Page:American Journal of Sociology Volume 8.djvu/549

 SOCIAL EFFECTS OF THE EIGHT-HOUR DAY $2g

productivity is'kept up, it must be by the increased speed of machinery, the use of poorer material, and finally by the substi- tution of machines for laborers. The greater uniformity of pro- duction of new inventions and new methods ought to prevent any loss to profits. But if such a diminution does actually occur, the loss will fall upon interest, since the wages of superintend- ence and insurance against risk cannot be affected. If there is a lower rate upon interest due to the eight-hour day, is capital likely to migrate and savings fall in amount ? To this it may be replied that the increasing amount of capital in other lands seek- ing investment indicates the impossibility of any larger amounts leaving the country. The great danger to this movement is in the trade unions themselves, for by limiting output, restricting apprentices, and cutting down the average rate of work the gen- eral product of the community is lessened and the wages reduced in consequence. Trade unions in specific instances have been able to do these things and still maintain wages and have the eight-hour day. To reason, however, from the individual to gen- eral cases is full of fallacies. In such successful attempts of trade unions the burden has been borne by the remaining indus- tries, but a general reduction of hours with such tactics followed by all trade organization can result in but one thing : a smaller output and in the end less wages.

What, then, are the social effects of the eight-hour day ? It is first of all difficult to predict what would be the actual effects upon the product of labor, but the evidence is sufficient to main- tain the belief that there would be no material reduction in out- put. Undoubtedly individual firms might suffer in the transition, but the newer methods and better-adapted laborers would more than make up for this difficulty. In the retail and clerical occu- pations nothing but good would result from such a day, while some added cost of operation would be incurred in the case of street-railway and transportation companies. Even this burden would be lightened by increased travel within shorter hours. In some instances the industry would be destroyed, it no longer being worth while to produce goods in the old way. In a few industries wages would drop, but in most of them no material