The Irish standard. [volume] (Minneapolis, Minn. ;) 1886-1920, 1915-03-06
WRESTLING WITH uNEMPLo>
&c. MENT.
What a Catholic Bishop is Doing.

", MENT.
What Catholic Bishop Is Doing.
Another evidence of the increased
participation of leading Catholics in
dealing with the social problems is
furnished by the report of the Cali.
fornia State Commission on Immigra.
ton and Housing. OF this commits
sion Right Rev. Edward j. Hannah
D. D., o San Francisco, is vice presi.
dent.
Unemployment, as far as a state
action is concerned, presents two dis.
tinct aspects: First, the immediate
alienation of suffering and want, a
charity problem; second, the ultimate
or industrial solution, looking toward
the elimination of unemployment.
The report of the California com.
mission deals mainly with the latter
problem, and among the recommends
tions made "the labor exchange" plan
is of basic importance.
A Clearing House Needed.
Today the man out of job may (a)
answer an advertisement in some
newspaper, (b) wander from place to
place seeking employment, or (c)
apply to a private employment agent
for job. If he reads newspaper
advertisement how is he to know that
the demand has not been satisfied
over and over again? Indeed, how is
he to know that the purpose of the
advertisement is not to flood the local
market with men, to multiply the fees
to the agent and keep down wages?
The Private Employment Agency.
The untrustWorthiness of private
agencies is now a matter of common
knowledge. The state of Washington,
on that account, has just legislated
them out of existence. We have re-
Gently made a careful investigation of
81 of the 247 licensed agencies in the
state. OF the 81 our investigators give
1t as their opinion that SO, or Ga per
cent, are of doubtful honesty, and that
81, or 81 per cent, are of doubtful ef-
ficiency. Forty-two agents admitted
the prevalence of the following abuses:
Illegal retention of fees, misrepresen-
tation, shipment where there is not
work, advertising where there is no
job, splitting fees with foremen, ex-
tortion, shipment of unfit applicants,
operations in connection with a sa-
loon; and acknowledged these abuses
on the part of the employer: misrep.
resentation, giving orders to several
agents at the same time, retaining fee
collected from employees. Needless to
say, these AZ employment agents
claimed severally that their offices
were innocent of such practices. OF
the 80 agents who protested ignorance
of any abuse, we must say that we sus-
pect their trustworthiness as wit
nesses, or at least their knowledge of
conditions.
In Other States.
In his report of July 1, 1913, the
chief of the division of information of
the Federal Bureau of Immigration
said: "A Federal weather bureau, re-
ceiving its information from many
sources throughout the world, is en-
abled to inform the inhabitants of the
United States of coming storms and
other changes in the weather. The
work of the weather bureau was not
deemed necessary at first and not ap.
preciated until long after that bureau
was in operation. It is just as impor-
tant to all the people of the United
States, and more especially the work
ing people, that changes or coming
changes in industrial life should be
speedily and accurately recorded"
After two years. experience through
the Bureau Of Industries and Immigra-
ton, the Commissioner of Labor of
New York state strongly recommends
the establishment of state free labor
agencies and the creation of state
bureau to deal with the matter Of the
regulation of private employment agen-
cies. T.
In the report of the New York Com
mission Of immigration, we read: "It
would seem automatic that some
means should be devised by which
these laborers in a state of enforced
idleness might be informed of the op.
portunities which await them in other
parts Of the state and country where
the employment can be found"
On March 81, 1914, the Massa-
chusetts Commission on immigration
made it's report. The Commission says
on the matter Of state free employ
ment offices: 1.-THE economic waste
that results from the failure to offer
the immigrant the guidance he needs
in obtaining employment has never
been appreciated. There is
also the economic waste that comes
when the foreigner, skilled in a trade
in his home country. finds, it impos.
sible to follow that trade here.
The first stem toward the 70,