The new industrial revolution and wages

Bibliographic data

Monograph

Identifikator:: 1804651486

URN:: urn:nbn:de:zbw-retromon-193069

Document type:: Monograph

Author:: Lauck, William Jett http://d-nb.info/gnd/173237126

Title:: The new industrial revolution and wages

Place of publication:: New York

Publisher:: Funk & Wagnalls

Year of publication:: 1929

Scope:: ix, 308 S.; graph. Darst.

Digitisation:: 2022

Collection:: Economics Books

Usage license:: Get license information via the feedback formular.

Chapter

Document type:: Monograph

Structure type:: Chapter

Title:: Chapter VII. Acceptance of the theory of an adequate basic wage

Collection:: Economics Books

ACCEPTANCE OF NEW THEORY 139 ance of the then prevailing waste and inefficiencies of industry, as illustrated not only by general conditions but strikingly in specific instances, as in the over- developed bituminous coal industry, the underdevel- oped or inadequate railway system, and the monopoly conditions in anthracite coal mining. Higher wages, it was declared, would make possible greater productive efficiency of labor, increase labor’s purchasing power, create a broader demand for com- modities, and, furthermore, add to savings and tend to decrease the cost of capital. On the other hand, higher earnings would stimulate management toward ‘mproving facilities and processes, and reducing labor and other costs of production. The net result, there- fore, of the application of the living-wage principle, it was concluded, would be (1) lower costs to indus- try, (2) lower prices and no exploitation of consum- ers, and (3) higher real wages to industrial workers. Moreover, it was stated, the arguments against the financial practicability of the living wage were in gen- eral unconvincing, because they assumed the perma- nent continuance of existing conditions of production and distribution, and did not admit the possibility of advantageous changes. The same arguments, it was shown, had been advanced in past years against the :stablishment, successively, of a twelve, ten, nine and eight-hour standard work-day, the installation of safety devices in industry, woman and child labor legislation, minimum wage laws, and other restrictive legislation, and none of the predicted evils had been borne out by subsequent events. The contrary had really been true, for all past experience indicated that the acceptance of the living-wage principle in a rea- sonably practical way would stimulate the spirit of

Access restriction

Copyright

fullscreen: The new industrial revolution and wages

Monograph

Chapter

Table of contents

Download

Monograph

Chapter

This page

Image fragment

Citation links

Citation recommendation