Evening star., 1936-06-24
Ne,v DEALS Debt to Women
Met, Says Secretary Perkins
Ho,o Employment, Pay Rolls and
Earnings Haze Increased Told at
Contention Group Breakfast.

the largest number Of women. en-
ployment increased 27.l per cent be-
tween March, 1888, and March, 1886
with corresponding increase Of 1873
per cent in pay rolls and from 16 to 81
per cent in per capita earnings
Public work projects also have pro-
vided opportunity for the employment
of working women On a vast scale
At It's peak, the C. w. A. gave work
to 2l0 900 women, and the w. P. A.. as
Of April of this year. was operating
projects employing 448,000 women.
Moreover, the Federal Government,
through the F. H. A., the H. o. L. c.,
the N. r. A., and other emergency
agencies. has employed hundreds of
women in variety of occupations. To
a lesser degree, State and local gov
ernments have done likewise.
Regarding conditions of work. of
all the efforts ever made to improve
working conditions, none have been so
far-reaching as the N. r. A.
Not only were the hourly and weekly
wages Of women increased but the diff
ferentials between the wages of men
and women were very much narrowed.
Moreover, in many industries the
4O-hour week became a reality. This
presented marked reduction in work.
ing hours since no State had ever
enacted a statute for q week shorter
than 48 hours except one whose law
applied to only two occupations.
Some Gains Persist.
While the discontinuance of the
N. r. A. has resulted in a return to
lower standards, some of the gains
have persisted.
TO maintain these gains, as well as to
secure others, the Federal Department
OF Labor, in cooperation with State
departments of labor, has held annual
ly series of national and regional
conferences. Accordingly, perhaps
more and better labor laws have been
passed since the Inauguration of the
New Deal than in any previous three
years in our history. Since March
1888, legislation has been passed pro-
viding for:
l. Shorter hours. by 13 States.
2. Minimum wages, by 9 States.
g.. protection against accident and
industrial disease, by Is States.
4. Regulation and abolition of home
work, by 8 States.
). Collection of wages, by 3 States
D. Maintenance of State employ-
ment services in cooperation with the
United States Employment Service. by
~ States.
Z. Regulation of fee-charging en-
ployment agencies, by States.
.. Curb on the issuance of injunc-
tions. by 18 States.
.. Regulation of prison-made goods,
by 20 States.
10. Establishment of a 16-year age
minimum for the employment of boys
and girls, by States.
These laws, with the exception of
those governing hours, minimum
wages. home work and employment
OF minors. apply also to men.
Also laws have been passed estab-
fishing State departments of labor
In four States: Alabama, Louisiana,
where the bill has not yet passed
Senate. although it has been passed
by House and been favorably reported
IN Senate; Rhode Island and South
Carolina.
Finally. cooperation between the
Federal Department of Labor and
State departments of labor has resulted
In increasing the efficiency of labor
law administration. Among the meas
ures adopted has been the Inaugural
ton by the, United States Department
of Labor Of training courses for fac
tory inspectors, where inspectors now
actually on the job can be given a
brief course Of practical training in
recognizing and eliminating the haz-
ards of mechanical and industrial dis
ease.
Labor Relations.
"Our third concern is with labor
relations" said Miss Perkins.
The rights of workers, women as
well as men, to organize and bargain
collectively were defined and strength
ened by the Wagner Connery labor
disputes act of June, 1885.
I'm addition to National Labor Re-
iations Board, the Conciliation Service
Of the Department Of Labor, the Na.
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