Evening star., 1938-01-06
GUARANTEEDWAG
IN LIEU OF TIPS
IS PROPOSED HERE
Proposal Gratuities Be
Turned Over to Employ
ers Advanced.
VARYING BUDGET DATA
GIVEN TO WAGE BOARD
Spokesman for Workers Seeking
$3.50 as Minimum for
Weekly Salary.

A proposal that mattresses and
other employees Of hotels, restaurants
and other food-serving establishments
should turn their tips over to their
employers in return for "guaran-
teed" wage has been advanced by
employer spokesmen before the Dis
trict Minimum Wage Board.
This suggestion was debated heat
edly at length yesterday afternoon at
public meeting of the Conference
Committee of the board on the basic
wage to be fixed for employees of food
establishments, hotels. apartment
houses and Office buildings. The ke-
bate revolved around questions OF the
minimum cost of living of such York
ers and whether tips should be in
cluded as part of their basic wage.
Employer and worker spokesmen
were far apart on the coN of living
estimates. Spokesman for the workers
offered single cost of living budget,
seeking minimum wage of $3.50
per week. Employer spokesmen, rep
resented by Claude H. Woodward,
offered three budgets ranging from
$l1.9l to $15.06.
Argument Lasts Two Hours.
For nearly two hours the IL men,
bers of the conference, including the
three members of the Minimum Wage
Board, debated which Of these budg-
cts should be adopted and whether
tips should be included in the basic
wage. For half hour after ad-
journment of the meeting boarding
house proprietors and employees con-
tinued informal debate around mem
bers OF the board and its Conference
Committee.
Neither the question of budgets or
tips was settled, and another public
hearing session will be held tomorrow.
The position taken by employer
spokesmen was that under the mini
mum wage law the various classes of
workers in the affected industries
should be guaranteed" basic wage,
and that any tips received by watt
resses, hat check girls or other en-
ployes who come in contact with the
consuming public should be turned
over completely to the employer, and
that if their allowance for food plus
wages did not meet the minimum wage
the difference would be made up by
the employer.
Hold Out for Basic Wage.
Arthur l.. Schoenthal, labor men,
Der of the Minimum. Wage Board,
and other spokesmen for the en-
ployes contended that q basic wage
should be fixed which would not in
clude tips. They said the mattresses
and other workers should receive
cash payment instead of free food at
the place of their employment, so
that they could buy their food there
or elsewhere. as they saw fit.
Some employer spokesmen retorted
that such plan would leave the door
open for the employees to take their
cash allowance for food and yet help
themselves" to food when the boss
was not looking. Charges were made
that employees of restaurants now take
helpings of turkey, salads or dessert
when they find an opportunity. It
was said this was a geferal prac-
tice" accepted by all employers.
On the other hand, an employe
spokesman insisted that II all tips re-
ceived must be turned over to the
employer it would place premium
on dishonesty on the part of the
worker in not turning in all tips re-
ceived
During the debate one employer
spokesman said that some restaurants
had three different standards of food,
which they provided as an allowance
for different classifications of work.
erS.
Proposes $15.06 for Mattresses.
The cost Of living budgets presented
by Mr.. Woodward proposed a pay
ment of $15.06 for mattresses, counter
and salad girls, food checkers, tele-
phone and elevator operators in ho-
tels, restaurants, hospitals, private
schools and boarding houses. He
proposed payment Of $13.41 for
kitchen help, dish and glass washers,
bus girls and cleanup girls. He pro-
posed payment Of $119l for maids,
cleaners and charwomen.
The board ruled that a separate
conference should not be called for
employees of apartment houses and
hotels, as requested by Rufus S. Lusk
for the Building Owners and Man.
ayers Association and by Charles Rush
for the Washington Real Estate Board,
but it agreed to devote several days
to a special consideration of the prob
lens of these classifications of workers.