OREpov.... By Bob Ludwig — No particular group or class can claim a monopoly on bore- dom. This uninteresting condition is known to bankers and book- keepers, housewives, socialites, and of course millhands. Nearly everyone at some time suffers from the dullness imposed by time- drag. The millhand certainly suffers his share of plain old-fashioned job boredom, ‘The bleak dullness imposed by repetitive motions “casts a dark shadow over a large part of his life. This form of boredom is not to be confused with the ennui which produces such fatigue among socialites. It is a condition brought into being by a job which has only one appealing fea- ture, namely payday. However, even in this dreary situation there is a bright spot. Human beings have developed im- munity against disease, extremes of heat and cold, and even poli- tieal oratory. So, too, the mill- hand has developed a’ degree of resistance to the drab effects of Job boredom. Hypnotic State A little casual research among individual millhands reveals some interesting escape tactics. A man doing a repetitive job finds him- self quickly slipping into a semi- hypnotic state. His job is now reduced to the point where only his reflexes are needed to carry on. His relatively free mind now does the sensible thing. It leaves the scene and goes travelling. Now what happens depends on the vagaries of the individual. One man says, “I’m not a mu- sician but I do like music, After about; five minutes on the job I find myself listening to the swel- Jest music. AIF mill sounds are blotted out and I even produce my own arrangements on any old theme.” : Another man groaned when asked how he reacted to job bore- dom, “I do the most complicated arithmetic as I pile lumber. I go from problem to problem and onee I get started I can’t stop. It tires me out by the time the shift ends.” Dance Steps ‘Then there are exuberant souls who do faney dance steps as they. grade lumber. Others find mo- mentary escape by throwing things. Fortunately the average » aim is poor, even laughable. Or else the light bulbs used in mills extra tough. is “out” for sawmill wallahs. Industrial boredom is frequent- ly viewed as a soul-destroying, mind crushing evil. Yet there are interesting, even startling obser- vations which indicate that the millhand’s mind is by no means impaired. Brain Power Those not infrequent occasions which require millworkers to pit their acumen against manage- ment in tough negotiations reveal a mental capacity that requires no apology. Trained legal minds have been known to lose their aplomb and wilt after a few days of “thrust and parry” against millhands. Can increased cerebral activity be viewed as a by-product of job boredom? If so the amount of forced mental activity carried on by the millhand should certainly secure him a place among the more thoughtful citizens. WORKERS, FARMERS GET MORE IN UK OTTAWA (CPA)—One of the chief objectives of the Labor Party when it took office in the U.K. in 1945 was to redistribute the nation’s wealth so that more would go to workers and farm- ers and less to rent and profits. According to figures published recently -by the London “Econo- mist” they have done just that, ‘The following table shows what's happened since Labour took over and how it compares with the Position before the war. Wages and farm income are now a higher percentage of the nation- al income. Private profits, which were 25.4% of the national in- come in 1947, were down to 22.8% in 1949. "Rent has dropped from 8.5% in 1988 to 5% in 1947 to 4.6% in 1949, Distribution of National Income 1938 1947 1949 Wages ....37.4% 39.7% 41.8% Salaries .. 23.9 21,2 22.0 Forces’ a7 3.8 24 B.C. LUMBER WORKER December 7, 1950 MITCHELL ON TOWN MEETING Welfare State Means Freedom Preservation of freedom in the welfare state was declared Secretary George Mitchell when he debated the subject with three other speakers on Town Meeting possible by IWA District in Canada, November 24. As couver Labor Council he was selected to present the trade union and stated his views in part as follows: point of view, In the preamble to the Ameri- can Constitution one of the ob- jects of the Federal union is “to establish justice, promote the general welfare and secure the blessings of liberty to ourselves and our posterity”. The assumption is that the government is responsible for the welfare of the people and must assume that responsibility. In our modern complex and highly intri- cate society there are many things that can be done much bet- ter and with less waste of eriergy by the state organization than by the individual. Look at the nation’s health, security for the aged and inca- pacitated. Look at our basic es- tablished standards of education and we see examples of the Wel- fare State. To my mind the Wel- fare State is simply a state in which people are free to develop their individual capacities in ac- cord with the common good; un- burdened by fear of hunger, homelessness or oppression be- cause of race, creed or color. Labor Pressure Our Free Enterprise system has looked in the direction of the welfare state and has accepted, because of continual pressure from the Labor Unions and the CCF, some of its policies. Un- employment Insurance, Family Allowances — these are the best examples — and who would say that we are less free than before these acts became law? No nation has the complete Welfare State. It is merely a matter of what countries have been bold and humane enough to walk farthest in that direction. Britain and the Scandinavian countries are outstanding exam- ples of the Welfare State and of freedom and democratic proce- dure. In those parts of Europe where there is a strong free democratic labor movement, and where the State has carried out its broad social and moral responsibilities, respecting the welfare of the to- tal people, the forces of demo- eracy are strong and the forces of reaction and totalitarianism are weak. Where the State has been used as an instrument of special priv- ilege and the welfare of the great | masses has. been disregarded, democracy and freedom stand threatened: by the growing power of reaction and totalitarianism. False Alarm There is the cry from those on the Right that the Welfare State CPR FREE FROM TAXES OTTAWA (CPA)—The CPR is Canada’s largest corporation. And a Supreme Court decision last week will help it to grow even larger. The decision was that all but the most incidental branch lines of the CPR are free from taxation. Saskatchewan municipalities in 1948 sought to impose property and business tax on branch lines of the CPR in that province, and business tax on the main line of the railway. The CPR appealed the levy, and the Saskatchewan Court of Appeal upheld the right of the municipalities to tax, Now the Supreme Court has reversed the decision, and rules that main lines are not taxable at all, and that branch lines are taxable only when they are not required for the operation of the main line. ,. The Supreme Court regards as inviolable the agreement between vernment of Canada ana the CPR in 1881, when the com- pany undertoook to build a rail- way to the Pacific coast, on the condition of no taxation on land given outright by ment. In the Vice-President of the Van- SS ei ec is but a step on the road to Com- munism; and they look with alarm on the activities of govern- ment .in the fields of housing, health and social security. This same cry has been raised by these same people (or by those representing the same interests) wherever the country has at-| tempted to interfere with the; right of a few to destroy forests, exploit children, operate unsani- tary and unsafe shops, indulge in racial discrimination, and pursue | other policies endangering the jhealth, safety and welfare of the | community. These people have failed to re- | alize that when their license to exploit the many is restricted, the freedom of the many from ignor- | ance, insecurity and want is im- measurably enhanced. | The Trade Union movement holds essentially to the ideal of greater abundance and equitable distribution of the goods and ser- vices that our nation is able to |produce. We are the first target of attack from the Right and from those falsely associated with the Left, the first organization destroyed when reaction takes. over. Guard Freedom It is essentially an+ obsession with us to guard what freedom we now have and to continually fight for more. Freedom to a working people means access to the fruits of their labor, and the right to take their place as full- fledged citizens regardless of the amount of property they hold or | the size of their bank accounts. There can be no double stan- dard. Labor will see that the wel- fare of the masses is maintained, strengthened and developed. Do you realize how much better this life could be if the natural re- sources of our country were used for the benefit of the people, rather than to add to the profits of a few? Freedom is but an empty phrase when there are hungry, homeless people in this land of plenty. No, the Welfare State does not in any way, restrict free- dom. Instead it gives freedom a chance to grow, flourish and de- velop. | | | at your local store or commissary MFG. Co. 2248-50 East Hastings St. DAYTON SHOE [B.C.] LTD. Vancouver Our years, (supplied to Mail Order Customers so popular with woodworkers in mombers using our regular MAIL ORDER FACILITIES. Forward the coupon below with your next MAIL ORDER Ask for this Calendar when you send in your next MAIL ORDER New Calendar Girl for 1951 past is now available FREE to all IWA only). 15 East St. VANCOUVER, Bre.