Great Britain

Stratford Evening Post, Volume XXVIII, Issue 10, 10 September 1915, Page 5

Great Britain

LLOYD GEORGE AND LABOR J" THE MOST POWERFUL FORCE. SUPREMACY IN MECHANICS THE REAL ISSUE. United Press Association. (Received 1130 a.m.) London, September !'. The Hon. Lloyd George received an ovation at. the Trade Union Congress. He said: 1 am grateful for the opportunity of unfolding the situation. You represent one of the most powerful forces in directing the country's life. With you. victory is assured, without you our cause is lost. 1 come here as the greatest Employer of labour in the country, and am also myself a trade unionist. You pledged yourselves yesterday us the representatives of organised labour to assist the Government in the successful prosecution of the war. lam sure you meant that, and I am here to take you on .behalf of the Government at your word. The war has resolved it- • self into a conflict between the mechanics of the respective nations, and jit is believed that the British workmen is the better of, the two. ~ ..

TWO SIDES TO A BARGAIN. THE MINISTER'S PURPOSE SECURED. (Received 12.2.1. p.m. ) London. September !). Mr Lloyd. George said lie .was going to a»sk unpleasant questions. Had the other side of the bargain been kept? It, had been maintained honorably in many cases, but in far too many cases was not carried out. If the Government, when trying to do its best for the gallant fellows in the field, were hampered at every turn by little technical objections, it would be impossible to do the work that the country demanded, Mentioning a* an instance, the restricted output, which was vitally needed, he askedj Will anyone defend that? '("Cries tilf No). Mr Lloyd-George I said] that then he had no • more to say. I That, exactly, was what lie came lor. Several questions were asked and answered, and Mr Lloyd George thanked the audience for their attention to his speech.

EVERY MAN WANTED. THREE DIRECTIONS IN WHICH UNIONS CAN HELP. (Received noon.) London, September 9. , Mi; Lloyd .George said further:— If "every skilled man were employ-] ! ed, still there would never be enough \ labor for the task J have in hand. The Government would be unable to equip the army unless the trade unions helped in three directions. Firstly, they must suspend for the war period all restrictions upon the best use of skilled labor; by employing unskilled meii under skilled supervision for all wont wherein the highly skilled are not absolutely indispensible;' secondly, they must suspend the practises of preventing the men from turning out as much work as their skill and strength permitted; thirdly, there must,be no stoppages in the essential trades. Profits have been restricted so as to bring practically the whole of the workshops employed in the manufacture of munitions under the Munitions Act, those, under the Act embracing ninety-five per cent of the labor engaged in these industries. ARSENALS COMPLETED.

"THE COUNTRY IS NOT DOING ITS BEST." "I AM NOT GOING TO SPARE EMPLOYERS." (Received I 1.1.5 a.m.) London, September S. Lloyd George continued : "The Government has established sixteen national arsenals and is constructing eleven more, and, to work these old ones and new ones, two hundred thousand more unskilled men and women are wanted. The country is not doing its best. It is entirely a labour problem. You can assist. A voice interjected: "So can the employers." Lloyd George: "I am not going to spare the employers." (Cheers). Continuing, he said : The machinery applicable to war material is not working night: and daw, and only fifteen per cent, of the machinery is .working night shifts turning out cannon, rifles, and other war material. With plenty of labor, the factories would be occupied continuously, I think, with what material could be supplied. The problem is not one for destroying, but one for saving the life of our young men.