Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1919-10-22
$1,000 MINIMUM
WAGE FOR FAMILY
"HeaIth and Decency" Bud
get Presented to Advisory
Committee.
PLAN ONLY TENTATIVE

The health and decency" budget
for government clerks. as prepared
by the bureau of labor statistics. was
presented by DR.. Royal Meeker. chief
of the bureau, to the advisory COM
mittee on wage policy of the joint
congressional commission on reclas-
sification of salaries in the District
at a meeting at the Treasury Depart
ment last night.
nounced either by the Redistribution
commission or the bureau of labor
statistics. it may be stated that the
minimum cost of living in the District
today for the average federal clerks
family, consisting of man and wife
and three children, Is placed at $1,000
or more.
In presenting the health and de-
cency budget" the name of which
plainly indicates its aim. DR.. Meeker
brought out that the budget is only
tentative in form, and Is subject to
revision.
1O7,o Workers Interested.
The budget is of interest to every
on Of the 10000 federal workers here.
including District employees. who come
within the Jurisdiction of the reclassi-
fication commission. c. F. Hamlin, a
member of the commission. who is head
Of the advisory committee on wage
policy, presided at the meeting last
night.
The cost Of living in the District of
Columbia today, as brought out in the
budget. and as 1t will be further de-
veloped by the Reconsideration commits
sion STAFF, will play very large part
in the final determination by the COM
mission of the exact wage policy which
will govern the readjustment of the
salaries of the entire body of govern
ment workers.
Members of the commission are in
agreement that the government should
be a model employer, and that all
workers in the service should have
enough wages to be able to live in
health and decency. This feature of
health and decency is one stressed
in the tentative report made by Dr..
Meeker to the advisory committee on
wage policy. 1t is realized that no
minimum wage can ever be set for
government employees until some
mined upon. The health of employees
is largely taken into consideration.
and for this reason a sufficient amount
over calculated bare existence sums
must be set aside for proper medical
attention.
Do Distinction Intended.
will be made by the reclassificationists
in the budget for man. wife and fam
lily and the budget for a single man or
woman. 1t is the belief of economists
that although a single man can per-
haps live on a great deal less salary
!, hon NQv he No
distinction in salaries paid, in the last
analysis.
Single clerks in the federal service
probably will receive just as much
money for equal work as does the mar
ried man. 1t is pointed out by the
economists, and borne out by the ex-
perience of the employees representa-
tives or the advisory board on wage
policy. that the single man has right
to be able to save up enough money
to get married, and that In the present
day he cannot save If he only gets bare
salary enough to live we'll himself.
Consider Living Cost.
The health and decency budget"
takes into consideration the greatly
increased cost of living which has
overtaken District residents. including
the federal employees. even within the
past year. Experts realize that while
certain savings may be made by a
federal employe, and especially by his
wife. the amount that they may save
by employing various household
economies is at the very hest a very
limited sum. Johnny's trousers may
be made from dads old ones. but even
this form of economy falls down, it
is pointed out, when father has not
had any new trousers himself since
the war began-and ended.
1t Is recalled by government clerk
that DR.. Meeker as long ago as last
June declared that American families
on the average are not fully nourished
| until their yearly income reaches
$1,000"