Wages and Work
Page 23
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BRITAIN is rapidly approaching the time, if this has not already been reached, when greater consideration must be given to the problem of relating wages to economics.
The spate of rising costs has slowed during the past year or two, but it must at least soon be 'dammed and even lowered if our export -markets are to be retained, let alone increased. The cornparative boom in these has almost ceased, some countries are becoming to a varying extent, selfsufficient, and both in them and others, there is increasing competition against British goods Germany and Japan are making rapid progress and if there comes in the future anything like an appreciable reduction in the purchasing power of the American people, the U.S.A. producers would, no doubt, augment the flood of their goods to the export markets..
All this means that British manufacturers will be increasingly required to employ the most knowledgeable and energetic salesmanship and supply the highest possible value in respect of the quality of their wares at prices which will encourage foreign buyers.
Production Too Expensive Even in the home market, conditions are becoming difficult-, ship building is one example, but there are many others. The engineers, including those employed in this work, are clamouring for a 15 per cent, rise in wages, yet the costs of building a ship are already far too high, and the time taken from the laying down of the keel to the launching often exceeds by many months the period agreed 'upon by the respective parties.
One important shipping line which for many years have had their vessels built by a certain yard in Scotland, said flatly at a recent meeting that they could not be expected to continue to receive new ships, possibly in the region of a year late, and at a cost of, perhaps, £100,000 each above the estimates. They threatened, indeed, to take their orders to Germany.
This indicates that it is not sufficient to believe patriotism can be stretched indefinitely. High capital costs for, say, a means for transport, whether it be a ship or a motor vehicle, cannot, on economic grounds, be related to the lowering of freights or fares, particularly when the personnel concerned in operating it may all be highly paid for shorter hours of labour than were the average a few years ago.
The engineers and others who are making what may be considered as excessive demands, would be well advised to think again. There are no great surpluses of cash from which these could be met; instead the costs of the products concerned would inevitably, rise and it is well kaown that if these are too high, sales tend to fall, so that the total receipts may well be below those previously obtained.
Danger -of Unemployment Employment is at present almost at its peak, and it is to be hoped that it will remain in this happy position. It is, however, a matter of critical bala.ncing---a hide too much on one side might seriously upset the whole equilibrium. The position could then easily arise that there would be fewer people in employment earning high wages and a great many returning to unemployment benefit. For how long could such a situation continue?
Those who are now making excessive demands might consider lowering their inflated standards, for markets once. lost are difficult to regain, because competitors with lower overhead costs, may have stepped into the breach andestablished strong positions.
This would entail an all-round reduction in the standard of living in this country, because we would not be able to afford to purchase abroad the vast quantities of raw materials and foodstuffs which are essential to a high standard of production and comfort. We must sell or starve, and whether we do one or the other depends very largely upon the good sense or foolishness of the workers, and in this term are included all those responsible, whatever their positions in the overall business of production.