Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1918-09-23
$3ADAY IS URGED
AS W0MEN'S PAY
Letters to Members of Con.
gress Champion Cause Of
.. Female Workers.


ters today urging their support of the
Nolan $3-a-day minimum wage bill
in behalf Of the thousands of women
employed in the government depart
ments, the Library of Congress, the
public schools and the public library,
who are receiving salaries of less
than $1,000.
This campaign to impress upon Con-
gress the desirability Of passing such
legislation. which has been given
priority by the rules committee for
tomorrow. has been con-
Quoted by the National Women's
Trade Union League
The bill calls for a minimum of So
per day-that is. 371s cents per hour,
$50 per month, or s1,0s0 per year.
Most of Low-Paid Are Women.
In a letter to members Of Congress
the chairman of the national legis-
lative committee of the league, Miss
Agnes Nestor, who is the labor mem
Der Of the woman's committee of the
Council of National Defense, points out
that the greater number of low
paid government workers. and con-
seQuently the greater proportion OF
those affected by the Nolan bill, are
women, and cites the 1000 women
employed in the bureau of engraving
and printing, whose basic rate runs
as low as s2.37 per day: $50 employees
Of the Library Of Congress, most of
them women whose pay runs from
$1,000 down as low as $420 per year;
the trained library assistants in the
Public Library, all women, who are
receiving but $3.50 per year; the hun
dreds of school teachers in the Dis
trict Of Columbia, who. are paid less
than $500 per year, and the char
ment departments, who receive as lit
tie as $26 per month and rarely more
than SIS per month for full-time SER
vice.
Not Enough to Live On, Claim.
1--WE submit that such rates as these
are not living wage" writes Miss
Eestor, much less are they fair COM
pensation for the work performed,
and we ask you to compare them with
the rates fixed by the National War
Labor Board and every other wage adj
justment board in the United States
today, The government, through all
its administrative agencies, is apply
ing to private industry the principles
of an adequate living wage and equal
pay for equal work by women and
men. The federal workers whose pay
is fixed by Congress are the numerous
and striking exception to the general
application of these principles"
Thousands of government workers
who are receiving less than s1,0S0
per annum are anxiously awaiting the
action to be taken by the House on
the Nolan bill.
Thousands Get Less Than So.
According to figures compiled last
year there were 81. 474 federal govern
ment employees receiving lass than
1880 per annun. OF this number 1872
were District Of Columbia employees,
It is stated that these figures have in
creased largely during the past year.
These employees are declared by the
National Federation of Federal EN-
ployes to be practically the only
workers in the country whose COM
pensation has not been increased dur
ing the past two years to meet in
creased cost OF living.
The Nolan bill has been placed at
the head of the legislative program Of
the federation. 1t has been Endorsed
by the American Federation of Labor
and is receiving the support of all
organized labor bodies.