The Bridgeport evening farmer., 1916-07-31
MINIMUM WAGE
 FOR WOMEN OF
 S8.75 IS ASKED
Massachusetts Board Fixes That Rate for Clothing
 Industry Workers.

MAos0ocsNAO O0Ooo0 DOe8A A = AAOS
 That Rate for Clothing
 Industry Workers.
 New York. July 29.-The New York Legislature of 1917 will be asked to consider the report of the Massachu- setts Women's Clothing Wage Board, which recommends minimum wage of $8.75 for experienced women work CTS and a minimum wage of $6 week for girls. There are thousands of women and girls working in New York for less than this,1 and the. lawmakers will be asked to remedy the condition in.the manner in which the Bay State has tackled the problem.
 The Massachusetts board has just, made it's preliminary report, and ~hear-i ings will be given by the Massachusetts N,inimum Wage Commission, beginning Aug. 3, before the final draft of the report is. made. The preliminary re- port not only fixes the minimum wages that should be paid women in order that they may live decently. but also gives advice to the workers as to how they should spend what they earn. The report says:
 The Women's Clothing Wage Board has the following minimum wage de- terminations to report as the result of its study and deliberations:
 l. The wage to be paid to any fe male employe who, after reaching the age of Is years; has had one and half years experience in the women's clothing inddstry shall not be less than $8.75 per week-srei s&,s ,s. 2. The wage for inexperienced fe- male workers who are IS years or old CT shall not be less than $7 per week. 3. The wage for female workers un- der IS years of age shall not be less than $6 week.
 4. These rates shall be put into operation on or about Feb. 1, 1917. s. The rates are for full-time work, by which is meant the full number of hours per week required by employers and permitted by the laws of the Com nnonwealth.
 | 6. Where workers are paid by the piece piece rates shall be such as to 1 yield the minimum hereinbefore set forth for a week of full-time work. The report says that the findings were unanimous. The hearings start ed on Feb 3, 1918. l Board Attitude Judicial. l "At the outset" the report says, eft was conceivable that the board might proceed in two different ways. The representatives of employers and em- yocates of their respective interests lbefore the representatives of the pulp lie as judges On the other hand, all | af fhA hoo "A ~a~o ~A their positions as that of judges, ap- preaching the subject with different Ibackgrounds, but nevertheless keeping their minds open until all the evidence was in. At the hrst meeting 1t wae unanimously voted that the attitude of the entire board be Judicial in charac- ter and this attitude was maintained consistently throughout the delibera. tions.
 "The first duty of tho board was tc determine the minimum cost of living
 in health and decency ito female
 worker in the industry in Massachu- lsetts. It was found that three differ.
 ent standards existed, viz:
 For girls CD living at homo and
 contributing to its support; co lodging
 and boarding at different places; ca
 lodging and boarding at the same
 place.
 "Sincs it was impractieabie to base
 a minimum wage on three different
 minimum budgets, and an average o
 three budgets would conform to none
 of the standards, selection became necessary, Accounting the cost of liv ing for the girl at home was regard
 ed as extremely unreliable. because i
 involved an arbitrary fixing of the sizt
 of the family and it's number of bread.
 winners, Moreover, since it was equal
 ly unfair to ask the employer te ba,
 the cost of dependents at home, as tt
 allow him to profit by parental sup
 port, it was felt that no distinction
 should be made between the girl liv
 ing with strangers and the girl livinf at home,
 "A budget fer the girl living and
 boarding at different places was pre-. pared, but this also was eliminated. Ii was felt that separate board, being mere expensive and not absolutely nee. essary, should not be included in a minimum budget, The standard of the girl lodging and boarding at the same place was unanimously accept ed."
 Girls Weekly Budget. I Finally the board fixed the follewHie weekly budget for the se1f-supPortins woman living away from hemei Board and room .S5.T5 IClothing :..::::...:::::|:: |::::... 1.50 Laundry 25 Carfare ,::::::.::: ...:..:::.:- :10 l Doctor and dentist. ..,. .25 Church .1O i Vacation ............ ...... .25 Education .1S lRecreation .25