Evening star., 1934-01-10
Record Sho,cs Some Salaries M
Cut More Than 30 Per Gent
Hearings on Independent Offices Bill Re-
zeal Lack of Appropriations Caused
Administrative FmIough.

having further greatly increased the
commissions work.
Secretary Sidney Morgan Of the
Ia Tariff commsson Told the ,H eO%t.
greater task before it today than at any
time since last general tariff revision" I"
The extent to which economy has
prompted additional furlough will only
be shown when all the appropriation
bills are in and at the same time, an
indication will be had Of the amount
that is faced in the next fiscal year,
provision for this form of saving hav-
ing been incorporated in the Presidents
budget message.
It is known that 1t was the idea Of
the Budget Bureau, in drafting eSti-
mates, that those agencies which were
forced to resort to this last year, again
were confronted with a like prospect,
although in the case Of the postal serv-
ice, which took nine days, 1t is under
stood that this Is to be avoided. An
other outstanding example of this form
Of retrenchment was in the Bureau of
Standards of the Department of Com
merce, where Is days was applied after
more than 800 workers were cut of in
July Other departments also have
been hit.
In connection with the Presidents
announcement fixing the pay scale for
ment late yesterday made public an ex-
PLANTATION Of the cost of living study on
which action was based, by Isidor
Lubin commissioner Of labor statistics,
who directed the survey.
Wrote Miss Perkins
Writing to Secretary of Labor Per-
kins, he said:
During the past four months the
Bureau Of Labor Statistics, in ac-
cordance with your instructions, has
been engaged in survey of the cost
of living for Federal employees in the
District Of Columbia, This investiga-
tion was made in cooperation with
the Bureau of Home Economics of the
Department of Agriculture. DR.. Faith
Williams Of the Bureau OF Home Eco
nomics was in direct charge of the
study. In conducting the survey i'm
measurable aid was furnished by the
Committee on Government Statistics
and Information Services of the Amer
ican Statistical Association and the
Social Science Research Council and
by the Consumers Advisory Board Of
the National Recovery Administration.
The Women'S Bureau and the Chill
dren's Bureau of the Department Of
Labor and an interdepartmental COM
mittee on retail prices consisting of
representatives Of the various Federal
agencies nave co-operated in the field
work.
The cost of living of Federal en-
ployes in the District of Columbia has
been determined for the first six
months Of 1928 and for December, 1893.
As basis for this determination, in
formation was obtained on the expendi-
lures OF different types of Federal en-
ployes at both dates, through detailed
schedules filled out in personal inter-
view with employees whose names were
chosen by lot, and through two ques-
tionnaires, one sent to all employees and
one to large sample of employees
whose names were likewise chosen by
lot.
From these data the quantity and
the cost of different goods and services
purchased by Federal employees in the
first six months of 1923 have been as
| certained. The cost of the same bill
OF goods and services in December
1888, has been computed, and index
numbers have been calculated showing
relative costs of the two periods. Prices
have been collected which viii make it
possible to calculate living costs in
March, 1888, but they have not yet
been summarized.
Taking costs in the first six months
OF 1928 as 100, the index of the average
cost OF living for all Federal employees
In the District for December, 1893, was
85.4. showing a decline of LAG per cent
Groups Indexed.
In addition to the index for all en-
puted for the families of three cate
g0rleS OF emplOyeS-CuStOdial, with sal.
aries ares less so than 81 81 500; others with sal
salaries of $4,000 more. An index
was also computed for single individuals
living in rented rooms. of whom there
are about 10000. The indexes for these
groups are as follows:
Custodial. with salaries less than
othep 2VU ennio5ss With :oior,.: ,o.. :8S4
Employees @ s1''VV with salaries over i0''l
SZ,oUU ...~............... .S5.O
Single individuals living in rent
eC rooms .................. $3.50
1T will be noted that the cost of liv-
ing Of Federal employees living as sin
gle individuals in rented rooms has not
declined since 1928 to the same extent
as the cost for employees living in family
groups and keeping house This differ
ence Is attributable to the fact that the
cost of meals in restaurants has not
fallen as much as the cost Of unpre-
pared food purchased to be eaten at
home.
1T Is significant to emphasize the
fact that the decline of 1866 per cent
in the cost of living Of the custodial
group corresponds rather closely to the
decline for the families of wage-earners
and Of the lower-salaried workers in the
District of Columbia as secured through
our regular semi annual cost Of living
survey. Although the latter index shows
an increase Of 6.5 per cent between
June and December, 1888, 1t Is still 17.9
per cent below the average Of the index
for December, 1927, and June, 1928.
Taking the wage-earning and lower
salaried family groups for the United
States as whole, the cost of living in
dex showed an average increase of So
per cent during the past six months. AS
compared with the average for the first
six months of 1928, the index shows a
decline in living costs for the 80 cities
covered by the bureau Of 21.1 per cent"
VIII Amplify Findings.
In connection with this study, DR..
Lubin said today that on Friday, an
amplifed statement, covering the f1nd-
ngs In the whole country, would be
issued from the Labor Department.
He also said the study just COM
pleted, showed that prices had ad-
vanced more in the past six months
than in any like period since 1920. For
the District, this increase was 6.5 per
cent between June 80 and December 81,
and for the 80 cities covered IN the
survey, So.
Meanwhile, today employees organiza-
tions were preparing to push their fight.
As soon as President Roosevelt's find
ings were made public, the living costs
basis on which they turned was criti-
cized by Luther c. Steward, president
of the National Federation of Federal