Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1914-03-31
FORCE At BUREAU
MUST LOSE TIME
Lack of Appropriation Causes
Wholesale FurIoughs of
Printers and Engravers.
OVER 5000 EMPLOYEES
AFFECTED BY THE ORDER
Cut Made by Congress in the Urgent
Deficiency Bill Necessitates
Retrenchment.

Bureau of Engraving and Printing,
March 30, 1914.
'''On account of lack of funds it will
be necessary to furough each plate
printer six days each month for the
next three months, and, for the same
reason, no printer should on any one
day print more than his usual number
of sheets. An excessive number of
sheets will not be paid for
u. E. RALPH, Director"
Employees of the bureau of printing and
engraving. ranging from the men who
draw as low as $1.75 a day to the 81" a
day engravers, the highest paid men,
bers of their craft in the world. will be
affected by the foregoing order, posted
at the bureau today. total OF more
than 5000 employees will be affected by
the order, among them being 769 plate
printers, s67 printers assistants and 1,4I5
employees of the per diem force.
The furlough, which is the first that has
been necessary at the bureau in more
than twenty years, has been ordered be-
cause of the necessity of retrenchment
occasioned by the cut made by Congress
in the urgent deficiency bill, reducing the
appropriation for paper money for the
Treasury from S427, 725 to S2S5, 40. The
sum of s142,575 must be saved in some
manner, and the only means of efecting
the saving. according to Director Ralph,
is to furlough the employees of the bureau.
Additional Saving Necessary.
AS the furloughs ordered will effect a
saving of s125,6OO. an additional saving
of $4,000 will be necessary. This sum.
Director Ralph stated, will be made up
by curtailing miscellaneous expenses and
by reductions in the purchase of ma
terials. supplies, etc.
The 769 plate printers, it is announced.
are to be furloughed six Gays in April.
six days in May and five days in June,
a total of seventeen days. Their assist
ants are to be furloughed five days in
each of the three months. while the per
diem employees will lose three days in
April, three days in May and two days in
June.
Operatives, foremen and forewomefl,
superintendents as well as laborers.
will be affected by the furlough order.
No exceptions have been made on ac-
count of position. The clerical force,
whose salaries are arranged by legfs-
lative enactment, will not be included,
nor will those working on the stamp
cumming and perforating machines and
on stamp books and stamp coils, as this
is contract work not affected by the
urgency deficiency appropriation. Ma
chinists, engineers, plumbers electri-
clans and carpenters will lose no time,
as it is necessary to maintain the plant
and the entire force is needed.
Those Who Escape Furloughs.
Perhaps 1000 employees will lose no
time by the furlougbs required under the
order OF the more than 3, 100 who will
be forced to accept furlough, the loss
of time and pay will vary from one
quarter to one-ninth.
Every effort has been made by Director
Ralph to minimize the hardship of the
furlough system imposed. The economy
made necessary has been shouldered pro
rata on every employe, regardless OF
special consideration.
Not only is the consequence OF the
cut in the estimates to be felt by the
employees of the bureau Of engraving
and printing, but the entire money
handling public will suffer the enects
of it through a dearth of new money
that will be occasioned. 1t seems prob
able with the failure of reserve store
of new money that old money, perhaps
some of it not even washed again, VIII
the heavy fall demand for money to
move crops
The office of the treasurer of the
United States has shortage OF from
eight to ten million dollars of one and
two dollar bills under the amount on
hand this time last year. Even with
this large surplus in 1913 the fall de-
mand absorbed the entire reserve, and it
was made necessary at the height OF
the season to put out new money the
very day it came green and wet from
the bureau of engraving and printing.
Appropriation for New Money.
The appropriation for new money. as
agreed to in conference on the urgent de-
ficiency bill, provides only for 100000
sheets. a cut of one-third from the orig
inal estimated need of 100000 sheets.
to be made between now and the end Of
the fiscal year. Destruction of old money
will cease. 1t is probable, in anticipation
of reuse to meet the heavy fall demand
for paper currency.