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Letter To The Editor
To The Editor of the Rappahannock News:
Senator Ryrd’s keen analysis of the pledge in the Democratic platform to inyalidate Right-to-\Vork laws now on the books of many states warrants careful thought. As he points out, the already monopolistic (lowers of union labor in this country would, under this proposal, become practically air-tight.
It seems likely that the farmer would ; suffer as much as, if not more than, any group through further tightening of union power. East year net farm income of 1 I billion'dollars \yfts at the lowest level since |94i It was less by Jn'c , or 2.8 bilflion than ten years before or in 1949. 'Hie drop in net was not due to Idwt'r'gross income. In fact, 1939 gross farm sales of .1(1.9 billion dollars were higher by 3.1 billion, or 17%,-than in 1949 when the level was 31.8 billion. l-arm production costs, however, at 2x9 billion in 1939 were 44% above the 1949 costs of 18 billion.
Naturally many factors enter into farm costs. Hut the purchase equipment and tools is, apart from feed, by far the greatest single element. And, of course, the greatest single factor in the cost of producing these items is labor.
At the time of last year’s steel strike it was brought out that industry wage costs averaged 12(1 dollars a week per worker. In 1949 such costs approximated 60 dollars a week. Nearly as great an increase !in wage costs Iras been borne by the farm implement manufacturing industry, lire bulk of all wage increases naturally is passed on to the consumer. Hence the direct stake of the farmer in labor union wage policies and the monoply power which makes it possible to exact such demands.
( )ther groups besides the farmer, middle-class, white collar, retired and professional, have also suffered declining living standards" due to labor union greed, hor all of them, a still further boost in union monoprlv power, resulting from abolition of Right-to-\Vork laws, which the Senator warns against, would afford a dismal prospect indeed.
H. H. Patterson
Woodville, Va.
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