Father Mavie

Chapter 725: Meals and accommodation (two-in-one, please subscribe!!!)
clatter.
clatter.
clatter.
The heels of the shoes came into contact with the tiles, making a crisp reverberation. The huge conference hall became quiet, and countless eyes looked at the door, where...
Arthur is walking slowly.

Different from the previous situation, this time, Arthur became the focus of the meeting. Everyone looked at the prince who had been forgotten and ignored by them, and felt a little nervous while sighing.

No one knows what Arthur's rise will bring.

In full view of everyone, Arthur sat down on the Labor Party seat with the manuscript he had prepared in advance, closed his eyes, and waited for the conference to begin.

When the Speaker's hammer falls,

As the convener of the parliament, Arthur stood up and came to the podium. He glanced at the members sitting on both sides. He paused briefly when passing Ma Wei, then took a deep breath and said:
"Dear Speaker and colleagues, in response to the recent strikes, the Labor Representative Committee has entrusted our Labor Party to make the following three demands to the government. If all are met, they will resume work immediately. Here, I have obtained their requests. Empowerment to speak on their behalf.”

Clearing his throat, Arthur read out loud the requirements in the manuscript:
"One: Increase salary. Considering the current high rents in London, I think this is reasonable."

"Two: Give workers more rest time."

"Three: When it comes to safety issues, workers need more protection."

After reading the three requests, the conference hall was extremely silent. The eldest prince leaned on the side and closed his eyes to rest, looking unwilling to participate. The second prince held a cigar in his mouth and stared at Arthur with a gloomy face, sucking on the cigarette holder. Like a angry frog.

All the people he installed in the Labor Representative Committee were overthrown. This was definitely Arthur's hand. From the beginning, Arthur had intended for him to interfere in the affairs of the committee. Now that Rabiot and others have been arrested, if they If you confess, the situation will be troublesome.
But Arthur didn't seem to intend to use Rabiot and others to blackmail him. He just asked the workers to re-elect representatives and formally made a request to the Labor Party. This time, the workers united and came fiercely.

No matter how stupid the second prince is, he understands that Rabiot and others are tools to arouse the anger of the workers. Now that the goal has been achieved, they can challenge the parliament without them.

Even if the Labor Party only has 51 seats in the House of Commons and less than one-tenth of its voice, it is still enough to tip the balance in the parliament.

The Labor Party is not terrible, what is terrible are the tens of thousands of workers behind the Labor Party!

"Your Highness, we should agree to their request." Baron Frederick whispered from the side: "If this continues, we will be the first to be unable to withstand it."

Factories have a large number of orders, including iron ore, coal, railway and other companies. If work is stopped for one day, they will face huge losses. Once the order is overdue, the compensation is enough to bankrupt people.

This is not to mention the increasingly difficult situation in London. If it continues, the king will soon come to charge.

The second prince was in a very unhappy mood. After all the trouble, they found out that they had to bear the consequences of rising house prices!
In this case, wouldn’t all the money earned through real estate speculation in the past few days go into it?

"Nicholas, you have a lot of ideas. Do you have any good ideas?" the second prince suddenly asked.

"Method. What do you mean, Your Highness?"

"A way to prevent Arthur from succeeding." The second prince emphasized: "Is there another way to let the workers resume their work? It would be best not to pay any money."

Ma Wei smiled bitterly and said: "Your Highness, you have heard the request of the Labor Representative Committee. They are just asking for money. If you don't give them money, how can they go back to work?"

"That's what I say, but I really don't want to bleed."

"I understand, Your Highness, you want to minimize the losses as much as possible."

"Yes, that's why I asked you. Manstein Potion Company is the only company not affected by this strike. Why are your workers so obedient? Did you use magic?"

"This is not magic. From the very beginning, I have offered the workers remuneration that they cannot refuse. The potion factory is too important. It contains formulas that need to be kept strictly confidential. Of course, I have to increase the remuneration to make them obey orders."

Mawei shrugged and said: "If I pay the workers 3 shillings a week, they dare to be lazy and fish in front of my nose."

"If I give workers 10 shillings a week, they will treat me with utmost respect and work hard."

"If I give the workers a salary of 11 shillings a day, they will treat the company as their own home, and the company's affairs will be their business. I don't need to say anything, and they will spontaneously maintain the company."

The second prince asked doubtfully: "But won't this cost too much?"

"Potions are a profit-making industry, and this expense is nothing. I am just giving these examples." Ma Wei responded: "A high enough salary can change the lives of workers. Once they get used to this kind of life, You will become dependent on salary, and if you are dependent on salary, you are dependent on the company."

"Ugh"

The second prince sighed: "That's what I say, but who is willing to give out the money they earn? Is there any other way besides giving a high salary?"

"Yes." Ma Wei nodded and said: "The reason why these workers went on strike is because the current salary cannot continue to sustain their lives, and they want money for consumption. In this case, why don't we do some tricks on this basis?"

"Little hands and feet?"

"For example, we can build dormitories around the factory to provide workers with housing, and open a canteen so that they can eat together." Ma Wei said: "It is not expensive to build several dormitories in suburban factories. If we bear the cost of another Wouldn’t it be possible to save a lot of salary by paying for three meals a day?”

The second prince's eyes lit up: "That's right! Why didn't I think of that! There are three levels of building dormitories in the suburbs. The lowest level is a dormitory for six people per room. It doesn't cost money. If you want to move up to the middle level, A single room costs some money, and as for a small apartment where you can live with your family, the price is even higher. As long as the price is lower than an apartment in the city, I think they will accept it!”

Baron Frederick also smiled at this moment and said: "Yes, Your Highness, a similar method can be used in the canteen. Ordinary employee meals are oily and unpalatable, but as long as you are willing to spend money, you can eat better. I want to make it myself." Food is also okay, we can set up a market around the factory area, in the form of a farm or a manor, the price will of course be lower than in the city, but you can still make money!"

"What a good method, Nicholas!" The second prince nodded repeatedly: "We have indeed increased the wages of workers, but what? We can make the money back through other means! In the end, we are the ones who benefit!"

"."

Looking at the excited Second Prince and Baron Frederick, Mavey's expression was very subtle.Providing food and accommodation for workers is definitely a good way to deal with the high cost of living.

but.
In the eyes of different people, a good method can also become a means of making money.

Ma Wei’s words opened up the minds of the Second Prince and others. After some discussion, Councilor Girard stood up and made what seemed to be his own suggestions, but in fact they were suggestions from the Liberal Party:
"First, on the issue of increasing wages, I believe that workers' original wages should be increased by [-]%, but this [-]% of wages should be converted into performance bonuses, which can only be obtained if performance is achieved."

"Second, workers demand more rest time, which is reasonable. An extra half-hour lunch break is added at noon every day. I think this is acceptable to everyone."

"Thirdly, regarding the security issue, this is indeed a headache, but I have good news. I heard that Thames Bank will launch a life insurance policy recently, which can be insured for only 1 penny a week. , during the insurance period, if death occurs, you can receive up to 30 gold pounds in compensation.”

Getting sick is not the biggest worry for people in London right now.

Death that comes suddenly is frightening.

The eternal realm of the Church of the Three Goddesses of Destiny can bring dying people back from the brink of death, but it cannot reverse life and death or bring the dead back to life.

To put it simply, if you have an accident, such as being hit by a flower pot falling from the sky or being hit head-on by a carriage and there is no priest around.
There's a good chance you're going to burp.

This is where life insurance comes in handy.

“As a representative, I can accept Councilor Girard’s proposals regarding rest periods and safety issues, but the salary issue is not enough to meet the workers’ demands.”

Arthur said: "Currently, London's housing rents have doubled, accounting for half of the salary of ordinary workers. Under this situation, it is not enough to increase wages by only [-]% and pay them in the form of performance bonuses."

Councilor Girard sat down, and a second Liberal MP stood up and replied: "In order to deal with rising house prices in London, I have a foolproof plan."

"On the basis of the [-]% increase in performance bonuses, we might as well provide workers with certain food and accommodation guarantees. For example, the company should provide workers with free accommodation and three free meals a day. In this way, the food and accommodation problem cannot be solved. Is there a problem with accommodation?”

Frowning his brows slightly, Arthur felt that there was something fishy in these conditions. He knew the second prince and others too well, and knew that they must not have good intentions in compromising easily.

But for a while, he didn't know what the problem was.

Arthur, who was somewhat undecided, quietly looked at Mavi, who nodded slightly and gave him a hint.

"These conditions are acceptable," Arthur said.

Seeing that Arthur was relieved, the speaker quickly hit the hammer and asked everyone: "The vote is now going to take place. If you agree, please raise your hands."

The second prince raised his handkerchief, and the Liberal MP sitting behind him immediately agreed. The eldest prince opposite still had his eyes closed, but the hand holding the handkerchief was raised, sending a signal to the conservative party.

Now it is not a matter of whether he votes or not.

Arthur's Labor Party has already voted in favor, and with the second prince's Liberal Party, even if the eldest prince does not support it, the proposal will most likely be passed. In this case, he might as well save some energy and sit back and watch the fight.

Let the second prince and Arthur make trouble. It would be best to end the strike, otherwise the conservative party will also feel uncomfortable.

The eldest prince agreed, and Russell Benjamin immediately brought the northern members to express his support. Freya glanced at Mavi who raised his handkerchief, and also raised it.

"The vote was unanimous! The proposal will be implemented immediately!"

At night, a burst of cheers erupted in London, and the workers all celebrated. They had obtained benefits for themselves through the strike, and the noble gentlemen compromised!Compromised with their unity!
Although it was different from the expected [-]% salary increase, the results were already very good. At least the vast majority of workers were satisfied. They returned to work that night and started the backlog of work from the previous few days.

Railways were restored first, with trains running in and out of London's major stations all night long. Freighters came and went at the docks. Navigation gradually resumed. Fresh vegetables and wheat flour were transported into shops, and the aroma of baking bread once again filled the streets.

The second prince and others did not break their promise, and issued a week's meal allowance in advance the next day, a kind of coupon that can only be used in the company canteen.

The workers were very happy at first. Who doesn’t like the free canteen?The money saved for meals can be used to make up for the rent. As long as you wait until next week for your salary to be paid, everything will be back on track and your life will get better and better.
Just a week later, the workers felt something was wrong. In the first few days after the canteen was established, the free food provided was very delicious. Although it was a bit bland, it could at least fill their stomachs. After only a few days, the food quality It dropped rapidly.

The bread exchanged for a bread meal subsidy voucher is only the size of a fist, as hard as a stone, with sand in it, which is gritty and difficult to swallow. There is even a situation where the supply exceeds the demand. Only the workers who rush to the canteen as soon as possible can get it. Grab it.

Just when the workers were about to protest, they discovered that a new window had opened next to the free window in the canteen, which contained beef stew and fragrant soft bread. The aroma was fragrant. Unfortunately, the meal subsidy coupons could only be used at half the price here.

After hesitating for a long time, the workers accepted the reality and ran to the new window with their meal subsidy coupons to exchange for food. It was indeed delicious until a week later.
"What?! Meal subsidy coupons can't be used?!"

"Meal coupons are issued by the company to you to exchange for free meals. We are a charging window here, so of course we do not accept meal coupons!"

The food waiter at the new window said impatiently: "If you want to eat, go to the door and buy a ticket!"

When the workers came to the door, they found that there was a completely different kind of meal coupon at the door. They needed to spend money to buy it. The price was not expensive. For 2 pence, you could have a big bowl of curry beef and half a pound of wheat bread, which was cheaper than what was sold outside. too much.

So the workers began to pay for new meal coupons out of their own pockets, which cost 3 pence a day. Some people calculated their accounts and found that the money they spent in the canteen every day was about the same as what they spent on eating at home, but it was more convenient, and they didn't need to bother their wives. You can exchange excess meal coupons into bread to take home as snacks.

Some smart workers discovered that although there was a lot of sand in the bread exchanged for meal subsidy coupons, as long as the bread was put into water and boiled, the sand would sink to the bottom, and then you could eat the batter on top!

(End of this chapter)