Automation in the American Automobile Industry. Reprints of Articles by... [cover title]

London, England: Labour Information Office / United States Information Service, 1955. Very good.. 29pp. Folio. Original printed wrappers, stapled. Noticeable toning and spotting to wrappers, minor edge wear. Light toning to first text leaf. A rare collection of offprints of three articles which first appeared in the English publication Labour News from the U.S. in 1955 on the subject of automation in the American car industry, along with a glossary of terms compiled by the United Auto Workers (UAW). Two of the articles were authored by Walter P. Reuther, president of the UAW, and the third was written by D.J. Davis, vice president of the Ford Motor Company. The articles were presented by the authors to a special joint subcommittee of the United States Congress. Reuther reports from the labor perspective, writing that automation is welcomed by labor unions but he also points out the many problems of the practice. He also discusses the impending effects of electronic computers on society, the responsibilities of employers, the productivity of capital, the need for growth in consumer markets, the need for small business aid, and more. Reuther suggests policies such as a more equitable distribution of the tax burden, adequate unemployment compensation, improved social security, a higher minimum wage, and other improvements that will satisfy the labor market in the advent of more automation. Davis's article provides the Ford Motor Company's perspective on the issue, their definition of automation, as well as its economics and effects. The glossary comes from a pamphlet printed by the UAW the same year and provides definitions of a range of terms such as automation, servomechanism, cybernetics, and robot, among others. We locate no other copies of this collection of offprints on automation from 1955, providing early information on the effects of computers, and perhaps foretelling the advent of artificial intelligence, on American industry.