Show AMERICA r TOLD DROP IN LIVING LE LEVELS NEARS Henderson Henderso Urges Labor to End Pay Hike Moves DES MOINES Iowa Feb 21 INS Price INS Price Administrator Leon Henderson Saturday warned the nation that it faces I a 12 per cent cut in its standard of living and called on labor to cease demands for wage increases increases increases in in- creases except for those workers work work- ers who are really on a substandard substandard substandard sub sub- standard level Declaring that the nation must tighten its belt and everyone tighten it alike Henderson in a speech to the National Farm institute institute institute in in- warned that increased Incomes in incomes incomes In- In comes for industry labor and agriculture under war conditions can only lead to a dangerous in inflation In- In The simple fact is that we are faced with a general reduction n in our standard of living he said Question of Sharing The principal question is whether the inevitable decrease in inthe inthe inthe the standard of living will win be shared equitably tably r f Now if labor shares the entire cut which the nation as a whole faces this year year roughly roughly 12 per percent percent percent cent in the standard of living living- real hourly earnings will be back where they were at the outbreak of the war and real weekly earnings earnings earnings earn earn- ings will win remain 12 per cent above what they were at that time I cannot emphasize too strongly strong strong- ly that if workers recognizing the arithmetic of the situation voluntarily voluntarily voluntarily volun volun- forego demands this time they have the right to ask that their contribution does not accrue to the advantage of management or to agriculture or to any other group Lists Workers' Workers Rights Bights They have a right to demand demanda a drastic increase in the excess profit taxes They have a right to demand a drastic increase in individual taxes levied according to ability to pay They have a aright aright aright right to demand effective control over the cost of living In short they have the right to demand that the burdens of ot the I Iwar war be distributed equitably I want to see them make this demand de- de demand demand de de- mand and I want to see it met met met- and in full This is the kind of ot Continued on Page pau Three Column Four LIVING LEVEL DROP FORECAST I Continued from Page Pa One policy called for by this crisis WhaP Wha I have said about labor applies with equal force to other 1 groups in our society It cannot be repeated too often that we are confronted with the job of accommodating accommodating accommodating our living Jiving standards to the realities of shortened supplies Wage increases increased farm buying power and increased profit margins can not be sanctioned if they contribute to the already tremendous pressures for civilian goods Warns of Pressure Obviously individual inequities must be taken care of if they can be handled without sacrificing the general welfare But we can never hope to control this complex mechanism mechanism mechanism mech mech- of the price system if It group pressures succeed in pushing things further out of lineIn lineIn lineIn line In the agricultural field we must maintain what balance is possible Unquestionably there are arc some groups whose standard of living Is already at a 8 subsistence level Such groups obviously cannot take a cut without impairing health or efficiency There are other groups whose living Iving standards standard are so high that they can stand a reduction greater than the average I am not arguing against any change in the distribution of ot the pie pic pie but I am stressing the fact that hat it is going to be a smaller pie Die and that it is our job to see seeto seeto to o it that the cuts in the pieces come where they can do the least harm to our national strength and our national morale |