The labor journal. [volume] (Everett, Wash.) 1909-1976, 1912-10-11
A MINIMUM WAGE
Mayor Fitzgerald of Boston Fa-
vorS SIS a Week.
THAT SUN LOWEST STANDARD
Chief Executive of Massachusetts Capt.
tai Declares the American Workman
Cannot Support Family and Educate
Children on Smaller Income.

tai declares tne american workman
Cannot Support Family and Educate
| Children on Smaller Income.
Hon. John f. Fitzgerald, mayor of
Boston, has started minimum wage
campaign. He believes that SO a
week is the least that the nation, state
or city should pay any employee. and
starts off by announcing that he has
instructed all his department heads to
make provision in their annual esti-
mates for the city budget for paying
all men at least that amount
Originally the mayor had planned to
give all the unskiled city labOrers,
several hundred in number, an increase
from $3.50 to $15, beginning the new
year. After a careful study of the sit
uation and after devoting some atten
ton to his crusade against the high
cost of living, the mayor now contends
that every man should receive that
minimum.
The mayor says that the normal
American family. consisting of the
parents and four children, should not
be expected to get along on less. And
the unmarried man, he says, will be
encouraged to be thrifty and more apt
to get married.
This demand of the mayors will be
one of the planks in his campaign for
the United States senatorship, and he
Proposes to advocate such minimum
wage in every town in the state
81 believe that it is un-American to
ask the normal American family to
live upon less than SIS week." says
the mayor.
with the price of foodstuffs soaring
and everything else going up in pro-
portion l cannot canceive how Il man
can bring up a family Of four children,
feed, clothe and educate them on less
OF course many manage to squeeze by
on less, considerably less but that is
one reason why the overseers of the
poor in cities and towns are obliged
to get large appropriations annually
and why pauper institutions are almost
always filled to capacity.
SIN cities and towns where the father
of the family is employed in mills on
starvation wages it is frequently neces-
sary for the wife to go to work. That
destroys the woman's natural state.
Her place is at home with her children.
personal investigation of conditions
right here in this city has convinced me
that it is next to impossible for fam.
% l.
and bring up their children properly.
Reports from the school departments
in every city and town show that a
large percentage Of the elementary
school pupils never enter the high
schools and go out into the world
without much of any training and no
trades. If the fathers of the families
can get a living wage l venture to say
that the parents will be more apt to
give their children better education.
with the cost Of everything at the
highest, many of the unskilled men
Of today-those who have no trade
find it a difficult problem to get by on
the wages they are receiving. Years
ago a man might reasonably have got
| along upon less, but the cost of living
has doubled within comparatively few
years.
Even with SIS a week there must
be rigid economy. Reports made by
those who have given time and study
to the question show that it costs prac-
tically SIS week to support the nor
NAL American family, family of four
children. For rent alone it is prac-
tically impossible to get anything even
in the poorer districts for less than
$3.50 week. Food will cost at least
IS, and for fuel, light, clothing and in
cidental expenses $3.50 is reasonable
figure.
when that amount of money is used
by a family of six l cannot conceive
how the head of family can be ex-
pected to find much enjoyment in life.
How families manage to get by on the
wages paid operatives in some of the
large mills in the industrial centers Is
more than can fathom.
"This matter is something which |
have considered for long time, but
the necessity of providing that amount
never demonstrated itself more forci-
bly, than 1t has during the past few
months because of the attitude of the
trusts in forcing upward in long and
rapid strides the cost of meats and
fOodstuffs generally.
"While believe that my public mar
ket plan of allowing market gardeners
and farmers generally to sell their
products direct to the people from
their carts on certain streets in the
city will materially help the poor man
who is getting less than $15 week.
am firmly convinced that he cannot
get all that he wants for his family
even at reduced cost unless he is given