The people's voice. [volume] (Helena, Mont.) 1939-1969, 1945-09-21

PEACE DEPENDS
ON 0YMENT

lVNEWTLVImENk
Keynotes to labor's postwar pro
gram is full employment and guar
anteed annual income Full employ
ment is predicated on full production
as we have learned from the war We
shall have to attain close to a $780,
00,000,000 national income in order
to gainfully employ our total labor
force approximately 60,0000OO peo-
ple). This means that our national
productive plant will have to operate
at capacity or near-capacity. We know
that the tremendous potentialities of
the home market and the foreign mar
ket are sufficient to aborb this ire
mendous product
| With industry's willingness to meet
| the demands of these markets, Ameri-
can labor has at hand great oppor-
tunity to strike forward for its pro-
gram of full employment Wartime
levels of production will have to be
maintained and the continued exist
ence of stable labor relations thus be-
comes a fact of first Importance. I'm
der these conditions the postwar role
of labor-management o mi tie s
energies in clear outline. For, every
instrument that can enhance the pos
sibilities of steady full production in
every plant serves to strengthen the
economic structure and guarantee full
employment.
In such a setting labor relations
must continue stable because there is
a joint desire of labor and manage
ment to keep output high. Disturbing
questions of wages, hours, working
subside as production and manpower
remain in high demand. You will
recognize this picture as a projection
of wartime conditions. Unity of pur-
pose behind maximum production in
peace has been substituted for unity
of purpose behind production for war.
This picture is by no means vision
airy. 1t isn't certain to occur, but it
most certainly can-given labor and
management's joint desire to recog-
nize a common stake in achieving a
stable postwar economy with high
level of national output.
Management Not United
Labor earnestly wants full produc-
ton, so much is obvious. But what
about management? The evidence
here is contradictory Management
circles are not of one mind on this
score.
Eric Johnson, chamber of commerce
president, has signed a labor-manage-
ment charter" with the CLIO and AFL,
setting forth mutual acceptance OF
certain principles that will tend to
keep labor relations stable in the post
war years. However, the National
of Manufacturers has de-
clined to join in this agreement. Main
reason for it's reluctance to sign the
Charter" N. A. M. says, is its inten-
ton of campaigning for revisions in
laws or bills favorable to labor. All
three signatories have treasured N.
A. M. that no such restriction is in
tended by the charter" but N. A. nj.
is still holding out. Important aspect
of the situation is the fact that the
N. A. NJ is working to turn the Ia
Dor relations clock back. This is what
worries labor, for it means renewed
struggles on the industrial front and
reduced levels of production at a time
when our economic goals should be
for cooperation and full production.
Full employment may be sacrificed for
unemployment and economic insecur-
ity.
The committee for economic devel- |
opment, in the main a forward look
ing body of leading industrialists, has |
on several occasions manifested re-
luctance to speak in terms of full en-
ployment, prefering rather to talk of
high employment. Such word-jumping |
only serves to aggravate suspicion |
that labor and management may not
be talking the same language.
Already, there are signs of a pro-
duction let-down, of maintaining out
put at the "break-even" rate. Gov
officials are expressing con-
Germ over the fact that reconverting
industries are manifesting disturb
ing reluctance to plan future produc-
ton schedules beyond the break
even" rate, where costs are kept to
a minimum and profits are relatively |
high. This condition plagued steel |
workers for many years before the
war and contributed scarce and inse-
Continued on Page Three)