The Washington times., 1938-07-01
WAGE-HOUR LAW
SCOPE LIMITED
BY EXEMPTIONS
Administrator Faces
Hair-Line Margins
BY EDWARD B. LOCKETT
Copyright. 1888. by International
News Service

BY EDWARD B. LOCKETT
(copyright 1898. by International
News Service
Compromise saved the new
wage-hour act when it's fate was
in jeopardy in Congress, but filled
the law so full of exemptions and
special exceptions that scope of
It's application was materially mar
roWed.
A number of hair-line margins
between application and nonappli-
cation were created to plague the
administrator who will have to
make the decision in favor of one
or the other when the act goes
into operation.
- THREE CLASSES
There are three classes Of ex-
emptions-from all provisions of
the act, from the wage provisions
and from the hour standards.
Two groups were placed outside
the scope of the laW-workers en-
gagged in commerce not interstate
in character, and Government
workers; the latter including even
employees of the IL Federal Reserve
banks.
Specific wage-hour exemptions
were accorded all State, county
and municipal employees, all sea
men, aviation company workers,
and all trolley and bus-line COM
pany employees except the big in,
terstate bus lines.
Agricultural workers. and
workers in various related fields,
were exempted from both hour.
and-Wage standards, too. These
included employees engaged in the
raising of livestock, bees, fur
bearing animals and poultry.
AREA RULE A PROBLEM
Closely allied to this exemption
were those for persons employed
within the "area of production
to handle and process agricultural
and all dairy workers. The phrase
"area of production" gave another
problem to the administrator, for
he must determine what this
shall be.
Other exemptions were for
Upper-bracket employees who would
generally be far above the required
standards of the act anyway.
A further precautionary phrase
was carried in the law with regard
to retail establishments, to pro-
tect the general store selling
mainly to local residents against
any interstate taint. Thris phrase
provided the exemption for EN-.
ployeS of retail or service estab,
Gshments "the greater part of
whose business is in intrastate
commerce"
co., SALES TO DECIDE
The law made plain, too, that
the standards of selection here
should be sales, not purchases by
the store from wholesalers and
manufacturers.
Representative Creal CD) of
Kentucky saved the day for pub
fishers of small weekly and semi
weekly newspapers with a special
exemption amendment for weekly
and Semi-weekly papers that have
a circulation of not more than
5000.
A final exemption for hour and
wage standards embraced the
fishing industry, including those
employed in catching, packing
and related operations.
Exemptions from the maximum
hour standards and not from wage
provisions of the law were some,
what more specific. Included in
this list were railway and inteA
state bus and truck line empl yes
and workers IN the cotton g; .hing
and cotton SEED proceSSfng In
dustrieS.
In the latter two fields labor
statistics show both long hours
and low pay prevail. Workers en-
gagged in the processing Of milk
and related commodities into dairy
products, and in the processing q
sugar beets, sugar cane and re
lated products into unrefinec
sugar or syrup, also were exempted
applicable work-week provided
they receive compensation TO,
from hours standards.