Approved Code No. 255 Registry No. 1635-03 

NATIONAL RECOVERY ADMINISTRATION 

CODE OF FAIR COMPETITION 

FOR THE 

TABLE OIL CLOTH 

INDUSTRY 

AS APPROVED ON FEBRUARY 2, 1934 

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UNITED STATES 

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WASHINGTON : 1934 

I I' 

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Approved Code No. 255 

CODE OF FAIR COMPETITION 

FOR THE 

TABLE OIL CLOTH INDUSTRY 

As Approved on February 2, 1934 

ORDER 

APPROVING CoDE OF FAIR CoMPETITION FOR THE TABLE OrL CLOTH 

INDUSTRY 

An application having been duly made pursuant to and in full 

compliance with the provisions of Title I of the National Industrial 

Recovery Act, approved June 16, 1933 for approval of a Code of 

Fair Competition for The Table Oil dloth Industry, and hearings 

having been duly held thereon and the annexed report on said Code, 

containing findings with respect thereto, having been made and 

directed to the President: 

NOW, THEREFORE, on behalf of t~e President of the United 

States, I, Hugh S. Johnson, Administrator for Industrial Recovery, 

pursuant to authority vested in me by Executive Orders of the President, including Executive Order No. 6543-A, dated December 30, 

1933, and otherwise; do hereby incorporate by reference said annexed 

report and do find that said Code complies in all respects with the 

pertinent provisions and will promote the policy and purposes of 

said Title of said Act; and do hereby order that said Code of Fair 

Competition be and it is hereby approved. 

HuGH S. JoHNsoN, 

Administrator for /nd!u.r;trial Recovery. 

Approval recommended : 

A. D. wHITESIDE, 

Division .Administrmtor. WASHINGTO~, D.C., February 2, 1934. 

37667°----313-189----34 (125) 
REPORT TO THE PRESIDENT 

The PRESIDENT, 

The White House. 

Srn: 

INTRODUCTION 

This is a report of the Hearing on the Code of Fair Competition 

for the Table Oil Cloth Industry in the United States, conducted in 

Washington, D.C., on Tuesday, December 12, 1933. 

In accordance with the customary procedure, every person who 

filed a request for appearance was freely heard in public, and all 

statutory and regulatory requirements were complied with. 

The Code which is attached was presented by the duly qualified 

and authorized representatives of the Industry, the Table Oil Cloth ~tfanufacturers Association, complying with the statutory requirements as representing 100 percent of the total number of producers 

and 100 percent of the volume of the industry. 

GENERAl~ CHARACTER! 'TICS OF THE INDUSTRY 

The term Table Oil Cloth Industry is used to define the rnanufactur of light-weight table oil cloth utilized chiefly as table and shelf 

covering but does not include floor covering. 

It 'i\as brought out at the Hearing that the six manufacturers in 

this inclu -try represent invested capital of approximately $8,500,000 

while their annual sales average $13,000,000 per year. The total production capacity for this industry in 1933 was 176,772,700 square 

yards of material while the aggregate annual production for that 

year has been estimated at 86,760,000 square yards. 

The number of employees in this industry in 1932 was 1,190 while 

in 1933 employment was raised to 1,378. 

It 'va · further brought out that the manufacturers in this industry 

have been operating under the Labor Provisions of this Code since 

the date of its original submission to the National Recovery Administration on August 30, 1933. It is estimated that the adoption of 

such provisions haYe resulted in an average increa. e of 10 percent in 

employment throughout the industry. 

RESUME 

The provi ions regarding hour in this Code are fair in every 

1·espect and should in1pose no hardship on employees. 

The wage rate of thirty-five (35¢) cents per hour is higher than 

that appearing in many codes approYed to date. 

(1:26) 
127 

In view o£ the £act that the Table Oil Cloth Manufacturers 

Association is composed of the total number of manufacturers in the 

industry, this Association acts as the Code Authority for the 

Industry. 

There are no trade practices. 

FINDINGS 

The Deputy Administrator in his final report to me on said Code 

having found as herein set forth and on the basis of all the proceedings in this matter; 

I find that: 

(a) Said Code is well designed to promote the policies and 

purposes of Title I of the National Industrial Recovery Act, 

including removal of obstructions to the free flow of interstate and 

foreign commerce which tend to diminish the amount thereof and 

will provide for the general welfare by promoting the organization of industry for the purpose of cooperative action among the 

trade groups, by inducing and maintaining united action of labor 

and management under adequate governmental sanctions and supervision, by eliminating unfair competitive practices, by promoting the 

fullest possible utilization of the present productive capacity of 

industries, by avoiding undue restriction of production (except as 

may be temporarily required), by increasing the consumption of 

industrial and agricultural products through increasing purchasing 

power, by reducing and relieving unemployment, by improving 

standards of labor, and by otherwise rehabilitating industry. 

(b) Said Industry normally employs not more than 50,000 employees; and is not classified by me as a major industry. 

(c) The Code as approved complies in all respects with the 

pertinent provisions of said Title of said Act, including without 

limitation Subsection (a) of Section 3, Subsection (a) of Section 7, 

and Subsection (b) of Section 10 thereof; and that the applicant 

association is an industrial association truly representative of the 

aforesaid Industry; and that said association imposes no inequitable 

restrictions on admission to membership therein. 

(d) The Code is not designed to and will not permit monopolies 

or monopolistic practices. 

(e) The Code is not designed to and will not eliminate or oppress 

small enterprises and will not operate to discriminate against them. 

(f) Those engaged in other steps of the economic process have 

not been deprived of the right to be heard prior to approval of said 

Code. 

For these reasons, the Code has been approved. 

Respectfully, 

FEBRUARY 2, 1934. 

HuGH S. JoHNSoN, 

Administrator. 
CODE OF FAIR COMPETITION FOR THE TABLE OIL 

CLOTH INDUSTRY 

ARTICLE I-P"CRl'OSES 

To effectuate the policies of Title I of the National Industrial 

Recovery Act, the following provisions are established as a Code of 

Fair Competition for the Table Oil Cloth Industry, and shall be the 

standards of Fair Competition for such industry and shall be binding 

upon every member thereof. 

ARTICLE II-DEFINITIONS 

The t('rm " Table Oil Cloth Inclu try " a u eel herein is defined to 

mean the manufacture and original sale of light-weight table oil 

cloth. utilized chiefly as table and shelf covering, but not floor 

covenng. 

The term " employers " shall mean all members of the industry by 

whom employees are compensated or employed. 

The term " employee " as used herein shall include anyone engaged 

in the indn try in any capacity receiving compensation for his 

services irre:-.peetiYe of the nature or method of payment of such 

compensation. 

The term "member of the industry" includes anyone engaged in 

the industry, either as an employer or on his own behalf. 

The terms "Pre ident" "Act" and "Administrator" as used 

herein ·hall mean respectively ' the ' President of the United States 

the National Industrial Recovery Act, and the Administrator of 

Title I of the said Act. 

ARTICLE III-HouRs 

1. No employee shall be permitted to work in excess of forty ( 40) 

houn; per week, except repair shop crews, engineer~, electricians, 

firemen, office, ales staff, watchmen, shipping and outside crews, 

cleaners; and except any employee engaged in a managerial, supervisory, or executive capacity, provided such employee in such managerial, supervisory, or executive capacity receives thirty-five dollars 

($35.00) or more per week. 

2. The maximum hours of labor for office employees shall be an 

average of forty ( 40) hour a week over each period of one month, 

and shall not exceed forty-eight (48) hours in any one week. 

3. Shipping and outside crews, cleaners, watchmen, and firemen 

shall not be employed more than forty-eight (48) hours in any 

one week. 

4. The maximum hours of labor of repair shop crews, engineers, 

and electricians shall be forty-four ( 44) hours a week, except in case 

of emergency work. Any such emergency time in any mill shall 

be reported monthly to the Code Authority provided for in Article 

VI of the Code. 

(12'8) 
129 

ARTICLE IV-WAGES 

The minimum wage that shall be paid by employers in the Table 

Oil Cloth Industry to any of their employees, including office employees, shall be at the . rate of thirty-five cents (35¢) per hour, 

or fourteen dollars ($14.00) per week for forty (40) hours of labor. 

(a) Wage R{])tes Above the Mini1nwm.-The exi ting amounts by 

which wage rates in the higher-paid classes exceed wage rates in 

the lower-paid classes shall be maintained. 

(b) It is interpreted that the provisions for a minimum wage in 

this Code establish a guaranteed minimum rate of pay per hour of 

employment regardless of whether the employee's compen abon 

is otherwise based on a time-rate performance or upon a piecework 

performance. 

ARTICLE V-GENERAL LABOR PROYlSIOKS 

1. No person under sixteen (16) years of age shall be employed in 

the Table Oil Cloth Industry, nor anyone under eighteen (18) 

years of age at operations or occupations hazardous in nature or 

detrimental to health. In any State an employer shall be deemed 

to have complied with this provision if he shall have on file a 

certificate or permit duly issued by the authority in such State 

empowered to issue employment or age certificate · or permits, 

showing that the employee is of the required age. 

2. Employees shall have the right to organize and bargain collectively through representatives of their own choosing, and ·hall 

be free from the interference, restraint, or eoercion of employers 

of labor, or their agents, in the designation of such repre entative 

or in self-organization or in other concerted activitie: for the purpose 

of collective bargaining or other mutual aid or protection. 

3. No employee and no one seeking employment shall be required 

as a condition of employment to join any company union or to refrain from joining, organizing, or a. sisting a labor organization of 

his own choosing. 

4. Employers shall comply with the maximum hour of labor, 

minimum rates of pay, and other conditions of employment, approved 

or pre cribed by the President. 

5. Within each State this Code shall not super ede any laws of su ch 

State impo ing more stringent requirements on employers regulating the age of employee:, wages, hours of work, or health, hre or 

general working condition than under this Code. 

6. Employers shall not reclas ify employees or dutie of occnpa· 

tions performed by em.ployees so as to defeat the purposes of the Act. 

7. Each employer shall po. t in con ·picuous places full copies of 

this Code. 

ARTICLE Vl-AD:'III~ISTRATION 

1. The Table Oil Cloth Manufacturers' As ociation is hereby designated as a Code Authority to cooperate 'vith the Administrator as 

a planning and fair practice agency for the Table Oil Cloth Industry. 

The Administrator may def'ignate not more than three additional 

members of the Code Authority, who shall have no vote, and shall 
130 

serve without expense to the Table Oil Cloth Industry. The Code 

Authority may from time to time present to the Administrator 

recommendations based on conditions in the industry as they 1nay 

develop which will tend to effectuate the operation of the provisions 

of this Code and the policy of the National Industrial Recovery Act. 

2. With a view to keeping the Administrator informed as to the 

obserYance or nonobservance of this Code of Fair Competition and 

as to whether or not the Table Oil Cloth Industry is taking appropriate st eps to effectuate the declared policy of the National Industrial Recovery Act, members of the industry shall furnish duly 

certified reports, and in such form as may hereafter be requested 

by the Code Authority subject to the review of the Administrator; 

and in addition thereto shall furnish to such government agencies 

as the Administrator may designate, such reports as he may deem 

necessary for the purposes recited in Section 3 (a) of the Act. 

3. The Code Authority is constituted the agency to collect and 

receive reports, and to compile and organize this inform.ation in satisfactory form to be sent to the Administrator. Such reports shall 

be considered confidential and shall be distributed only in consolidated form. 

4. The Code Authority is also set up to cooperate with the Administrator in making investigations as to the functioning and 

observance of any of the provisions of this Code, at its own instance 

or on complaint by any person affected, and to report the same to 

the Administrator. 

5. The Code Authority is also set up for the purpose of investigating and informing the Administrator on behalf of the Table Oil 

Cloth Industry as to the importation of competitive articles into the 

United States in substantial quantities or increasing ratio to domestic production on such terms or under such conditions as to render 

ineffective or seriously to endanger the maintenance of this Cone, 

and as an Agency for making complaint to the President on behalf 

of the Table Oil Cloth Industry, under the provisions of theN ational 

Industrial Recovery Act, with respect thereto. 

6. In order that the Code Authority shall at all times be truly 

representative of the industry and in other respects comply with the 

prov-isions of the Act, the Administrator may prescribe such hearings as he may deem proper; and thereafter if he shall find that the 

Code Authority is not truly representative or does not in other 

respects comply with the provisions of the Act, may require an appropriate modification in the method of selection of the Code Authority. 

7. Any association participating in the activities of the Code Authority shall keep on file with the Administrator full copies of its 

Constitution and By-Laws and shall submit to the Administrator for 

approval any proposed modifications or amendments thereto. 

ARTICLE VII-MoDIFICATION 

This Code and all the provisions thereof are expressly made subject to the right of the President, in accordance with the provisions 

of subsection (b) of Section 10 of the National Industrial Recovery 

Act, from time to time to cancel or modify any order, approval, 
131 

license, rule, or regulation, issued under Title I of said Act, and 

specifically to the right of the President to cancel or modify his 

approval of this Code or any conditions imposed by him upon his 

approval thereof. 

Such of the provisions of this Code as are not required to be included therein by the National Industrial Recovery Act may, with 

the approval of the President, be modified or eliminated as changes 

in circum tances or experience may indicate. It is contemplated that 

from time to time supplem.entary provision to this Code or additional codes will be submitted for the approval of the President to 

prevent unfair and destructive competitive practices and to effectuate 

the other purposes and policies of Title I of the National Industrial 

Recovery Act consistent with the provisions thereof. 

ARTICLE VIII-PARTIAL INVALIDITY 

If any provision of this Code is declared invalid or unenforceable, 

the ren1aining provisions thereof shall nevertheless continue in full 

force and effect in the same mam1er as if they had been separately 

presented for approval and approved by the President. 

ARTICLE IX-MONOPOLIES 

No provision of this Code shall be so applied as to permit monopolies or monopolistic practices, or to eliminate, oppre s, or discriminate against small enterprises. 

ARTICLE X-EFFECTIVE DATE 

This Code hall becom.e effective on the second Monday after its 

approval by the President. 

Approved Code No. 255. 

Registry No. 1635-(}3. 

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