Economic essays

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Identifikator:: 1753623200

URN:: urn:nbn:de:zbw-retromon-136107

Document type:: Monograph

Title:: Economic essays

Place of publication:: New York

Publisher:: Macmillan

Year of publication:: 1927

Scope:: viii, 368 S.; Ill., graph. Darst.

Digitisation:: 2021

Collection:: Economics Books

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Document type:: Monograph

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Title:: Eight-hour theory in the american federation of labor / Henry Raymond Mussey

Collection:: Economics Books

242 ECONOMIC ESSAYS IN HONOR OF JOHN BATES CLARK | ing of the cost. The productivity analysis, despite Mr. Gompers’ contempt for the economists, has really come to take first place in the wage thinking of the Federation leaders. The shift is plain enough in the thought of Mr. Gompers himself. In 1909 he quotes census figures to show increased per capita production, and then argues that “the wage-earner should by every logical reason reap the benefits of labor-saving machines and labor- saving systems, so he could participate in the industrial progress and the blessings of civilization with fewer hours of daily toil and more hours for leisure and opportunities for recuperation, study, and reflection to better fit the workers for the highest thought and activity of citizenship” *—which is sound enough economics, but is a complete reversal of the fiery old eight-hour gospel; for that gospel made it necessary only to shorten hours in order to increase wages and production, while the newer doc- trine points out that it is the increase of production which has made possible at the same time increased wages and shorter hours. as This shift of emphasis in Federation thought during the present century from distribution and consumption in the direction of production, the academic economist may fairly enough regard as a triumph for sound thinking. Without doubt union thought has been obliged to take cognizance of a body of fact almost wholly neglected in earlier days; but it is questionable whether a basic change from a standard-of-living to a productivity theory of wages is likely to prove a wholly unmixed blessing to the labor movement, unless it be accompanied by other theoretical develop-| ment. Possibly it was an uneasy recognition of this doubt which led the Executive Council of the Federation to ask the Denver Convention for authority to investigate wage theories in order, as stated in their report for the following year, “to develop a comprehensive, well-considered theory capable of real service in the practical problems of determining wages.” * In making this request, the Executive Council said: “There are but two avenues leading to permanent higher standards of living for our people as a whole. One of these is the elimination of waste, either in the form of mismanagement or of undue exploitation and profiteer- ing. The other is increased productivity. Both must be traveled ' Proceedings, 1909, p. 26. ® Ibid. 1921, p. 69; 1922 p. 34.

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