The Cine Technician (1953-1956)

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96 THE CINE-TECHNICIAN August, 1953 An A.C.T. View by the General Secretary The Chancellor^ the Wage Freeze^ and Technicolors profits rPHE Chancellor of the Exchequer has made * another speech asking for higher production and wage restraint. Many people seem to hold the view that these two objectives go together. In fact, the contrary is very often the case. One of the simplest ways to get increased production is to ensure that employees receive a greater share of the fruits of their labour. Mr. Butler's exhortation is particularly likely to meet with little success at the present time when wage restraint actually means those employed in industry are worse off than they were, whereas those who own industry are better off. The present Government's policy has led to a decreased real value of an individual's earnings whilst its policy of setting the employer free has resulted in increased profits and higher dividends. If the Chancellor of the Exchequer genuinely wants increased production, he should take steps to counteract the present trend of giving the employer more and the employee less from the process of production. It is equally foolish, in present circumstances, to assume that increased earnings will lead to inflation. If all the wage claims at present pending in British industry as a whole were successful, I do not believe for one moment that inflation would result. The extra money in the wage packets would merely mean that the ordinary household would spend a little more on food, instead of today being unable to afford all their rations; children who are today forced because of the raise in the cost of school meals, to take them no longer at school, would be able to do so once again; no doubt, more would be spent on clothing and other necessities; and if there was anything left over it might well go into some so-called luxury spending, such as paying instalments on television sets, more frequent visits to the pictures or, indeed, an occasional night out at the pub. Can anyone seriously say there is a risk of any of these processes leading to inflation? In any case, we can dismiss as fantastic the impression which is trying to be created of people walking around with too much money in their pockets chasing too few goods. They have got sufficient sense not to fritter their earnings away on commodities whose prices are soaring, and which, if hard put to it, they could well do without. For generations they have been doing without, and reasonable wage increases won't lead to them making fools of themselves. In any case, the surplus money which is available from increased production is, today, in other hands. Let us take an example from our own industry. The last published Accounts of Technicolor Ltd. denotes continuing prosperity, and apart from the modest wage increases which their employees have received, the bulk of the benefit has passed to the shareholders, of whom the principle ones include Technicolor of America, the Prudential, and General Cinema Finance Corporation (one of the companies in the Rank group). Some of the individual shareholders include the Duke of Norfolk and various other members of the nobility, together with, we note with interest, the executives of the company with whom A.C.T. has to negotiate the increases for its staff. At present, they are all benefiting from the company's prosperity which last year was reflected in a 50 per cent capital bonus and a dividend of 20 per cent which, in effect, is a distribution of 30 per cent compared with the dividend of 22J per cent the previous year. The directors, too, we notice, had their remuneration increased by over £1,000. From the company's published accounts, it can be deduced, by a simple arithmetical process, that in addition to earning his own wages and his share of the company's overheads and general ru lining expenses, each employee earned for the company an average of £15 profit each week. Surely, it is unreasonable for wage restraint to continue in such circumstances. In its new wage claim to the company, A.C.T. will very clearly ask for a substantial increase for its members both to offset the rise in the cost of living, for which the policy of the present Chancellor of the Exchequer is responsible, and also to attract into the pockets of our members a proportion of his £15 a week profit which each of them is making for his employers. When Technicolor wanted a super-human effort from their staff to process the Coronation films, they paid bonuses far above the extra remuneration they were obliged to pay under the Agreement negotiated by A.C.T. with the Film Laboratories' Association. In other words, Technicolor themselves, by their action, prove the nonsense of Mr. Butler's statement. In our new wage claim we shall endeavour to put the " profit-sharing " on a regular weekly basis. The A.C.T. Laboratory Committee is now preparing its proposals for submission to the Film Laboratory Association, and it is clear that I am disclosing no secret in stating we shall be going forward for substantial increases. Equally, although proposals are not so far advanced, it is almost certain that our Feature Committee will be submitting claims for increases through the Technical Panel of the J.I.C. The last agreement with the British Film Producers' Association was negotiated in 1947. Since then, despite a 41 per cent rise in the cost of living, a few of our members have had a weekly increase of only 29/4d.; some have had an increase of 18/4d.; whilst the rest have had no increase at all. In this section of the industry there is, too, good cause for a substantial claim. Moreover, in addition to the merits of any increases, it must be remembered that the rates in the Agreement are minimums and, in certain grades, substantially below the rates actually paid to our members. In fact, the minimums in one or two grades could be nearly doubled with hardly an A.C.T. member receiving any financial benefit. There is, therefore, both a case for making the