EXPECTED RISE IN U.S. EMPLOYMENT FAILS TO APPEAR

Gisborne Herald, Volume LXXVI, Issue 22948, 17 May 1949, Page 5

EXPECTED RISE IN U.S. EMPLOYMENT FAILS TO APPEAR

(10.30 a.m.) NEW YORK, May 16. The hoped for spring rise in employment has not yet made itself felt in most sections of the United States, reports the New York Times after surveying 20 major cities. Many businessmen now expect no_ real pick-up in industrial activity until the autumn.

The survey shows that unemployment is stil rising slightly in some areas and levelling off in others. The Pacific coast and parts of the south were the only places showing a slight drop in unemployment. The chief threat seen by business spokesmen is there might be prolonged strikes in the metal, steel or other basic industries this summer. They warned that a strike wave would have a disastrous effect on efforts to stabilise the economy at a level of 25 per cent above pre-war production. Union officials contend that the biggest need for economic stability is the expansion of purchasing power through lower prices and higher wages. They maintain that the productive capacity of the United States is a sufficient guarantee of a living standard 50 per cent above pre-war levels if means are found to expand purchasing power.