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Service Talks
PHILADELPHIA RAPID TRANSIT COMPANY
SERVICE TALKS
THE COMMON SENSE OF IT
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Ne. 23
EVERY EMPLOYE A STOCKHOLDER
September 26, 1922
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LABOR HIRING CAPITAL
America the country of greatest opportunity, where the land produces the wherewithal of
life in such abundance as te mere than supply its people's every need. America's people, thus
Messed of Ged, have but te fellow the Gelden Rule te enjoy life in its fullness.
Americas mothcr-besom, full te overflowing, generously gives, and gives, and gives, being
desirous only that her children, for the sake of their own happiness, quarrel net in the taking.
America's children hac become divided ry internal dissension between labor these who
'depend upon their work for their livelihood, and capital these who depend upon the earning power
of their money.
Laber inclines te the false belief that capital has somewhere concealed an inexhaustible
.supply of these things which make for better living, and that by doing les and asking mere,
Jabot's millennium may be accomplished.
Laber must produce mere in order te have mere, since higher wages avail nothing if there be
a lessened output of the commodities which wages are supposed te buy.
Capital! being principally contained in the machinery of production, is uneatable and
unwcarable, and must, from labor's own standpoint, continue te have a value, as representing the
investment of savings, otherwise labor has no means of assuring the support of its own old age or
of making certain that its own dependents will be fed.
Russia's experience in failing te successfully operate the machinery of production, with death
te former owners and famine te the common people, contains a lessen te labor, as well as a warning
te capital.
Lord Milncr, one of the ablest of British publicists, says:
"The true line of social advance lies in a system whereby, instead of capital hiring labor, labor
will hire capital.
"If labor can supply management; if labor can be a geed business man; if labor can avoid all
labor difficulties, the ruction, the wear and tear, the losses of wage disputes and strikes; if labor can
amalgamate management and production in a single functioning bed-, capital would escape a deal of
worry.
"Capital has money te hire out. In the nature of things, it would prefer hiring its money out te
that body most competent te conduct production and te compensate capital. There is no reason why
labor, if it can swing the business, should net be preferred as a borrower."
$5,000,000 a day is computed by the National Industrial Conference Beard te represent recent strike
losses te American workers, in wages alone. Decreased production accompanies strikes. Strikes arc therefore
Ac surest method known te delay the desired day when higher standards of living can le ' accomplished,
because decreased production of the things desired makes impossible the larger participation demanded by
labor.
Gompers, in his Laber Day address, is quoted as saving: "By the development of co-operation
with workers and the guarantee of justice in industrial life, it would be possible te extend the prodiic prediic
"tive capacity of present equipment te fully double the present volume of output."
Organized labor, having agreed that present production can be doubled without increasing present
machinery, has but te change its present policy which restricts output, te a policy of increased production,
te itself become a great industrial asset and a wonderful aid te world prosperity.
Ce-operation for increased production, whercn labor is given a fair participation in the result of its
added effort, has pre-en its ability, under the Mitten Plan, te double production, thus giving assurance that,
through co-operative effort, higher standards of living can be accomplished and labor itself become increas
ingly the possessor of capital.
Mittenism protects ownership, secures increased production by rewarding labor for added effort;
and enables labor, in co-operating for economic accomplishment, te secure experience in management
The problems with which we have te deal in our modern industrial and social life
are manifold; but the spirit in which it is necessary te approach their solution is simply
the spirit of honesty, of courage, and of common sense. Theodere Roosevelt.
Mitten Men and Management, co-operating in Philadelphia, during the period 1911-1921, created
added annual net income of $16,000,000, through pat-enage induced by developing the short riding habit,
savings through increased production, elimination of wiste and reduction in accident costs. During this
period, rides per capita were doubled, by intensive salesmanship, without increasing the number of men
employed.
Organized labor at Buffalo, through enforced union regulations, designed te limit production, need
lessly increased the number of men required te operate the cars, and se increased costs as te make decreased
wages necessary. Mitten Men and Management, co-operating for efficiency, are new en their way te
supply a better service te the public, with a smaller force, willing and able te honestly earn the highest
rage made possible by their co-operative effort.
P. R. T. empleyes own 60,000 shares of P. R. T., equalling one-tenth of the entire capital stock. This
purchase was largely accomplished through use of the Ce-operative Wage Dividend, equalling 10 of annual
payroll, which is being fairly earned by the men through added efficiency in economic accomplishment.
e International Railway empleyes en strike since July 1st, have already lest in wages mere than
would have been sufficient te have bought one-tenth of International Railway Company's capital stock.
SERVICE TALKS
SERVICE TALKS
THERE MUST BE INDUSTRIAL EACE
ic n nrc.iwiiiJeitri tn r.ni..npritv there mu.t be industrial neace. This was the keynote of the ar' 'rias
deliverer", en Laber Day by Secretary of Laber Davis. He preached the der-trine that employer and empleye
; .r .. !:.i t.- "a"-: . ..:..- ,.., C.A n .,.-,.. tn rm e -TiTi tinner in order." and OUt
IllUSl jnin iwrces. surety, suiu lie, .-unci ndii genius ia iiiiu a nay iu j'ui .i. .. .ww- ... ,
an end te the destruction which "saps the life bleed of progress." w
md put
There speak the eice of wisdom. Men CAN" deal among themselves and DO. Witness what has
been accomplished here in Philadelphia, where the relations between employer and empleye the Rapid
Transit Company and its workers have presented a model te every industrial organization in America.
There is never any question of a strike here. There is never an ugly feeling. The men through
t!ie'r own committee present their problems and they are always settled satisfactorily. There is no effort
te deuy the right of the empleyes te join all the unions they may see fit, but the cry happy relations which
exist le net permit of outside' interference. Laber "leaders." promoting strife te enhance their own
importance, cannot sew the seeds of distrust in the ranks of Rapid Transit. Fer here is where men "gather
around the council table in a spirit of earnest co-operation."
Experience is the ery best of teachers. Eut the policy of the empleyes of Rapid Transit, tested and
found te be of mutual advantage, is repudiated by Mr. Gompers and his followers. They call this policy
an attempt te break down trades unionism. "We are net going te have any company unions" he cried te
his Laber Day hearers, "if we can help it, and pray Ged that we can help it!"
This is enh another way of baying that the union leaders will' net stand ier employer and empleye
getting together in a spirit of amity; that there must be no agreements or understanding except through the
agency of labor officials who arc in no manner cenneited with the industry imelvcd.
Philadelphia I v quiver.
Of? BANKS ANSWER GOMPERS
There is mere in the btatc Banking Commissioner's report of Philadelphia banks tham rows of hie
figures. It is an epitome of thrift. Unconsciously, it embraces a solid answer te Samuel Gompers' wild
theories about "compulsory labor."
Our trust companies and State banks have combined resources exceeding S900.000.000. Mere impres
sive still is the statement that of the 1,100,000 depositors in these banks, about 800,000 come in the class
of "saving;."
When a city of two million people has a record of bank accounts of that size, it is incontestable proof
rirsr, that our citizens have something te save and second, that they possess the geed sense te saie it.
Resolutions and Red radicalism never tlirr. c in a place where half the residences are owned by these
who lhe in them and where mere than one person out of every three has a saings bank account. Jay Gould
said that te become interested in any company one need only buy a share of the stock. It is se with ether
property.
The satisfaction that comes with even a little money in bank grows into an enormous municipal asset
when multiplied, as it is here, by our 800,000 saving depositors. A vast proportion of these belong te what
is popularly styled labor and the number of these increases every day.
There is no danger of "compulsory labor" in this country. Lincoln's Emancipation Proclamation
settled that for all time. The only danger comes when labor, always free, is misled by selfish men te engagt
in lawlessness. Philadelphia Inquirtrt
HEADING FOR INDUSTRIAL UTOPIA
This man Mitten, of the Philadelphia Rapid Transit Company, continues te de things worth while.
His latest is te secure the consent of his empleyes te the suggestion that they will net draw down the
amount of the expected co-operative wage dividend they arc te rccejve en the darning-) of the company,
but will establish a fund in which each empleye will have a known interest, and which will be invested
by a beard of trustees selected by the owners of the fund.
If thie thing keeps en, it will net be long before Philadelphia will have the novelty of its. street
car lines owned by the conductors, motormen and ethers who arc the actual workers in the operation
of the companies; and they will have acquired the ownership in the old established way by which the
capitalists before them came te own things by saving and investing their earnings, instead of spending
everything earned.
This man Mitten certainly is doing things ; and if his efforts te show the street car empleyes hew
they can hire themselves, instead of working for ethers, works out as it seems te be heading, and the idea
spreads te the men and management; of ether industries, there is no telling hew much happiness there
may be in many quarters that have heretofore known little of the joys of life. Philadelphia ItctH,
YOU HAVE TO HAND IT TO MITTEN
It may seem sort of disloyal for a union publication te pay tribute te President Mitten of the
Philadelphia Rapid Transit Company, butbeing somewhat independent and unorthodox the Progress
ive Laber World sees in Mitten a force working toward a solution of our vexatious industrial disturbances.
Many shallow unionists will yell traitor, etc., but we smile and pass en te the suggestion that
Mitten i3 doing mere te add te the economic welfare of workers than most union workers suspect.
It isn't essential that one swallow the Mitten Plan "hook, line and sinker," te pay tribute te
the work of Mitten. We are net extremists in anything. We merely assume the position and we
don't think it requires an unusual brand of courage te de it that Mitten is a constructionist of the
first wtr.
TT lioe triL-ati Vi P T? T svsfctn nnr! tnnrl it nver inin t rninrl..M.. .,1V...:--... . it.
has fought teeth and nail the overlords et the system who paid mere attention te the dollar than te
the service part of the game. He has eradicated strifes and confusions which have been costly te
city and utwens. He has given 10,000 empleyes a new outlook en life. Hr has shown them hew te
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given dignity and independence te 10,000 workers. lie has made life and its joys mere secure for
'the women folk and the kiddies of the empleye:?. Pie has madu pleasant the present and made secure
the future of the empleyes.
Mitten has net only taught 10,000 empleyes hew te work he has taught them hew te play.
There is something palatable and wholesome about the hope of Mitten that the empleyes
will some day personally own the P. R. T. system. Such an event would mark an era of progressive
accomplishment and ownership by, for and of the people.
Mittenism is getting te stand for something very definite in America. There is only one wit '
te counteract Mittenism supply something better. Pregressw$ Laber World,
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