Economic essays

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Monograph

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

Structure type:: Chapter

Title:: The static state and the technology of economic reform / Thomas Nixon Carver

Collection:: Economics Books

STATIC STATE AND THE TECHNOLOGY OF ECONOMIC REFORM 39 inordinately large incomes, those in Group E distressingly small incomes. In fact, it is found that the occupational inequality is always high in those countries where the educational system is not highly developed.® But if in the same country or one with a similar distribution of natural talent, a highly efficient educational system were intro- duced as a factor in changing the balance, results similar in prin- ciple to those illustrated in the third column might be expected to follow. If the better 50 per cent of those who, without educa- tion, would be compelled to follow the occupations in Group E, could be trained sufficiently to enable them to enter Group D, this would leave only 20 per cent of the total population in the condition of being compelled to follow some occupation in Group E. Again, if half of those who would, without education, be fitted only for occupations of the D group, were under the educational system promoted to the C group, and half of those who would, without education, have to follow the occupations of the C group, were enabled to move on to the B group and so on to the top, we would then find the possible occupational distribution represented by the third column. This shift in the occupational distribution of the populace would disturb the equilibrium wages of all occu- pations and would tend to raise the wages of the lower grades, especially the very lowest, and to reduce the incomes of the upper grades, especially the very highest. In short, it would flatten out the curve of inequality. If, instead of applying the remedy at the source, the attempt were made, without providing an educational system, to force up the wages of the E grade of occupations or force down the incomes of the A grade, a train of evils would follow, similar in kind to those described earlier in this chapter. The higher wages in the E grade occupations would take away whatever inducement there was for trying to avoid these occupations and get into the higher grades. A permanent surplus of laborers of the E grade would be on the market, offering themselves for hire at the artificially advanced wage, ete., ete. Again, if it is found that one factor in the immobility of labor or in the congestion of the lower grades of occupations is drunken- ness, the rational remedy is not to try to force up wages in those * See an article by S. N. Procopovitch on “The Distribution of National Income,” in the Economic Journal, March, 1926.

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