The evening herald. (Klamath Falls, Or.) 1906-1942, 1920-01-13
TEXT OF OLCOTT'S
MESSAGE TO SOLONS

To the Members of the Senate AMI
the House OF Representatives, OF
the Oregon Legislature;
You have been convened in extra
ordinary session fer the purpose "f
considering certain subjects Ahich,
information at hand, has led 'the
chief executive of the state to believe
of sufficient importance to warrant
your careful and early consideration.
These are abnormal times, and alb
normal times are productive of emer-
gencies. 1t could scarcely have been
expected that in your regular session
last year human wisdom could have
conceived of meeting all possible
contingencies during biennial
period fraught with shifting condi-
tons.
To grapple with and overcome the
essential emergencies and, as far as
possible, to alleviate burdens and
solve problems leading to construc-
tive ends. l have exercised the con-
stitutional duty of the executive to
"on extraordinary occasions, con-
vene the legislative assembly by pro-
clamation." Following further the
/. constitutional provision, l will state
to you here in joint assembly the
purposes for which you have been
convened.
Workmen's Compensation
My primary object in calling to-
gether the Legislators at this time is
to meet grave emergency seriously
affecting the welfare, and. in many
instances, the lives of the men and
women employed in the industries Of
our state.
Compensation benefits provided
for injured workmen by the Work
mems Compensation Law were es-
tablished by the legislature in 1918.
when living costs were very ma
terially less than now. II the COM
pensation payments were properly
rated at that time, 1t is self-evident
they are wholly inadequate under
present conditions.
They are so low that the families
of many injured workmen, who are
incapacitated for any length of time
are brought to a degree of want that
should not prevail when the state
has undertaken to provide for it's in.
jured workers.
When the legislature was in ses-
sion a year ago, the prevailing opin-
ion was that the cost Of living would
soon begin to decrease. For that
reason, II was not considered neces-
sary at that time to make material
increase in the compensation bene-
fits. Two changes was made. one in
creasing the amount to be allowed an
injured worker for his children und-
er sixteen years of age from $500
to $500 per month. and the other
providing that the awards for per-
manent partial disability shall be in
addition to the amount paid to the
injured workman for temporary time
loss.
With the cost of bare necessities
continuously on the increase, condi-
tions in the homes of injured WORK
men continue to grow worse. and the
number of appeals to the State In
dustrial Accident Commission from
injured workers or their wives for
greater assistance grow in number.
When the members OF the commits
sion brought the situation to my at
tention, / decided it would not be
Just nor fair to these sufferers to
wait another year until the regular
session OF the legislature should meet
to give them relief. 1t is a condition
which should be remedied Immediate
ly.
As the Workmen's Compensation
Law was originally drafted by COM
mittee representing the employers,
lLIS CIAlplOy tS, st-4I Tic FuJt+C, Nul4ctt
Tor a committee representing these
III. ee interests to consider the Pre-
sent situation and make recommends .
tons to this extr ordinary session OF
the legislature.
This committee was comprised Of
five members selected by the organi-
zation representing the employers OF
the state, five selected by the organi-
zation representing the employees OF
the state, and five selected by myself
to represent the public at large.
This committee of fifteen met. and
has unanim ously recommended that a
flat increase of 80 per cent be made
on all compensation payments dating
back to December l, 1919, A careful
into the funds avail
able to the State Industrial Accident