Evening star., 1936-07-19

peint OF 0Tder from tRe WuIof"g
leadership blocked the nrope ana
the Walsh -Healey bill wds on its
pay to presidential approval. ana
the status OF ldp. -F
By Ike Associated Press.
Secretary Perkins announced last
night that the Walsh-Healey act I'M
posing wage and hour restrictions on
firms contracting with the Govern
ment would go into effect Septem-
ber %.
At the same time the National AS
sociation Of Manufacturers said IN a
bulletin to its members that the act
could be applied only within very
narrow limits" and cited the clause
executing goods which may be bought
in the open market" as a channel
kor numerous exemptions.
The new law provides that manu-
.acturers or dealers in bidding on Gov
rnment contracts must agree to estan-
hsh an s-hour day and 40-hour WORK
week, ban convict and child labor. and
provide sanitary and safe working
conditions.
The act also requires the contractor
to, pay minimum wages prevailing IN
the locality. Secretary Perkins said
the rate of the minimum wages would
be determined only after public hear
tngs.
"As a matter of practice" she
added. the first industries which Will
be studied with a view to fixing the
minimum wages will be those in which
tie minimum wages are known by
practical experience to be below q
decent standard of living
Administrative Unit.
Announcing that a special admins
trative unit would be set up in the
Labor Department to administer the
law and that a panel of industrial and
labor consultants would be named To
aid in making decisions, Miss Perkins
said:
Shortly before September 28 the
Department of Labor will promulgate
regulations in the draft of which the
principal contracting agencies of the
Government will participate. These
regulations will provide uniform pro-
cedure so that there will be no delay
in the normal procurement activities
of other departments, but will enable
both the contracting officer and pro-
shective contractors to know in ad-
vance their respective obligations un-
der the act .---
The prevailing wage provisions will
not produce delay, since no wage stip-
ulation is required until the applicable
minimum wages have been aScertained
by the Secretary of Labor for a given
industry or group of industries. Until
this factor has been determined and
furnished to the various departments
it will not be necessary for the con-
tracing officer to consider this phase
Of the act.
1T is not expected that the eight
hour day and 40-hour week provisions
will create any undue burden. There
are very few industries today which
generally exceed these limits. Under
the authority Of the Secretary of La
Dor to allow reasonable limitations,
variations, tolerances and exemptions,
the regulations may provide for over
time, subject to the payment Of the
overtime rates prescribed by the act.
AS these will be the same for every
employer bidding on specific con-
tract or class of contracts, all bidders
will be put on equal footing in this
respect.
Special Consideration.
I'm fixing the amount OF the over
time rate, the department will give
consideration to conditions in contin-
uous process industries or industries of
an extra hazardous nature, seasonal
peak production periods. fiat weekly or
monthly wage scales. The same con-
sheration will be given to emergency
conditions.
Many inquiries have been received
with respect to floor warehouse and
yard stocks. The regulations will
probably provide for the purchase of
floor stocks without going behind the
actual and bona fide seller, when such
stocks are in the dealers possession
when he submits his bid. The Gov
eminent will not permit goods manu-
factured specifically for Government
contract. however, to become ware
house or floor stocks in order to evade
the purposes of this act. The clause
relating to goods purchaseble in open
market indicates that Congress in
tended to keep in effect present stat
utes permitting contracting officers to
make purchases in the open market
without advertising, under certain
conditions, and also intended that the
existing limitations upon such pur-
chases should not be affected by this
act"
Various Opinions.
The manufacturers association
based its opinion that the act could
be applied only within very narrow
limits" on various opinions handed
down in Interpretation of a 1912 law
which 1t said sought to impose an g.
hour day on Government contractors.
Among them was an opinion by Felix
Frankfurter of the Harvard Law
School.
The association cited 65 articles
which it said had been excepted in
application Of the 1912 law. Among
them were airplanes, bricks, canvas,
clothing. engines, machinery gen.
orally, linseed oil. printing and struc-
tural steel
The association assumed, it said,
that the precedents it cited will be
accorded the respect to which they
are entitled" in administration of the
act.