Page 453 - The_story_of_the_C._W._S._The_jubilee_history_of_the_cooperative_wholesale_society,_limited._1863-1913_(IA_storyofcwsjubill00redf) (1)_Neat

Minimum Wages.
and reported faithfully in May, 1907. In the main the Committee
accepted the original proposals, together with the Manchester and
Salford amendment in favour of the lesser wage-earners. Thus, the
Society was to grant 3d. in the £ on wages over 30s. weekly, and Od.
in the £ on wages under that sum, an option of contributing Gd.
instead of 9d. in the £ being conferred upon earners of less than 40s.
A further modification was in favour of girl and women employees
leaving to get married. Instead of the Society's contribution
becoming absolute only after ten years' service, one-half the
addition was to be enjoyed after a five years' employment. All
employees were to be eHgible to join after a six months' continuous
attachment. Certain temporary rules also were drafted to ease the
position of older workers already committed to other contributions.
The management of the fund was to be vested in a committee of
eleven—six appointed by the General Committee and five elected
by the members. The report was signed by Messrs. ShiUito,
Tweddell, Lander, and Mc.Innes (the four chairmen of committees)
for the C.W.S., and by Messrs. Goodwin (chairman of the existing
fund committee), Blake (Newcastle), Jackson (Bristol), and Grundy
(Manchester) for the employees. Thus endorsed, the scheme at
last was adopted. Despite the renewed contention that " it was not
a sound principle in a democratic body to legislate for a certain
section at the expense of another, particularly when that section
already was better provided for than the great majority of the
members of their societies who indirectly would have to find the
money for the scheme," the recommendation secured 1,199 votes at
the divisional meetings against 161 ; and at the following general
meeting the opposition was overwhelmed simply by a show of hands.
At the end of 1912 11,363 emplo3^ees were members of the fund,
and the total standing to their credit was £167,841.

"All workers want four things," wrote Mr. Philip Snowden in the
Daily Mail Year Book for 1913, " and if these four desires were
gratified most of them would probabty think that there was nothing
more to be desired." These four were: (1) " assured employment,"
(2) "a decent wage," (3) " guarantee of provision in case of
permanent inability," (4) "a reduction in the number of working
hours." One Avould like to think that any man not innately servile
would desire at least one thing more: to feel himself a free and
responsible agent, on terms of human relationship with his superiors,
and not to stand to his task simply as a wheel of the machinery, a
357