Indianapolis Times, Indianapolis, Marion County, 5 October 1945 — Page 26

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* RECONVERSION

BOGGING

DANGER ON THE PRODUCTION FRONT

How Much Will You Have to Pay for Your New Car?

How Long Will You Have to Wait to Get It?

Strikes are threatening the entire DOWN automobile industry. General

Motors is being specifically singled out for attack to enforce unreasonable demands. Some of our plants have already

been closed many of our

and shipment of materials from the plants of suppliers has already been stopped by strikes,

The interests of all Americans should be considered.

This is not only a General Motors problem. It is a national

one as well,

If our plants are closed by strikes the strikes

will be against the interests of all the people of our country

as much as they will be against General Motors.

AFTERMATH While the war is over, the aftermath of

OF WAR

war presénts big problems. War is

terribly wasteful in blood and treasure. This one was

especially so. It was not prosperity even though to some

it may have seemed to be. And the immediate aftermath of

such a war cannot be prosperity either. The clean-up, the

mopping-up, the reconversion still require hard work,

all of us.

INDUSTRY

Our fighting men crushed our enemies

ON THE JOB with the huge quantity of weapons pro-

duced by American industry. But that is behind us. We

would like to have been better prepared for peace, but the

terrific demands of the war for men and materials did not

make this possible. Now we have planned a second all-out

effort and stand ready and anxious to do an equally impressive job.

PROBLEMS

OF ° American industry has proved its

RECONVERSION ability to perform. It has the know: how, the resources, the courage to push ahead. But even with these fine assets it cannot do the job alone. It must

have the goodwill and backing of the people of our

country.

Our second all-out effort to meet a critical situation will

bog down unless the real facts are recognized and sound measures promptly taken to solve the problems. Tempo-

rarily, while

we are liquidating the war, there should be a

sound national wage-price policy to stabilize and expand the

economy.

DANGER OF The most serious threat we face is that

INFLATION

of runaway inflation. The danger comes

from three sources: first, the wartime and current tre.

mendous deficit spending of our government; second,

Runaway inflation must be avoided. If an adjustment i in price levels must be made at this time, the interests of all the people must

be fairly considered.

the pent-up demands for goods and services to the point where some are willing to pay excess prices even in black markets to satisfy their impatient and selfish desires; third, the desires of equally selfish unions to take advantage of the situation and force unreasonable wage increases.

Inflation is the worst of all economic diseases. It reduces . ‘ the value of money in terms of what money will bay. It

reduces the value of the savings of the people. It undermines security. It underwrites depression. It destroys

confidence. It creates ‘unemployment, Inflation must be

avoided,

REAL In a free market and in the absence of subsidies PRICES and speculation, the cost of human effort, be it in the form of wages, salaries or other forms of compen: sation, quickly determines the price we pay for goods. Higher wages withbut a corresponding increase in productivity are inflationary. Nothing is gained unless higher wages mean more goods and services, more customersand more good jobs. This requires individual application to the job in hand and technological progress all along the line—better ways of doing all the tings that mustsbe done to produce and deliver products to customers at reasonable prices. This takes time.

A minority, by monopoly or by pressure group action, may temporarily profit at the expense of others. But the idea of wage increases all along the line without a corresponding increase in productivity is a delusion. All the people cannot lift themselves by their bootstraps.

UNION Today, unions in out plants are demanding DEMANDS 52 hours’ pay for 40 hours’ work. Their demands if granted would result.in over 67 hours’ pay at present base rates for 48 hours of work where plants are working on such a schedule. Equivalent or greater demands have been made on our suppliers—the parts manufacturers—the electrical industry—the steel industry—the rubber industry—the oil and gasoline industry—the railroads—in fact, on practically every industry involved in the production of automobiles.

WAGES AND PRICES time high and are importantly higher

General Motors wagesare nowat an all-

than the average wages paid throughout the country for similar work."

The present government stabilization policy permits

wage increases without government approval only if such |

increases will not result in a request to increase prices.

* PROFITS

The formula the OPA has proposed for pricing our new products does not recognize or allow all the actual increases in our costs that have been incurred since 1942; Neither is there any provision in the present OPA formula Jor increasing prices to compensate for the additional costs

that would be incurred if wages and salaries were increased

at this time,

A sound and equitable solution must be found in the |

interests of not only our 400,000 employes, but our 426,000 stockholders, our 15,214 automobile dealers, who have had no new cars for over three years, our 10,000 subcontractors and suppliers and their employes, and the more than 10,000,000 potential customers who are anxiously waiting for new cars and our other products they need so badly.

WARTIME General Motors did not make big profits during the war. Although sales and em. ployment doubled, the average yearly net profit in dollars earned during the war was less than the average prewar net profit. Dividends paid to stockholders averaged less than those paid before the war, The war profit limitation policy voluntarily adopted by General Motors immediately after Pearl Harbor was so reasonable that the resulting profits were accepted in renegotiation without change by our government for the years 1942, 1943 and 1944.

During the war, Victory Was Our Business,

EXCESS WAGES Demands are being made for higher REFUSED wages without any corresponding increase in production, on the assumption that the additional costs can be absorbed from profits previously earned or from uncertain future profits.

General Motors cannot use money saved up for many

years for the purpose of modernizing and expanding its plants and providing more good jobs, to pay excess wages for work not performed. The money cannot be spent ice. Neither can excess wages be currently paid from pre. sumed future excess profits when a realistic forecast of costs shows there will be no such excess profits.

Nor can we pay from current income the increased wages demanded when the present OPA policy holds

prices to substantially 1942 levels—especially in view of

the fact that there have been important increases in wages and operating costs since 1942,

rr)

If wage and salary increases are inde, it must be recognised that they increase costs and such costs must be adequately reflected

in the prices of pioducts produced.

Internal strife and unemployment must be avoided. Only productive work and more good J Jobs will increase our stondard 4 living and satisfy the desires of the American people.

GENERAL MOTORS

“More and Better Things for More People”

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