The daily worker. [volume] (Chicago, Ill.) 1924-1958, 1935-02-09

the building-trades employers and
general contractors are striving to
reduce labor and material costs
for a temporary period"
We have heard about this tenn
porary period" the last 6 years.
CONTINUES reading:1
TT can be brought about If the
Presidential pronouncement will
be carried out in actual practice
in the construction field"
It means that these people are al
ready welcoming the announcement
of the wage cut.
MIR. Chairman, If you allow me a
few more minutes, believe I will
be able to conclude, although it will
be impossible for me to cover the
ground I intended to.
The Chairman-You may extend
anything that you desire in the
record.
Mr.. Weinstock-Mr. Chairman,
believe that William Green, the
president of our American Fedora
ton Of Labor, was present here, and
he gave testimony of about go pages.
We are in disagreement with Mr..
William Green's testimony. We are
members Of the American Fedora
ton of Labor. We believe that the
rank-and-file membership-that is,
the voice of this rank and file
should be heard at the committee,
because otherwise it will make the
impression that Mr.. william Green,
in the name of the A. F. Of L., had
certain small disagreements with
the Wagner-Lewis BILL but in gem
eral he is in agreement. I say, in
the name of the American Fed
Grafton of Labor, that we are totally
in disagreement with the bill and
we propose something else instead.
Oppose Roosevelt Program
Mr.. Weinstock-W favor the
coverage Of all workers at present
unemployed. We want to go
squarely against the administra-
tons plan of forcing millions of
workers into forced labor camps,
into Public Works projects, and the
miserable wage Of $50 a month,
which is even below the immediate
wages In the codes.
Eleven million unemployed work
ers, who will be driven down to the
industrial status of coolie labor, will
be compelled to fall back on the
mercy of private charity or be
herded into concentration camps in
the manner Of Hitler's program in
Germany.
The Wagner-LewiS bill calls for a
3-percent tax on pay rolls. Even
assuming that all States enact I'M
employment laws, how
will it be realized on this basis?
We cannot assume that all States
will enact such a law these coming
sessions, because there are four
States of the Union where there
will be no sessions at all this year,
to my information.
According to the census of manu-
facturers, the total wages paid out
in 1929 amounted to Sill $40, 973 900.
The salaries were 100000, 600.
Central administration amounted to
$600,OO0,000, a total of $15,816,000,-
900. Three per cent of this amount
would yield approximately $474,000,-
000.
This you accept will be borne by
industry. But 1t is well known that
industry will get this in the form
of higher prices or lower wages.
The workers will be compelled to
pay 3 per cent taxes, whether in
directly through higher costs for
necessities, or directly through
wage cuts. We are opposed to such
a method of raising funds for I'M
employment insurance.
We maintain that if it is possible
for the Congress of the United
States to give millions of dollars to
moribund banks and collapsing in
dustries, it is equally within their
power to provide funds for the mil
lions of unemployed without COM
polling the workers to bear the costs
of unemployment insurance.
Demands III. r. 1927
We believe that the workers who
have built up the power and wealth
Of this country should be treated
equally with the banks and indus
tries, and that Congress should APP
propriate funds based on the tax
alton of higher incomes of over
$4,000 to provide sufficient funds
for the maintenance of all unem-
ployed workers in the United States
with an adequate amount of sub
sistence.
The administration plan does not
determine what standard of insur-
ance should be provided for unem-
ployed workers. We declare that in
the interest of the employed work.
ers, whose standard of living must
be maintained, that the unemployed
workers must be given benefits
equal to average wages and no less
than $40 a week and So for each
dependent in the family.
This demand is in the workers
unemployment insurance bill, which
is known as the Lundeen bill, H. R.
1927. In our opinion, the workers
bill provides for the needs of the
unemployed workers. It makes inn
mediate provision, as against the
Wagner-Lewis bill, which provides
for small amount of benefit some
time in the future, limited only to
certain sections of the workers and
excluding large groups of the toiling
! population.
Mr.. Chairman, I conclude, and I
state the following, that the local
unions of the American Federation
of Labor have expressed themselves
in favor of the workers unemploy-
ment-insurarce bill and therefore,
we believe that the Wagner Lewis
bill should be rejected and. instead