The Guardian And Evening Star, with which is incorporated the West Const Times. FRIDAY, FEBRUARY 6th, 1925. THE ROAD TO RUIN.

Hokitika Guardian, 6 February 1925, Page 2

The Guardian And Evening Star, with which is incorporated the West Const Times. FRIDAY, FEBRUARY 6th, 1925. THE ROAD TO RUIN.

Tiie slogan of “ca’ canny”, so often to he heard where trade Union folk who to take what they think is a degree of revenge by “going slow” or similar irritating methods, has been aptly described as the philosophy of ruin. Taking for a text the statement that a working foreman in Britain (for a wager) had succeeded in laying 809 standard bricks in an hour, and die fact that the output of the average bricklayer in England is between 400 and 700 bricks, a writer in a Home patter remarks that the moral of the comparison is obvious. He proceeds to remark that- on every ham is heard the same story that Great Britain cannot recover her export trade which i.s her prosperity, until she can produce more cheaply, but it seems certain that she can never hope O produce ns cheaply as her rivals while the attitude of the bricklayer reflects the attitude of the average workman. If there is one sound economic law- it is this, that work, by making wealth, makes more work, hut the trade unions do not seem to believe in this, Fearful

lest any trade unionist, however incompetent, sliould lose Jiis job, they decree, in elicit, tmit the slowest win.. or .shall set the ] ace. The result is unit thousands ot trade unionists are out of jobs wim would otherwise be fully engaged. The men, who, in the earlier part 01 last century went about h: caking, up machinery under the mistaken idea that the machinery would do away with employment were no more loolislily short-sighted than the Unde unionists who work inlinitely below their normal capacity in order that tneir more unfortunate brothers may share in the wink. Efficiency makes for prosperity and prosperity makes for employment. Ln so far as trade unionists adopt the idea of ca’ canny 111 the hope of helping their fellow trade unionists, one can admire their unselfishness, but l am alraid it is olteii true that nine .stub ideas are adopted a dislike for work rapidly increases. Few people really enjoy dull labour, but the capacity for performing it depends very largely oil the frame of mind with which it is tackled. '1 lie question is really one of survival. 11 all the men in work resolved to work hard the country would soon become more prosperous, the problem ol unemployment would soon lessen and everybody's future would lie safer. But so long' as trade uuioiio take the petty view anil only look; so m> i-m-ah. one day ahead, .so long will they continue to cut oil their noses to spito their faces under the fantastic notion that they are benefiting trade unionists. Neither short hums nor large wages are the faintest use to anybody if there is no work. In tin same way tlie* ca’ canny system can only accentuate the evils it is supposed to cure. It raises costs and thereby reduces the amount of employment that cau be offered. For at any given moment there is only a certain amount of money and a certain amount of work. It depends on the workers themselves to create wealth and work. This has nothing to do with capitalism or Socialism, but is an economic law. Whatever a man earns lie is entitled 10, and industry itself can only ailord to pay what industry earns, That is why piece-work is the ideal system, because it encourages the good worker, who is the useful citizen. Industrialism does not grudge high wages to earners; it only grudges high wages to workers who do not pull their weight. But the modern workman is constantly saving, Give me more money for doing less work, and that cannot help him iu the least in the long run.