WELL SUSTAINED DEMMO
FOR LABOR IH MANY
FIELDS SEER RY EXPERTS
Washington, D. C.—Conditions
in American labor market in Feb*
ruary were relatively stable, with
employment continuing high and
production flowing to consumers
in record peacetime volume, it was
reported here by the United States
Employment Service,
Robert C. Goodwin, USES di
rector, declared in his report that,
while for the Nation as a whole,
unemployment increased slightly
in February, with the coming of
spring a well-sustained demand
for labor may be expected in
many fields.
“Not only is a considerable rise
in prospect in the construction
industry, but gains are also likely
in heavy goods factories and their
trade outlets,” Mr. Goodwin said.
In February manufacturing
employment continued the moder
ate gains of the past few months
and rose 70,000 to a new post
war high of 15,100,000. Gains
were concentrated in the durable
goods groups, paced by the auto
mobile industry which added more
than 30,000 employes. Smaller
gains of about one per cent were
also reported in iron and steel,
machinery, nonferrous metals, and
the furniture group, all now ope
rating at peak post-war levels.
“The beginning of the seasonal
upturn in farm activity caused
total employment to rise slightly
to 55,500,000 in February, more
than offsetting a decline in the
non-farrft sector.
“Construction was the only
major group to report a substan
tial decline, showing a drop of
110,000. Employment-.in trade
was also off slightly.”
Mr. Gocdwin said February re-j
ports from 82 major labor market I
areas shewed only three reporting
substantial employment gains—
Detroit, Chicago, and Evansville,
Ind. He added that further in
dication of the easing that has
been taking place in recent months
in the labor market was found in
the failure of any area to indi
cate in its report that labor short
ages were now impeding expan
■ion
“Labor demand for expansion
purpose again declined jgt Febru
ary,” Mr. Goodwin said. “In
general, material shortages, order
cancellations, and marketing un
certainties continued to hinder
employment expansion although
employment continued at a high
%wel.
jBfln general, the areas which
i^Tort increased labor require
ments for coming months are
areas which expect large seasonal
expansions in construction and
in food processing. Areas which
inticipate siseable employment
increases in the next few months
include Boston, Springfield and
Holyoke, Mass.; Albany-8ehnec
tady-Troy, N1 Y.; Newark, Balti
more and Chicago.”
LABOR DEPT. PLANS PROTEST
ON MAJOR BUDGET SLA8HE8
Washington, D. C.—Secretary
of Labor Schwellenbach wilt pro
test against the deep slash in his
department’s budget, made by
the House Appropriations Com
mittee when he appears before
Die Senate Appropriations Com
mittee.
Mr. Schwellenbach filed notice
of his intention to fight the 913,-.
714,500 cut under the $31,850,700
figure approved by the Budget
Bureau and the President.
A Senate subcommittee of the
Appropriations Committee will
open hearings on the budget re
quests soon.
Mr. Schwellenbach will ask the
Senate to restore the 43 per cent
cut in operating expenses for the
department and to vote for the
full amount of $103,758,700.
The public services rendered by
the department would according
to Mr. Schwellenbach, be reduced
considerably if the budget cuts
remain in effect. The reductions
would have to be put into effect
within a few weeks if the House
action . prevails since the House
has insisted that the department
must reduce immediately to meet
the expenses of the accumulated
annual leave of many employee
to be laid off.
Send in yonr renewal to
Tlie Labor Journal today!
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GIVE
rOCONUUER CANCER
-MfRIUs vAiNCtH SOC'fTv
STATE JOBLESS AID IN
FIRST ’47 QUARTER 40
PER CERT BELOW '48
Washington, D. C.—The level of
unemployment benefits covered ty
State legislation in the first three
months of 1947 is approx imateiy
40 per cent below that of the first
three months of last year, but
has remained comparatively level
in tJiiW most recent quarter.
This was Tevealed in a report
issued by Waston B. Miller, Fed
eral Security Administrator, after
a nation-wide survey.
Shortly before issuance of the
report, Senator Wiley of Wiscon
sin offered a resolution calling for
realignment of assistance bene
fits and outlining a plan under
which a study would be made of
the entire social security, system.
Wiley asserted it was “obvious’’
that benefits are too small in
view of the increase in prices,
and cited particularly that the
average aid to 60,000 blind per
sons is $33.67 a month, and that
the average pay per family for
dependent children is $56.42.
The report of the FSA disclosed
that about four workers out of
every 100 covered under State
programs were unemployed one
week in January, February, and
March, as compared with 6.8
workers out of 100 a year before.
These ratios are, based on con
tinued claims for one week of
each months as a percentage of
tha average monthly number of
covered jobs in 1945.
The present ratio of 4.1 per cent
reflects a seasonal rise that oc
curred since last November, when
the low point of 3 per cent was
reached after a steady decline in
unemployment that began last
iprinf.
Considerable variation was
found in the individual Statq ra
tios, Mr. Miller said. While the
ratio for most States in the first
week of February was between 2
and 6 per cent, seven States, in
cluding such industrial States as
Connecticut, Indiana, and Ohio,
had a ratio of less than 2* per
cent, and four States—California,
Oklahoma, .Oregon, and Wash
ington—had ratios of more than
t per cent.
In the last week of February,
about 996,000 civilian workers
were receiving benefits, Mr. Mill-'
er said.
The total amount of benefits
in February was $65,888,000 a
drop of $8,867,000 from th<^ pre
vious month. The average week
ly benefit amount for unemploy
ment insurance also dropped from
$18.11 in January ’to $17.88 in
February, the lowest amount since
June,- 1945. In the 18 months
since then, the average weekly
benefit amount rose to a high of
$19.11 in September, 1945, but has
since declined.
The number of newly unem
ployed workers in the United
States, as indicated by initial
claims, dropped from 926,000 in
the four weeks ended in Janu
ary to 741,000 in February, a de
cline of 185,000 claims. Many of
the initial claims in January were
attributed to seasonal unemploy
ment. • 9.
The Federal Security Admini
strator pointed out that there is
a high rate of turnover among
claimants. Of all who filed in
February, 36 per cent (ere filing
claims for a new period of unem
ployment for them. One-third—
or 34 per cent—of all who filed
during the month stopped filing
before the month was over, either
because they found jobs or
dropped out of the labor market.
Of those who stopped filing, less
than one out of five did so be
cause their benefit rights were
exhausted. 1
Are you attending your Union
meetings regularly?
SCHWELLENBACH TO ASK
TRUMAN VETO OF PORTAL
PAY RILL IN PRESENT FORM
Washington. D.' C.—Expressing
once more his grave fears that
the portal-to-portal pay bill would
only invite a flood of new jaw
suits,1 Labor Secretary Schwellen
bach told newsmen he would ask
President Truman to veto the
measure unless it is changed.
His comment came during a
news conference discussion of a
House-approved 13 million dollar
cut in labor Department appro
priation requests.
Schwellenbach observed that
funds for the Wage and Hour
Division and Labor Department
Solicitor’s Office had been sub
stantially slashed. He said that
the portal bill in Congress would
bring on “a flood of law suits”
concerning interpretations of the
Wage-Hour Act as amended by
the pending legislation.
The proposals in Congress are
designed to wipe out demand? by
unions in pending law suits for
six billion dollars back pay, as
wel as to curtail similar suits in
the future. The suits seek back
' pay for time spent getting ready
for work and walking to the
work bench.
Meanwhile, conferees on the dif
ferences between the portal pav
b-'Us passed bv. Senate, and House
, -tailed to reach agreement. Another
| Meeting was set for April 10.
The Justice Department said
that Attorney General Tom Clark
was .preparing a letter to tne
Sixth Circuit Court of Appeals at
Cincinnati setting forthi the Gov
ernment's views on proposed dis
missal of the Mount Clements
portal-to-portal pay case.
It will be submitted to the
court for consideration along
with tlje agreement which Court
Clerk John, JV. Menzies said had
been entered into by the original
parties to the suit _for dropping
the case. Justice officials said
they had not participated in any
agreement on the matter.
Clark has formally petitioned
th? Supreme Court to take the
case directly from the district
court, which disallowed the work*
era’ claims for pay spent inside
the premises of the Mount Clem
ens, Mich. This was for the pur
pose of obtaining a prompt, final
judgment raised in this suit and
similar actions which have been
taken by workers elsewhere.
KFL SERVICE WORKERS III
NEW TORN WIN PIT HIKE
OF IS MILLION k YEAR
New York City. — Increased
wages of 21 and a half cents on
hour, or a total of $8.60 per week,
were announced here by David
Sullivan, president of Local 328,
Building and Service Employees’
International Union (AFL), on
the basis of an arbitration award
The increase will benefit 26,000
lift operators and other worker*
in,,4,000 buildings throughout this
city' and will amount to an esti
mated 116,000,000 yearly pay
jump.
William D. Rawlins, executive
secretary of the Realty Advisory
Board on Labor Relations, esti
mated that the total, rise in labor
costs won Id come to $25,000,000
when comparable increases to
non-union workers were put into
effect.
The new increases were the
result of mediation and arbitration
before Arthur S. Meyer, chairman
of the State Mediation Board,
under the terms of the so-called
Frankenthaler - RAB agreement
entered into by the union and the
advisory board after a strike in
October, IMS.
All union members will receive
the weekly pay increase of $8.90,
Mr. Sullivan announced. He de
scribed the increase as the big
gest won in any industry in the
metropolitan area since V-J Day.
The new schedules will become ef
fective April 21 and the agree
ment will expire on April 20,
194$.
Mr. Rawlins said the sise of the
increase would inflict severe hard
ship on building owners particu
larly in the apartment field. The
freezing of rents at the March,
1943, level had forced many land
lords “into the red,” even before
the new pay rise was ordered,
he said. He advocated passing
of rent control authority from
the Federal Government to the
states as a means of providing
relief where it was needed with
out destroying the principle of
control.
Minimum wage rates under the
new schedule were listed by Mr.
Sullivan, as follows: For eleva
tor operators in Class A build
ings the range will be $4:1.58 in
offices, $42.33 in lofts and $41.S2
in apartments. The Class B min- .
imums are $42.33 in offices, j
$40.40 in lofts and $39.51 in j
apartments. Class C minimum* j
are $40.58 in offices, $38.75 in;
lofts and $37.20 in apartments, j
Mr. Sullivan said most employes
were now receiving more than
the minimum. They work a 40
hour, 5-day week.
Wurlitxer Spmette Pianos
—Convenient Terms—
PARKER-GARDNER CO.
Since 1K8J
118 W. Trade Phone 8257
52 BILLION MATURING
Direct obligations of the United
States Government in the hands
of the public which will mature [
within 12 months amount to 553,* j
897,800,937. They consist of
Treasury bonds, certificates of in-'
debtedness .bills and notes.
Have you paid your subscription
to The Labor Journal for the new
year? If not send it in today.
Smokey Says
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will "seed-in" many acres; pro
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