A few months back I found a little book in the Oxfam shop in Kings Heath. Published in 1916 it contains poems, short essays and articles written by notable figures from Birmingham. Edward Burne-Jones, Joseph Chamberlain, Cardinal Newman and Joseph Priestley are a few names that I recognised. Of particular interest are the entries attributed to members of the Cadbury family. There is an article by George Cadbury about Adult Schools, his wife Elizabeth has two entries, one about encouraging a more spiritual approach to life and the other about the worrying rise of German Materialism. But the most significant contributions, in my opinion, are from Edward Cadbury. Unfortunately there are no dates attached to the entries, but I am assuming this Edward Cadbury is George's eldest son. As well as his involvement with the family business, he had a long association with the newspaper industry, which he used to publicise a variety of causes. He has been credited with directly influencing the introduction of the Old Age Pension Act and the Trade Board Act which aimed to improve the working conditions of women.
The first article is entitled 'Idealism in Labour', in which he outlines the basic philosophy of the Cadburys as employers.
The second, and most radical I feel, is called 'Casual Labour' (it was co-authored with G.Shann - they seemed to have worked together on educational handbooks for the Adult Schools). He is writing about many of the issues that still dominate political debate today.
No doubt, depending on a contemporary reader's political persuasion, different interpretations can be drawn from aspects of this text. However he clearly warns against "unrestricted competition" and there is no mistaking Edward's intentions in the following passages:
"When the labourer cannot maintain himself at a reasonable standard of decency and comfort, the decline in industrial efficiency is rapid."
"We must recognise that any trade that does not pay a living wage to its workers is a parasite on the community"
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