296.000 PEOPLE COVERED
BY 4 NEW MINIMUM W46E
OROERS IN NEW YORK STATE
Albany, N. Y.—■Over 296.000!
employe^ in four industries in
New York State are affected by'
new minimum wage orders which ■
are no win effect.
The Department of Labor prom-'
ised “active enforcement” of the
provisions of the orders.
The orders in the hotel, restau- j
rant cleaning and dyeing, and j
confectionery industries were ^
drawn up two months ago but the
law provides for a 60-day waiting!
period between their promulgation
and effective oate.
Industrial Commissioner Ed
ward Corsi said employers fail- |
ing to comply were subject to ac-1
tion by the department for re
covery of underpayments, as well
as suits by employes.
New hourly minimums up to 51 ]
cents for workers in year-around
hotels were provided in the hotel
order, which covers 91,000 work
ers. A weekly minimum as high
as |22 was set for resort estab
lishments.
The restaurant order, covering
176,500 employes, set minimum
hourly rates ranging to 52 cents
with variations depending upon
the size of communities.
The cleaning and dyeing order
established a 57 1-2-cent-an-hour
minimum, as did the confectionery
order, with time and a half after
40 hours a week. They covered
17.000 cleaning and dyeing em
ployes and 12,000 confectionery
workers.
The first consumer received
service in 1935, and REA-financed
power systems passed the 1,000,-1
000 consumer mark in 1942. i
PENNSYLVANIA FEDERATION
SETS UP POLITICAL LEAGUE
Harrisburg, Pa.— The Pennsyl
vania State Federation of Labor
set up a political organization to
combat anti-labor forces in the
forthcoming political campaign of
1948.
Establishment of the league
was the result of a conference
called by James L. McDevitt,
president of the state federation,
and attenoed by over 300 dele
gates from AFL affiliates through
out the state.
Main purposes of the organi
zation, known as the Pennsyl
vania Federation Educational and
Political League, will be to get
out the vote in 1948 and to urge
' -:tn members to vote against
those representatives in the state
egislature and in Congress who
'iave demonstrated an anti-labor
attitude.
In addition to these declared
purposes, the league will co
operate with and carry out the
program of the political organi
zation to be organized by the
American Federation oil Labor at
the national level.
The conference appointed an
executive committee to devise
ways and means of raising the
necessary funds required to ef
fectuate the purposes of the
league; The committee consists
of the federation’s 1'5-man ex
ecutive council plus additional
members to be appointed.
Under the plah adopted by the
conference and announced by Mr.
McDevitt, the central labor unions
in the state will have charge of
.he campaign in the various con
gresional districts while the local
unions concentrate their activities
upon community elections.
SPECIAL
FRIDAY AND SATURDAY
SWEATERS
$1.00
WERE $3.95
Canary, Blue and Tan
S. M. L.
Nationally Known Manufacturers
SLEEVELESS. BUTTON UP
iMariotiBavisCa
118 South Tryon Street
SLIPPERS
for the
ENTIRE FAMILY
Priced from
$3.50
GILMER-MOORE COMPANY
121* Smith Tryon Street
«r
won SAYS PROPOSALS OF
TAX COMNTTEE MEAN LOSS
OF $4 ANO A HALF BILLION
Washington, D. C. — Matthew
Woll, AFL Executive Council
n'eml>er who served on the Special
Tax Study Committee appointed
by Representative Knutson, de
clared that adoption of the recent
recommendations of the majority
of the committee would mean a
revenue loss of approximately
four and one-half billion dollars
yearly.
Early on November when Woll,
[the labor representative on the
Special Tax Study Committee,
filed a minority report in which
he took issue with the majority
recommendations, he stated that
he was reserving the right to
file such statement as he might
consider warranted by further
study of the majority statement
presented by Roswell Magill.
‘There was little on no reference
during the committee deliberations
to the probable revenue loss that
might result from the adoption of
the 46 reoommendatiors embodied
in the majority report,” stated
Mr. Woll. “When I tried to se
cure information on this point
from technical advisers of the
Ways and Means Committee, I
was told it was not available.
Through studies we have made
independently, the estimates of
these losses now included in the
supplementary report have been
secured from the latest available
computations based on current
revenue and tax receipts.”
Mr. Woll emphasized that the
$4.5 billion estimated loss in rev
enue would be ovev and above any
across the board income tax cut
proposals such as that advocated
by Representative Knutson. “The
j total of $8 billion to $8.5 billion
j proposed as Hx reduction by Rep
resentative Knutson and the ma
jority of his tax study commit
tee would result in a tremendous
slash in federal revenue.” de
clared Mr. Woll. “Yet, if and
when such reductions were made,
low income groups would still be
paying heavy income and excise
taxes."
Mr. Woll concluded that excise
taxes were contributing materially
to inflationary price increases.
He referred particularly to the
taxes on transportation and com
munication, electrical goods, and
other articles as “discriminatory,
bad and their impact on business,
and capricious in their effect on
consumers.”
LABOR DEPARTMENT FIXES
1,187 GI JOB RIGHTS CASES
Washington, D. C.—-More than
’.300 claims involving reemploy
ment rights of veterans have
been filed with the Veterans’ Re
employment Rights Division, U.
S. Department of Labor, since
opening of field offices in August,
Robert Saylers, Director, an
nounced here.
In the same period 1,187 cases
were closed, including cases in
volving the payment of $72,802.65
in cash settlement.
During October 1947, 594 case3
were closed with 1,246 veterans
involved. AS of November 1,
1,251 cases were pending final
settlement in field offices of the
Veterans’ Reemployment Rights
Division.
The Selective Training and
Service Act provided that all vet
erans who met certain conditions
were entitled to the jobs they left
to enter the armed services upon
discharge, Mr. Saylers explained.
When the Selective Training and
Service Act expired last March 1,
this function was transferred to
the Secretary of Labor.
—
I HOUSING OFFICIALS
SUPPORT T-E-W BILL
New York City—The National
Association of Housing Repre
sentatives meeting here adopted a
resolution supporting the Taft
Ellender-Wagner bill as part of a
program designed to boost pro
duction of homes.
The resolution calls for vigorous
action to provide for the con
struction of dwellings at the rate
of 1,500,000 per year for the next
13 years, nearly double the pres
ent rate.
Senator Robert F. Wagner, pre
vented from attending the session
by illness, was honored by the
group with the . presentation of
scroll testifying to his “untiring
efforts” for the betterment of
housing conditions. The presen
tation marked the 10th anniver
sary of the United States Hous
ing Act of 1937, adoption of
which was due largely to the sup
port given' by Senator Wagner.
RAILWAY CLERKS SET I P
EDUCATIONAL PROCRAM
Cinr'nnati. — An unsually
broad educational program, re
cently started by the Railway
Clerks, is now in full operation,
President George M. Harrison re
potted hete.
Glenn R. Atkinson, former as
sistant research director of the
Brotherhood, is now educational
director. -During the war' he
served as railroad labor's liaison
representative in the labor di
vision of the OPA.
Pour regional directors w:ll
function under Atkinson. They
are: C. E. Kief, for the Past;
A. R. St. John, Southeast: \Y. M.
Crawford, Midwest, and J. B.
i Haines, for West.
I “One of their major tasks,’’
Harrison said, “is to conduct
leadership training programs tor
officers of our local lodges. The
loca*, people are to be trained in
the techniques and procedures of
the Brotherhood; in the histor>
of our organization and in the
Railw'a.v Labor Act. as well as
other laws affecting ra’lroad
workers.
McCOMB URGES I HIGHER
MINIMUM WA6E; TIGHTEN
ING LAW’S ON CHILD LABOR
Washington, D. C.—William
McComb, chief of the Wage-Hour
Administration, called upon Con
gress to increase the minimum
wage and to tighten the Fair
Labor Standards Act to make it
more difficult for business-men
to utilize ch:ld labor.
Mr. McComb, a former execu
tive in manufacturing and con
struction corporations, seconded
the plea for a 75-cent hourly min
imum rate urged by the Secretary
of Labor and long sought by the
American FederaCon of Labor.
He pointed out that most' com
panies. even in low-wage indus
tries, pay at least that figure.
“If these can do so, others chn
too,” he insisted.
McComb recalled that in the
early days of the present law
many employers set up a “phony”
wage as the “regular rate of
pay,” in order to escape paying
for overtime at 50 per cent above
the true straight-time earnings.
“‘These schemes had begun to
spread like wildfire until the
courts penetrated the1 subterfuges
and declared them illegal," he
said.
Some employers who came be
fore the committee recommended
revisions in the act which would
open the door to exactly such
cheating, McComb pointed out.
He warned the committee against
falling for such proposals, which,
he said, “could be used by clever
lawyers to circumvent the basic
purpose of the act.” The end re
sult. he declared would be “wide
spread evasions” by chiselers,
giving.them “unfair competitive
advantages” over fair employ
ers.
In contrast with witnesses who
called for undermining the law,
McComb proposed many changes
which would tighten the act and
extend its safeguards to millions
of workers not now covered.
Also, he stressed that the pro
visions curbing child labor are
full of loopholes which need to be
plugged up. For example, the
law now bans shipment of goods
produced by under-age children
during a preceding 30-day period.
Some employers, McComb said,
“avoid the child labor standards
by holding goods for more than
30 days before removing them
for shipment in commerce.’*
“A direct prohibition of op
pressive child labor would make
this evasion impossible,” he em
phas'zed.
McComb went down the line in
refuting claims made by some
witnesses that they had been
“brow-beaten” by government in
spectors into complying with the
law. He made it clear that his
agency dealt fairly with firms
which inadvertently violated the
law. and that it was tough only
with deliberate violators.
__
ARBITRATOR UPHOLDS
SENIORITY PRINCIPLE
Philadelphia. — In one of the
most important ruling in the
history of the union, an arbitra
tor upheld the seniority of rep
resentative of 5,200 food workert
enrolled in Local 195, Amalga
mated Meat Cutters and Butcher
Workmen of North America
(AFL).
The decision, formalizing what
the union declared had long been
industry practice, was handed
down in a dispute involving the
Harkell Beef Boning Company of
Philadelphia.
The case came before Cooper
following dismissal of Steward
Ernest Meyer allegedly for
j “slack business.” The union con
tended the dismissal violated the
unwritten law of the industry pro
tecting the seniority of union
representatives.
The arbitrator ordered Meyer
reinstated with pay for time lost.
V SS «AW
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