The Washington times. [volume] (Washington [D.C.]) 1902-1939, 1918-01-03
Parasites
By EARL GOODWIN.
erm Given by DR.. Royal Meeker to Cert
Who Hire Women at Low Wages.


Men who organize a concern to do business at profit
generally include fair and living wage to their employees
part of their expenses.
Even the coolest calculator among the big ones realizes
that the better the employee the more chance there is for
profit and an underpaid employe is rarely topnotcher
l cannot imagine any REPRESENTATIVE business
man telling his help:
81 will allow You to work for for ten dollars week
you will get your father and mother to contribute five
dollars week to my business
Yet evidently that sort of effect is produced in GER
tain obscure industries in Washington If were not for
the facts and figures produced by Dr. Royal Meeke chief
of the Bureau of Labor Statistics would that
duses to be found only in the sweat shop districts Of
New York and LOndon-never in Washington.
Dr. Meeker, of the Presidents personal apponees,
was member of the faculty of Princeton. He knows
economies
Dr. Meeker's bureau has spent several thousand dol
lars investigating the cost of living in Washington In the
course Of this investigation many facts relating to wages
uncovered One of these facts says the Bureau Of
Labor Statistics, is that certain industries making
profit which should be turned into the pay roll to give
perienced women workers enough to live on The state
ment made public today does not give the of the in
dustres, but told they among the small manufac-
tories we have here.
Dr. Meeker an expert in economies expresses deep
feeling the pages of Government bulletin will allow.
This is part of what he has to say
''That inexperienced girl o should start
work at low wage is not especially important although
the wage of apprentice girls should bear some relation to
the cost of living There widespread notion, however
that woman who lives at home ought to be willing and
grateful work for wages insufficient to support woman
living independently of all family assistance Aided and
abetted by this hoary economic faacy, many parasitic in
dustries and trades have been able to live and to
achieve much prosperity the subsidies contributed by
working who either In position to subslst, al
though receiving substandard wage, not able to
insist on standard living wage. 1t ought not to be
necessary to point out that woman who Is mentally
competent and who has worked at occupation long
enough to acquire proficiency ought to be required or re-
quested work for wage insufficient to enable her to 1--we IN
reasonable comfort Industries occupations, such there
be- which cannot Ue except the subsidies from family IN
contributed by exploited and child 11orker ouJhE
dehe the better for the nation and the ord az
large.
at is therefore, extremely significant to note that the
majority of the covered by this study were not only
working at dstressngy low wages, but that very large
nropoon of them were who had been eaners
for many years Thus of total of Co., 36 or 81 per cent
receiving less than So per week at the end OF the year
ie16 and of these BIG AS or 6 per cent had been engaged
at some gainful work for five years Still more
striking is the fact that of eighty who had been at
work for fifteen years barely onehrd were receiving as
n,uch week.