The labor journal. [volume] (Everett, Wash.) 1909-1976, 1917-10-05
(By Grant Hamilton)

The minimum wage secured
through legislative action is not the
success that some claim for it
Many who have given the subject
wide study are opposed to it. Where
few might temporarily be bene-
fitted at the Inauguration of such a
law, there are many factors in this
sort of legislation that are over
looked. Rumblings of dissatisfac-
tion are coming from the state of
Washington, where the law has been
in operation q year.
The scheme that turks behind this
intense desire to regulate by law
the wages of women and minors is
to eventually extend to apply to all
wage earners With this accom-
plishment system of compulsion
will be instituted whereby the lives
and activities of the wage earners
will be minutely directed by some
bureauractic commission. This la
bor-regulating machinery will be
controlled by those not in sympathy
with the workers. Then, no matter
what onerous conditions are i'm
posed by these labor directing COM
missions, any effectual protest, or
the exercise of the inherent right to
work or not to work, Immediately
will stigmatize the workers involved
as law-breakers.
In Oregon the garment workers
are well organized and maintain
union scale throughout the industry.
The lowest scale established by the
union is $12 per week. Upon the
passage of the Oregon minimum
wage law the employers in the
clothing industry-not the employees,
mind you-petitioned the wage-fixing
commission to investigate that in
dustry and legally fix a minimum
wage. The commission performed its
function and promulgated a mini
mum wage of $3.50 per week-$2.5O
below the scale which had been es-
tablished by the union.
The garment workers Immediately
called a strike, even though they
became at that moment law-breakers.
against the ignominy of having their
wages reduced by law. Such stub
born resistance was shown by the
union garment workers that finally
the employers in the garment in
dustry agreed to pay the union scale.
A short time ago I read in an
eastern periodical an article written
by Harris Weinstock, in which he
strongly advocated the legislative
minimum wage for women and min
ors. Singular as it may seem,
while this gentleman is profoundly
Interested in regulating the wages of
women and minors by law, he is not
favorable to the regulation of these
same wages by unions. In this ar
.icle he asserts that union men who
oppose the legislative minimum wage
10 so because they desire the unions
% be responsible for the establish
nent of the minimum wage. The
oregon incident which | have just
'elated will probably explain the
attitude of Mr.. Weinstock, the en- !
,loyer.
For years the American Federation
# Labor has been exercising its
.reat prestige and influence to the i
nd that the working people may be ,
permitted to work out their destiny t
~ the methods which have proven t
y experience to be practical and
,roductive of permanent betterment. {
IN Colorado the commission created i
o investigate the question of a min I
mum wage for women and minors
a' not single representative of h
he wage earners, organized or un-
r. anized, as member. Recently i
Mrs. Van Dusen, a member of the o
oI.iiliSSlOii, HcIdlucu III ABROAD IN q II
)quacious interview in the newspa- n
ers that women could live in Colo 3
ado cheaper than in any other state
/ the Union, and named SIS a week 7
S the sum. Miss Mary Porter, a
chool teacher, is supposed to rep
esent labor, but in Colorado peda-
ogues hold themselves in the "pro- h
class" Whatever may C
e it's recommendations should there v
e any in the future, they will be
ased entirely upon the theory that ii
ill be required to maintain a wo- m
ian and minor. No actual ex- u
erience in industrial occasions will
e applied in the analyzing of the S.
,mplex relations of employer and b.
mployee, nor can the inherent rights
the wage earners be accorded W