Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1893-02-10

RACE DAT AND IT LIMITS THE ANNUAL Lave
TO TIETxES DAYs-orHEn HARDsHIrs Pro
PosED. But NOT ACTED ON.
Important action was taken by the House
Yesterday in regard to the Office hours and
leaves OF absence Of department. employees here
after.
The ONCE hours were increased to eight
hours each day. The annual leave OF absence
with pay was reduced from thirty DAYS to If
teen days IL was provided that sick leav.
with pay shall be granted for thirty days only.
except in extreme cases. Still more radical
changes and restrictions were proposed by the
reformers and only failed Of passage by small
matorities. Mr.. Cultivate Of Ohio and Mr..
Hopkins Of Illinois made valiant fights for the
department employees
The new legislation is carried BIZ the legisla-
i've, executive and Judicial appropriation bill
ne clause o. the bill relating to Office hours
ana leaves OF absence is as follows:
THE CLAUSE OF THE BILL
Sec g. That hereafter it shall be the duty Of
the heads OF the several executive departments.
Yin the interest Of the public service, to require
VI all clerks and other employees OF whatever
(srade OF class. in their respective departments,
OF less than eight hours of labor each day, ex-
eept Sundays and DAYS declared public holidays
by Law OF executive order: Provided. that the
Heads Of the departments may, by special order,
ctating the reason. further extend or limit the
l hours OF service OF any clerk or employe IN
0thsir departments, respectively; but IN case OF
kn extension IL shall be without additional COM
Gensation: And provided further. That the Sec
Yretary Of any department NAV grant thirty
Ndays' annual and thirty DAYS sick leave, with
(pay, in anv one year to each clerk or employee,
vthe sick leave to be allowed in cases of personal
ILLNESS only, where some member OF the i'm
vrnetiate family Is afflicted with a contagious dis
tass and requires the care and attendance of
ouch emplOve, or where his her presence
o. the department would jeopartize the health
Sbf fellow clerks. Aad be 1t further provided
t1bat IN exceptional and meritorious cases.
here 20 limit such sick leave would work
hec nlisr hardship, II NAV be extended, in the
{dIscrst!on Of the Secretary, with pay. no: ex-
c"ediny SIXTY DAYS n any one case or IN any
Nue calendar year. This section shall not be
kOnstrued % mean that so long clerk or
&mplovc IL borne upon the rolls OF the depart
knsnt in excess Of the time herein provided for,
D. granted. he she shall be entitled to
n az during the period of such excessive alb
Hence but that the paw shall stop upon the ex-
n irstOn az the granted leave
I This was subsequently amended upon motion
f. Mr.. WeadOck OF Michigan. SO as TO lxli: the
fsnuusl leave with pay to fifteen days. 1t
Ialso made TO spply to the District government
tsmployes and the Department of Labor.
No HOLIDAYS FOR DEATHS.
Il
vas agreed TO providing that hereafter 1.-The
tXscutiVs departments shall not be closed
mark OF respect for the memory Of any de-
LEASED ex-Oficlal OF the United States
Y Mr. Richardson of Tennessee endeayored to
have the employees Of the government printing
bfice plsced on an equality with those OF other
departments Of the government as to the grant
bag q sick leaves, but his motion was ruled out
Ton point of order.
, During the debate Mr.. Cultivate made in
sfsectual attempt 10 pass az amendment giving
the Secretaries discretion to limit the hours of
labor. In support Of his amendment he said
AGAINST THE EIGHT HOURS.
There are employed in the departments
Some clerks whose labors are SO arduous that
their minds and nervous systems are on a con-
tinual strain from the time they commence
their work until II Is ended Take. for in
stance. those whose duty IL Ia to compute-to
deal With figures make computations con-
tinuoGsiy. Now to require clerks of that char
scter to work seven or eight hours daily is
there are other clerks of whom a similar
mark NAY be made. Take typewriter, for in
stance.
If you require a typewriter to continue at
WORK for eight hours a day you are infiicting
upon him or her punishment As suggested
Sew moments ago. after a certain period of
time after six hours per day neither of these
Classes Of clerks to whom nv remarks refer
Capable OF performing properly the duties re-
CURED OF them. In other words. they will per-
form IS much labor for the government in six
hours as they would perform In eight"
Mr. NIIIIKEs FOE TIE CLERKS
Mr. MNiiken Of Maine, during the debate,
said:
Now, Mr.. Chairman, was somewhat
amazed to hear my good friend from Massa-
cEasetts (Mr. Morse arguing in favor of this
extension OF the hours of labor. He saws no
a ate tA I'M ly
The business Of the government is run In the
departments here. / acknowledge that the
gentleman from Massachusetts has been very
Successful in his own business affairs. but |
must confess that 1 was greatly surprised to
hear q gentleman, whom / know to be so hu-
niaEe. arguing for the extension OF the hours
81 labor in the departments under the circum-
stances which surround these clerks. l trust
that the splendid success of the gentleman TO
which l have referred has not been achieved
By bic acting with his employees in the direc-
t.oa IN which he argues here wonder if he
Or The gentleman from Msso uri who intro
dueed this provision into the bill. would have
attempted To extend the hours Of labor OF these
CLERKS n they had been voters Ill the districts
where they live:
DORIS NOT BELIEVE IN THE POLICY
All. my friends, lore 10 gentlemen in
favor o: economy come here and attempt TO
show 1t 10 their constituents by attacking
tbs clerks here who have no votes and by
making examples o. them by legislatiag one
way " he other. as they proper, without
regard 70 their comfort, convenience or ability to
do the wOr.- And further than that, sir, / do
net believe in tina; policy. / think the change
here Proposed Is an unwlse one. without proper
Confederation There Is proper way TO arrive
ats cOnc!u..on IN reference to il. Let YOUR
commission which you have already author
ized 10 examine these departments take that
question INTO consideration
Let them report TO the next session Of Con-
grcs- snd see II there are grievances here to be
ISus,lled Or abuses which NAV be corrected or
susadsd. Then we act Inteligently on
IT, question. But / 90 not believe in this
House Of Representatives voting to extend the
hour u labor Of a class Of people whose labors
believe now are oDeroGs as those Of any
other class il the country without considera-
ton, and who, i believe, earn their salaries
quite a. well As any man on the floor Of this
House earns his IS 100 year"
Mr. HSLoE NOT SATISFIED.
After az the amendments had been agreed
o. nr. Enloe no. satisfied and wanted to 90
further. lie offered amendment that 10 per
cent u The employees y each departm should
lie dismissed each year, the reduction To be
made arlorg those employees having the loves,
standing Il abllity, adaptability and industry.
IL vas TOO much. however, for even the radi-
r. rsf d~vu u.1 ~,