Evening star., 1930-12-13
WOOD PAY INCREASE
BAN is DEFEATED
IN HOUSE, s. TO II
Success of La Guardia Fight
Assures 81, 400, 900 in Raises
in Next Fiscal Year.

The fight to preserve for. the under
paid Government employees their salary
increases, under the administration s
three-year plan, is won.
BY three votes in the House late yes
terday the members deserted Chairman
Wood of the House Appropriations Com
| mittee in his effort to shut the Govern
ment workers of from the salary in
creases under the pledge made to them,
and struck from the Interior Depart
| ment appropriation bill the so-called
Wood amendment, which prohibited the
payment Of any increases In salary
within grade.
La Guardia Wins Support.
On a rising vote the House members
supported the La Guardia amendment
to strike out the Wood prohibition,
SO to II. Quickly following this, by q
vote with tellers the decision was 80 to
88 in favor of the La Guardia amend
ment. Then came record roll call
vote of ITO to lis in favor of the
La Guardia amendment.
This is the second appropriation bill
on which Chairman Wood has endeav-
ored to fasten this amendment. On
the Treasury-Post ONCE bill he flrst
! endsavored to put through q blanket
provis on to prohibit all salary increases
in any Of the big supply bills, but this
was promptly knocked out on point
of order. Then he offered the amend
msnt limiting the prohibition to the
funds carried in that particular bill,
which was approved by a heavy vote.
The Senate Committee has stricken
that provision from the bill and the
matter comes UP for q vote in the
Senate next week.
Action Is Decisive.
However. the action by the House
yesterday emphatically settles the ques-
ton, as it would be absolutely unfair
to have such limitation on the funds
Of any one department and not on the
funds for other departments or estab-
hshmsnts. This is admitted by Chair
man Wood himself.
The fight for the employees was led by
Representatives La Guardia, Republican,
Of New York, who intended to continue
! the opposition on each bill as 1t came
from the Appropriations Committee. It
Is not now anticipated that this Sec
ton will be included in other bills, but
If it is Mr. La Guardia will continue to
| fight it
In the Presidents message to Con-
gresS he pointed out that some $14,-
400, 900 is needed to bring under-average
salaries up to the average throughout
! the service and that the budget carries
approximately 30 per cent Of this for
the coming fiscal year under the three
year plan previously agreed upon.
Increases Assured.
The action of the House, therefore, is
| an assurance Of something like $4,4o0.-
900 increases in salary for Government
employees during the fiscal year begin
ming July l. next
Representative Beedy. Republican. of
| Maine, was the first speaker in support
| Of Mr.. La Guardia's amendment He
| emphasized that I'VE pay our Federal
employees little enough. 1t would break
| down the morale Of the men in various
| departments who have worked for some
! years under the classification act II you
! thus deprive them of its benefits You
| virtually destroy the operation of the
| act" He explained that in voting for
| the Wood amendment on the Treasury
| Post Office bill majority Of the House
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