Evening star., 1918-04-15
URGE THE MEASURE
FOR MINIMUM WAGE
D. c. Commissioners Favor
ably Report Bill to Benefit
Women and Minors.
CITE NEED OF LEGISLATION

tion proposed particularly is needed at
the present time. the Commissioners to-
day sent to Congress favorable report
on the bill to protect the lives, health
and morals Of woman and minor work
ers in the District through the estab-
lishment of a minimum wage board.
Stripped of its legal phraseology. this
bill. the Commissioners point out,
merely provides a method whereby an
impartial board can determine from
time to time what constitutes a wage
adequate for the support of a woman
in such a way as to maintain her in
health and to provide reasonable Btam-
ina against moral temptation: what
are suitable wages for children less
than eighteen years OF age. and how
the employment Of women and minors
at inadequate wages may be prevented.
Z Government action to tho ends nam
ed Is In accordance with sound eco
nomic policy, the Commissioners say.
Effect Of Inadequate Pay.
Discussing the effect Of Inadequate
pay. they say:
IF in some cases resort be had to
unlawful or immoral methods for sup
plementing income, 1t is small wonder;
the only wonder Is such resort Is not
had more frequently. Embezzlement,
ford relief. and do in some instances.
but the social efficiency Of the fndi-
vidual and Of the entire social fabric
suffers. And in the end the public In
evitably pays the cost in the diminish
ed productiveness Of the state. in in
creased cost of maintenance Of hospt-
tails, asylums and iails."
Continuing. the report states that re-
cent increases in the cost Of living and
the need of an immediate readjustment
of the wage scale to meet such In
creases demand favorable action on tho
bill with as little delay as possible.
No Basis for Opposition.
"a careful study of the situation fails
to reveal any reasonable basis for op-
says the report. Certainly the public
will benefit by it, since 1t will tend to
procure for the public better service.
to increase production and to diminish
cost and to safeguard public health and
public morals. That the empieye viii
beneiit is so apparent as to nssd no
comment. And q careful survey OF the
situation iadicates that II can do no
harm to the employer, and Will, in facA
react to his benefit.
aCertainly no respectable employer in
the District Of Columbia willingly en-
ploys women and children at wages
that endanger their health and their
morals: IL he employs women and chill
cause he IL ignorant Of that fact and
has no means of determining the noe
essary wage. It follows. then, that such
employers will welcome legislation~eAat
will enable them to determine what Is
fair and to do justice toward their en-
ployed. The fact that the proposed de-
termination is made by official author
ity and bears with'eQual force upon all
employers in the District OF Columbia
will tend to remove that element of
unfair competition, that would result
were such determination made through
private and limited agencies.
Need Not Incur Loss.
"Moveover, no employer can be re-
ouired under the proposed law to en-
ploy a woman or a child at a loss to him.
self On the one hand, II the woman or
child be not worth the minimum wage.
she or he need not ordinary be given
On the other hand, If the
exigencies Of any particular business and
the state of the labor market at any
particular time require the employment
Of a woman or child at wages In excess
Of her or his productive capacity, then
the employer can prevent any loss on his
part by increasing the selling price OF
his product or his services.
Finally. If the number OF women and
children who fail to hnd employment
because OF their inability to render serv-
Ice worth even the minimum wage be
sufficiently large to disturb the labor
or to cause hardship to them
or to their families. then there will be
q forcible and a very righteous demand
for such a readjustment Of our edu-
cational system as will give to every one
a chance to equip herself or himself In
the public schools to do some useful
work that will enable him or her to
earn at least the minimum or living
wage"