Automation

The argument for the Social Credit periodic dividend is taking on greater force, as more and more individuals are beginning to realize the utter futility of trying for "full employment" in the face of the great surge of automation which is making fantastic production possible with fewer and fewer human hands needed.

There are over 5,000,000 unemployed in the United States. Secretary of Labour, Arthur Goldberg set up an inquiry to find out how much of this unemployment was due to technological change (automation). Many a labour expert, the inquiry discovered, tends to put the blame on automation. Robert Johnson, Director of State Labour in Illinois reports that most of the 315,000 unemployed there are victims of automation. Dr. Russell Ackoff, Case Institute expert on business problems, reckons that automation is spreading so rapidly that it is becoming the nation's number two problem number one being peace. (A curious situation when the ability to produce all we need with a minimum expenditure of human energy and time is considered a problem!).

In the chemical industry in 1956, production went up 27% while jobs dropped 3%. Steel production increased 20% in 1955; jobs dropped by 17,000. The auto industry, baking industry, meat industry, all record similar increases in production with a drop in the number of employees needed, because of automation. Agriculture presents the most striking example of automation. Today, one man on a farm can feed 24 people. In 1949 he could feed only 15!

Why not face the problem squarely, experts of industry? There is only one way to solve the matter and not put a halt to business. Institute the periodic, universal dividend proposed by Social Credit. There will be no problem of using up the abundance of production; there will be no want because of unemployment. And since money takes its value from the faith of the people in their ability to produce, there can be no difficulty with regard to finance.