The copper era and Morenci leader., 1916-03-31
LABOR LEGISLATION IN UNITED STATES
 DURING l9l6
Growth of the Industrial Commission Plan Was the Most Significant Fea- ture of Recent Legislation.

The annual summary of labor legis- lation in the United States, publish ed by the U. s. .\ Bureau of Labor Sta tistics of the Department of Labor, which appears as it's Bulletin 1S6, during 1915, of 45 States, two Terri tories, and the Federal Congress. With three exceptions, Kentucky, State in the Union held a legisla- tive session, regular or extra, in 1915, and of these, all but two, Louisiana and Virginia, enacted laws of a special interest to labor. The Bureaus report reproduces the text of all these labor laws and presents a concise review of each class of legislation. The workmen's com pensation laws are omitted, having been published separately in the Bureaus recently issued Bulletin 1855.
 Aside from the enactment of work mems compensation laws, perhaps the most significant feature of the Legislation of the year is the growth of the industrial commission plan, uniting in one authority the admins tration of workmen's compensation, factory inspection, and other labor laws. This plan was adopted in 1915, in Colorado, Indiana, Montana, Nevada, and New York.
 Especially notable in the legisla- ton of the year was the attention given to the subject of unemploy- ment and public employment offices. In Illinois a commission on unemploy- ment, consisting of three representa- tives of labor, three of employers, and three of the public, was estab- lished to report at the next legisla- tive session. In connection with the State employment offices, a general advisory board was established to in- vestigate and deal with unemployment California and Nevada passed resolu- tions calling for investigation of unemployment In Idaho emergency employment is to be provided by county boards of commissioners for unemployed citizens of the United States who have been for six months ro-idents oI the State. Employment is tc be cn the highways at rates to be fixed by the county boards, not more than 60 days work of this kind to be furnished any person within one year One-half of the expense is to be borne by the State, and refusal
 
 one from this form of relief for the period of one year.
 Public employment offices were provided for in California, Iowa, New Jersey, and Pennsylvania, and pro- vision was made for the extension of the system of public employment off, ces in Illinois, Michigan, and Okla Ihoma. The licensing and supervis- ion of private employment offices were provided for in seven States, Colorado, Nebraska, Oregon, Pennsyl- vania, Rhode Island, Texas, and Wisconsin, while Idaho prohibited the maintenance of private employ ment agencies operated for profit. Laws relating to the employment of women and children were quite as numerous as in preceding years Notable among these were the mini mum wage laws enacted by Arkansas and Kansas, making II States which now have such legislation. Califor- mia, Massachusetts, and Washington passed amendments to their minimum wage laws, not, however, involving any important notifications. In Idaho commission to investigate the subject of minimum wage legislation was provided for.
 | Considerable progress was made in the field of child labor legislation notably in the States of Arkansas and Pennsylvania. In the latter State the law requires hours per week oi school attendance for children under the age of 16, such attendance to be between the hours of a. m. and p. m.
 In the field of safety provision, the most detailed enactments were those formulated by the Industrial Com mission of Wisconsin and the Indus trial Boards of New York and Penn sylvania The rules and orders o1 these bodies indicate an intimate knowledge of the conditions to be met which it is impossible for an or dinary legislative Committee to pro