Evening star., 1938-10-24
Wage-Hour
Continued From First Page.)

minimum wage will be 80 cents an
hour; after that, 40 cents. The max
imum work week will be reduced
progressively during the second and
third years to AZ hours and then 40.
Employment longer than the statu-
tory maximum hours will be permitted,
but workers so employed must be paid
in cash at the rate of time-and-a-hal
the regular wage scale.
Limit on Child Labor.
Employment is prohibited for chill
dren under 16 in mining or manu-
featuring occupation, and for chill
dren under 18 in an industry declared
to be hazardous Limited employ
ment is permitted for children IA
or Is in other industries.
The act exempts either in whole
or in part seasonal industries. GER
tain agricultural occupations, profess
sional men, executives, administra-
tors, learners, handicapped persons
and employees of companies regulated
by the Interstate Commerce Commis-
sion
Administrator Andrews has con-
ceded that the law may be tested
quickly in the courts. Since many
of his definitions and regulations are
too general to apply to a given in
dustry, an appeal to the courts for
judicial determination will be the
only way to answer positively many
questions concerning the acts appli-
cation.
Anticipating that many border
line companies might not know
whether the act applied to them, Mr..
Andrews told an acquaintance:
What difference does it make?
They should come right in under the
act because a minimum of Is cents
an hour won't hurt anybody"
Some Threaten Suspension.
He reported last week, nevertheless.
that some employers had threatened
to suspend operations until they could
decide definitely what to do
Mr. Andrews charged that these
delinquents" either were unwilling or
incapable of contributing to the COM
mon good"
Enforcement (of the law is in the
hands Of businessmen and their en-
ployes," he said. They are the ones
who will make the law work-not an
army of inspectors from Washington I"
At first, because of a rather small
staff, Mr. Andrews will rely on State
Departments of Labor to check COM
pany's employment records to prove
whether they are complying with the
law. He has told industry that he
would not search out all violators at
first, but would be concerned only
with those who "wilfully try to evade
the law of the land"
Violators are subject to $4,000
fine, six months imprisonment, or
both. In addition, an aggrieved en-
ploye may sue his employer for twice
the amount of the difference between
the statutory wage rates and his actual
pay.
100000 to Get Higher Pay.
Mr.. Andrews has estimated that
100000 persons would receive increased
wages under the law and that it would
shorten the work week for 1900, 900.
But, as the wage scale increases and
the work week decreases, many more
hundreds of thousands will be bene-
flied, officials said.
The statute calls for creation of
industry committees which, by unami-
nous agreement, may recommend that
Mr.. Andrews issue an order legalizing
higher minimum than Is cents an
hour in given industry Too, he may
waive many of the wage and hour pro-
visions if he finds that they may result
in curtailment of employment.
Although the stoutest opposition to
the wage-hour bill during its course
through Congress came from Southern
Senators and Representatives, South
ern employers group was one of the
first to state publicly its willingness
to comply with the act.
w. M. McLaurine, secretary Of the
American Cotton Manufacturers As
ISOLATION, said in q statement at
Charlotte, N. c., that the cotton tex
tile manufacturing industry would
conform to the law Ito the utmost
OF its ability
so far as know" be added, not