The Washington times., 1920-11-14
CLERKS G|RD
!. FORPAY WAR
g, 900 Federal Employees Here
Struggling for Life on In
adequate Salaries.
By HARRY n. GUsACK.


relieve the strained financial con-
ditions Of more than $4,000 Federal
employees Of the District Of Columbia
viii be urged upon Congress by
members Of President Wilson's
Cabinet when Congress reconvenes
Ia December.
INSIST ON PAY RAISES.
q Probably never In the history Of the
District have Government employees
1 generally been 30 hard pressed for
money to make both ends meet. and
the question OF increased salaries for
Government workers will be urged
upon Congress with more emphasis
than ever before.
Despite the fact that the cost Of
living In the District OF Columbia has
Increased more than 100 per cent in
the past four years. the average
salary Of Government employees In
Washington has increased but 18 per
cent. according to statistics compiled
by the Department of Labor Of Gov
erpment salaries from 1879 to June.
1919.
To what extent the high cost Of
living has hit Washington, is best
Indicated by the statement made by
a high Government official yesterday
that there are more married women
in the Government service today than
ever before In the history Of the
country.
These women aree joining their
husbands In doing Government work
because the salaries their husbands
receive is not sufficient to pay their
living expenses" he declared. MANY
OF these women have children at homo
or at school, while they work to OBJ
tain sufficient money to properly
clothe and feed them. It's . dis
grace"
age salaries Of Federal employees in
the District Of Columbia not only In
1893. but as recent as 1915 as com
pared with the salaries received In
1919. which are approximately the
same at, the present time, are shown
by the Department OF Labor.
TELL OF PURCHASING POWER.
The purchasing power Of the sala-
ries received IL also shown and the
awaken the coming Congress to the
crisis which Is being faced by Gov
ernment employees in Washington.
Tn 1sS3 there were 14,919 Federal
employees in the National Capital, who
received an average salary of $1.096.
and the purchasing power OF the
salary was the same. S1.0s6. In 1915
there were 3S.571 Government en-
ployes. receiving an average salary
Of $l.141. but the purchasing power
Of this salary in relation to the 1898
salary dropped to $sO4.
In June. 1919, there were 91,791
Federal workers in the District Of
Columbia, receiving an average SAL
ary Of but 1881 or 1920 less per
year than in 1915. and the purchasing
power of their salaries as compared
with the 1893 salaries was only $51O.
According to the Bureau of Labor
statistics the average salary neces-
sary at the present time to maintain
the purchasing power of $1,os6 paid
the average Government worker in
1Ss3 would be $2.839.
It Is very evident from this table
thgt In regard to its employees the
Government has given little attention
either to the necessity of paying a
living wage or to the desirability. Of
salary revisions to maintain the duo
relation between compensation and
the cost of living.
II the average salary of $l,096 was
fair and reasonable in 1893, the aver
age salary of S1,321 In 1919. which Is
approximately the same now, repre-
senting only half the purchasing
value of the salary in 1893. is un-
fairly and unreasonably low.
MANY SALARIES DECREASED.
The survey made by the Depart
nent of Labor also shows that the
salaries received at the present time
~ nf Il.
brary decreased more than IS per
cent from 1897 to 1919. Salaries of
employees In the photographic and
seodetic engineers Of the Coast and
Geodetic Survey shows q decrease H.
the average salary in 1919, as COM
pared with 1898, OF over 12ls per
cent.
- The only branches of Federal work.
ers in the District Of Columbia show
ing increases In salaries compared
with those OF 1898 are those workers
belonging to unions having a wage
scale. These include the compositors
in the Government Printing Office.
whose increase in average salary in
1910 as compared with 1893 was S7.42
per cent. not including the $240 per
year bonus. The salary OF pressmen
in the Government Printing Office
shows an increase Of ST.43 per cent,
as a result OF adopting the union
wage scale.
FARE WORSE THAN OUTSIDERS.
Tho difference In the advances re-
csived by the Government workers
and other classes Is too great to need
emphasizing. The average Govern
ment salary In 1919 showed an In
crease over that OF 1915 OF less than
10 per cent. while rates for carpen.
ters and structural ironworkers in-
creased 55 per cent. Increases for
painters. 10 per cent: for hod car
riers So per cent, railroad employees
g7 per cent and machinists 9S per
cent. This Increase was given to
railroad employees while they we're
under Federal control
The rise In the cost Of living could
not affect the railroad worker more
than II did the Government employees.
Secretary Meredith. OF the Agricul-
ture Department. has declared that
he would ask for s1o,000,000 to be
used In increasing the salaries of
-underpaid employees In his depart
ment. Secretary of the Treasury
Houston has also recommended to
fonureaa In HE annual renorf that