a million and a half
Jobs are readily available to these
unemployed from war plants. in the
small towns and rural communities
OF the nation. Farmers could read
lily use another million workers on
the farms.
Your filling stations are short
a man or two. The cream sta
ton, the groceries, hardware
stores, service shops, the depart
ment and general stores, the five
and ten and the variety stores,
the banks, restaurants, the CO.
operatives, the lumber yards
and feed mills, the garages, the
drug stores and even the ice
cream parlors, and the taverns
-. all these can use me or
more employees and immediate
ly.
Some Of these letters to the con-
greSSmen point out that business
men and others are loath to take on
additional help now for the reason
they exect war veterans home this
year who will apply for their old
jobs. 1t is true that some million
and a half veterans are to be re
leased by the army this year. The
records show, however, that of those
veterans, totaling than a mil
lion, who have been released up to
this time, less than 80 per cent have
APPLIED for their old jobs. The ex-
perience further shows, that in many
thousands of cases, these returning
veterans do not expect to go back to
work in their home towns. They want
to visit the folks, of course, but they
do not expect to settle down in the
same old job and circumstances they
left before the war. They plan diff
ferent work in different fields and in
what they consider greener pastures.
They have grown, their horizons
broadened and many thousands
will return to finish their education
under the provisions of the. G.I. Bill
Of Rights.
Some progressive towns have al
ready taken steps to publicize their
need for workers. The chamber of
commerce, or even service clubs.
such as Rotary, Kiwanis or Lions.
or in some instances committees
named by the mayor or town coun-
Gil have made careful surveys list
ing the needs of every business in
the town in the way of labor. Farm
organizations, or the county agent
have canvassed the farm territory
to determine the needs of the farm
ers for farm labor.
In some cases these lists have
been filed with the nearest United
States Employment office with excel
lent results. In other instances the To-
cal paper has undertaken a cam
paign to publicize the needs of the
town. If there is a local factory
which has been manufacturing a
war product and has been shut down
or likely will be shut down even
temporarily, this survey could
readily place the workers in your
own community. taking up the labor
slack without loss of time.
It is pointed out here that if every
small town and community in the
nation thus made known the labor
it could Immediately absorb, it
would not only be helpful to the mer-
chants and business men in the town.
increase the purchasing power Of
the community, but it would help
take up the slack in unemployment
to the tune of some 2h million work
ers without any lost motion.