Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1931-03-02
Federal and District Civil
Employees Affected, With
Some Exceptions.
MEASURE TO BECOME
EFFECTIVE WHEN SIGNED
Lehlbach Anticipates No Large
Extra Funds Needed Because
of Saturday Time Cut.

BY acclaim under suspension of the
rules. with no dissenting voice, the
House today adopted the bill pro-
viding by law for Saturday half-holi-
day throughout the year for all en-
ployes of the Federal and District Gov
ernments with few specific exceptions
Within an hour after the House had
passed the bill, the Senate, without de-
bate, concurred in the action of the
House. This completes congressional
action and sends the measure to the
President.
This marks the elimination of long
effort to obtain the Saturday half-holi-
day applicable the year around. Here
tofore the departments have closed on
Saturday afternoons only during the
Summer months.
Broadened in House.
The bill passed the Senate originally
last April, but at that time it applied
only to laborers and mechanics in the
Government service. The House broad
ened it to include civil employees of
the Federal Government and the Dis
trict of Columbia, exclusive of the
postal service, employees of the Panama
Canal on the Isthmus and employees of
the Interior Department in the field. A
separate law was passed recently plac-
ing the postal service on a 44-hour
week basis.
Chairman Lehlbach of the House
Civil Service Committee said that the
bill would become operative immediate
ly upon being signed by the President.
He does not expect that any particular
appropriation must be made as he does
not anticipate that there will be any
considerable increase in force necessary
on account of the Saturday half holi-
day. He emphasized that in private
employment and the Summer time ex-
perience in the National Capital has
demonstrated that just as efficient work
will be done by the same number of
employees without any increase in force.
Wood Only Opponent.
Only one discordant voice was heard
during debate upon this bill, that OF
Chairman Wood of the House Appro-
priations Committee, who said that he
thought Government employees here and
throughout the country had very lib
eral hours, land 1t seems 70 me-" he
said, about nine-tenths of them have
more regard for their hours Of leisure
than they have for the work that they
are doing"
Both Representative John w. Nc
Ccrmack, Democrat, of Massachusetts,,
who originally introduced the Saturday
half-holiday bill, and Representative
Frederick w. Dallinger, Republican, of
Massachusetts,, who wrote the commit
tee report, made stirring speeches on
behalf of the Government workers. The
former said that this legislation affords
rest time for some 100000 workers.
Recommended Repeatedly.
Representative Dallinger said that
this legislation has been recommended
repeatedly by the Civil Service Com
mission.
The practice of Saturday half holi-
days throughout the country has not
been uniform, he pointed out, and de-
ponds upon the whim of the officials in
charge. For instance, some customs
and revenue collectors give their en-
ployes Saturday half-holiday in ac-
cordance with local practice. In other
places Federal employees are the only
ones working on Saturday afternoons.
For Civil Employees.
This legislation will establish four
hour workday on Saturday throughout
the year without loss of pay for all civil
employees except those mentioned above.
Practically all of those thus excepted
are now working under the provisions of
the eight-hour law.
Employees of the postal service have
been excluded because separate legisla-
ton in their interest was recently en-
acted. The field service of the Depart
ment of Interior was excluded on ac-
count of objections made by the chiefs
of Bureaus of Reclamation, Forestry
and National Parks and the Indian Blu
reau. These field services are largely
composed of temporary employees dur
ing the Summer vacation period. The
Panama Canal employees on the Isthmus
are excepted because this service has
other compromising advantages and the
conditions OF employment there can be
regulated without congressional enact
ment.
Employees Of the Government Print
ing Office in Washington are included
in the provisions of the bill, although
legislation affecting this branch of the
service does not ordinarily
come before the Civil Service Com
mittee.
ID. c. Employees Views.
Representative Burtness, Republican,
of North Dakota called the attention of
his colleagues to the fact that, although
District of Columbia employees are sup
posed 10 have regular hours of work,
they ere entirely in accordance with
the orders of heads Of departments.
Continued on Page 2, Column 81
HERRY BLOOMS
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