Evening star., 1935-03-14
CONTROL Of WAGE
HELD PRINCIPAL
OBJECTIVE OF N.R.A.
Minimum Pay and Maxi.
mum Hours Fundamental"
Williams Tells Senators.
PROTECTION OF WORKER
CITED AS CHIEF AIM
Tells Committee He Was Not Urg-
ing Anything to Lift Prices
Above Normal.
Nv the Associated Press.

By the Associated Press.
S. Clay Williams. chairman Of the
National Recovery Board. today termed
control of minimum wages and maxi
mum hours the fundamental prin-
ciple of N. r. A.
He was the second witness in the
Senate Finance Committees inveSti-
CATION of N r. S code structure and
testified before full committee room
with most members of the committee
present. Williams already has notified
President Roosevelt of his intention to
return to private business shortly.
THE primary objective, the funda-
mental of NJ r. A" he said. was the
provision under which wages should
be established as not below a fixed
minimum
The effort was to guarantee to the
worker that his wage would not be
driven below a certain minimum living
wage
From industry's standpoint that
took wages out of the list of things
that manufacturers compete with each
other on
Williams said wage limits also in
volved control of hours.
Controlling wages and hours. he
continued. raises an issue in cases of
units of industry which can compete
only because of "unconscionably low
wages
Protects Wage Level.
IN. r. A. has always resolved that
doubt in favor of protecting the wage
level" he said.
Il don't mean to indicate there are
very many units that fall within that
classification, but there are some"
Williams said N. r. AS provisions
on child labor. minimum wages. max
imum hours and proper working con-
ditions were generally approved.
These provisions, he said lead into
the fringe of the price territory"
When you say to an industry" Will
liams testified, that 1t must eliminate
child labor and observe maximum
hours and minimum wages you have
placed an additional burden on that
industry.
The question comes forward from
a number of units that say. 1t is all
right. but it happens I am subject to
certain practices of ny competitors
that leave me in a weakened condi-
ton therefore I will go with you. but
! should be protected from certain
practices.
Williams said he was not urging
price maintenance or anything cal
culated to lift the price level above
normal"
This led into a discussion of pro-
visions for 10 per cent margin be-
tween cost and selling price. Williams
said more than 800 codes had cost
..ccounting provisions, but in only 80
Eases had NJ r. A. approved cost
account procedure.
Would Reduce Codes to 1871.
Consultations and eliminations that
would reduce N. R. AS 731 codes to a
mere 18l were proposed yesterday by !
Donald R. Richberg, administration
spokesman. who said 537 of the codes
could be dropped by punching the |
great bulk of small industries under
a single blanket trade agreement. But.
he warned, there would be plenty of
protest from those affected
He followed this by the suggestion
that the Government withdraw from
all compulsory action with reference
to service trades and said that by in
cluding the 13 major service trades |
in the codes to be dropped that only
l8l would be left All these. he |
testified. would apply to business en-
gagged in interstate commerce.
Much more aggressive than curing |
previous sessions Eefore the Senate |
Finance Committee Richberg con- !
cluded mis- series of appearances as a
witness in the Senate inquiry oy tell /.
ing newspaper men that N. r. A. was |
not going to fold up" He also
said Senator Borah's charge that the !
steel code rad raised prices as much |
as 800 per cent was perfectly silly"
Steel Price Code Backed.
Meanwhile. from the American Iron |
Il Steel Institute came a statement |
that an inquiry among members of |
the steel code had disclosed a strong
Endorsement of the basing point meth
cd of fixing steel prices. Under the
basing point method all steel sold in a
given area is priced to include the |
freight charges ron a specified point
In the area-this point being known
as the hasing point.
The institute statement said that
abandonment of the basins point
method in favor of prices quoted (. O.
b. mills would create virtual mononn-
lies for those mills which were near |
markets. 1t sale small as
well as large mills favored continu-
ence of the basing point method
Replies were received from 203 |
members of The code representing
979 per cent of the ingot capacity of |
the industry and 98.3 per cent Of the |
finishing capacity the statement |