Wages in Germany The German Minister of Labour on Tuesday
declared legally binding the arbitrator's award in the wages dispute in the German North-Western iron and steel area. The award involves a reduction of wages, to be accompanied by a guaranteed reduction in the price of the products of the industry. The reduction extends to all salaries up to those of directors and general managers. The employers have agreed that the price reductions shall exceed the savings in wages. Thus the employees are assured that any sacrifice shall react to the benefit of the whole industry and the employers are given the additional competitive power which they desire. The plan is under consideration for several other branches of industry. What a contrast to our own industries, which seem to delight in squabbling about the proceeds of a trade though the proceeds commonly disappear meanwhile. We hope that our unemployment figures will not reach 2,000,000— as they have in Germany—before our industries can -be induced to follow this example of common sense and co- opeiation in a national effort. * *
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