Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1931-05-18
Proposal of Contractors Is
Attacked by Union of
BrickIayers.
FIRM OPPOSITION MADE
TO 'BARE-LIVING' SCALE
Headquarters of Employers, How
ever, Deny Any Attempt to
Impose Such Levels.

A new battle" will be staged In the
next Congress over a proposed amend
ment Of the Davis-Bacon law, which
requires payment of the prevailing
wage" scale to building mechanics on
Government projects, it was predicted
today by the International Union of
Bricklayers, Masons and Plasterers.
The union, in a statement to the
press. made the prediction in assailing
Edward j. Harding manager director
OF the Associated General Contractors,
for recent statement he made urging
amendment of the prevailing wage"
law.
The union leaders complained of a
recent statement by Harding in which
he expressed the desire of the contract
ors to assure a living wage" to build
Ing mechanics. the union spokesman
interpreting the statement as suggest
Ing adoption Of bare subsistence
wage"
Fear Met by Denial.
This fear, however, was met this
morning by positive denial from the
headquarters of the Associated General
Contractors of America, in Washington.
that the contractors had any thought
OF attempting to impose bare sub
SiStence" wage.
The contractors headquarters also
said the organization had mo quarrel"
with labor. and that, in fact, the pre-
vailing wage" law as it now stands does
not guarantee payment of even a bare
subsistence" wage to all branches of
building mechanics. since the prevailing
wage In community for some branch
OF labor might prove to be less than
a living cost level.
The criticism by the labor organiza-
ton Of the contractors body arose over
Interpretation Of the statement by Mr..
Harding, who said at the recent con-
tractors convention here:
Failure OF the lawmakers, notably
in the case of the Davis-Bacon prevail
ing wage act, to frame legislation di-
rectly affecting the general contractor
in such form that its purpose might
be accomplished without hardships and
uncertainties, has convinced the asso-
in framing all such legislation in the
future.
Statement Called Indefinite.
THE organizations program probably
will include constructive amendment
to make the wage law workable and
equitable and, at the same time, assure
a living wage to construction labor"
The bricklayers' spokesman, william
J. Bowen. today declared the Harding
statement was 'far from definite"
adding that "any man who comes
talking of a living wage for labor
ought to be required to explain what
he means.
"A living wage cannot be anything
except a bare subsistence wage. 1t can
only be wage that will suffice to keep
man alive. 1t is something out of
the Middle Ages, when workers touched
their caps as bosses passed by.
Congress passed the prevailing wage
law to stop contractors from paying q,
living wage. Had there been no hard
boiled contractors, paying just enough
to keep bones and body from falling
apart, there would probably have been
no prevailing wage law, inadequate
though 1t is. A living wage is Just as
aptly called a starving wage A living
wage is something American wage
earners will no longer accept Ameri-
can working men and women want 70
nve-not merely to stay alive.
Battle Is Threatened.
" "If the Associated General Con-
tractors Of America expect to go before
the Congress of the United States and
write living wage into the law of
the land, then organized labor will give
these organized employers the battle of
their lives. Labor can never again let
employers anywhere put any part of in
dustry on living wage basis. Labor
must win that battle, if it comes to
battle, either on the legislative field or
on the industrial field"
The headquarters of the Associated
General Contractors said today the as
ISOLATION had taken no stand as to
what the level of wages should be, be-
lieving the matter problem for local
communities, but that the Executive
Board had recommended a study of the
economics of construction costs, includ-
ing labor.
The statement by Mr.. Harding and
the main position of the association,
the headquarters said, was that the
Bacon-Davis law should be amended
because contractors in submitting bids
for a project now have no sure way of
determining what is the local prevail
ing wage" In case of a dispute under
the present law the Secretary of Labor
is to be the judge. The contractors
body wants the law amended to pro-
vide that the Government cot ,1y1 a