The Waterbury Democrat., 1938-05-31

ling at a minimum of 25 cents per hour and advancing by three annual Steps to 40 cents per hour. Also, it lis to set an equally infleXible limit of A hours of work per week, to be reduced in two annual steps to 40 hours, unless overtime is paid at the rate of time and one-half. Exemptions are made in the cases of agriculture, broadly defined, local retailing and certa.n occupations regulated by other federal laws.
 Why This Law Will Hurt You
 In estimating the probable results of this bill we first run against the many conflicts which arise out of attempting to fix an inflexible dividing line for Wages between those at the bottom of the scale and all the rest of the workers of the country in interstate commerce. CD The 25 cent minimum has been a shock to the north, where higher minima prevail, even though it is proposed to raise this wage to 40 cents in three years.
 In those regions of the country like the south, where the existing minimum is now considerably below the proposed legal minimum, the law will tend to make the legal minimum the maximum In the north, where the prevailing min imum in industry is now in excess of 25 cents, the law will tend to bring the prevailing minimum down to the legal rate. Why pay much more than the law says is reaSon- able minimum wage?
 @ In all instances the minimum wage and maximum hours are set without regard to the differences fixed by nature between the many sections of the country. They are set despite the fact that real wages in the south are different in pur- chasing power from the same wages in the north, because of the wide differences in the cost of rents and commodities.
 (3) The bill overlooks another fact, that nothing can compel the employer to keep an employe upon the payroll who is unable to produce the legal minimum wage. This man will lose his job and be thrown up- on relief.
 (4) The attempt overlooks the condition that employees in season al industries, who nave lost time in dull periods, will not be able to make it up in rush seasons, because of the prohibitive cost of time and one-half for overtime.
 (5) The bill further overlooks the result that the small employer will be forced out of business and his employees will find themselves among the unemployed. The small employer can only compete, with his inadequate capital, lack of equip ment and modern tools, and small scale production, by paying a lower wage than the large employer who is much more favorably situated. In fact, this law will spell the end for many small employers. Thus it will tend to help the large corporations by assisting in destroying their small competitors. At the same time, as under the N. R. A. 1t will give encouragement to "chiseling" and "bootlegging" by dishonest employ CTS at the expense of the law-abid- ing.
 (6) The law will tend still further to close the foreign market to us and give less protection to our in- creased price of labor and increased costs, against imports coming il from abroad, produced by much cheaper labor. Some of our loss ir employment will result in gains to foreign countries.
 CD Wages and hours must be determined by economic, not by poll tical forces. Wages can only be paic out of selling price of the product If wages are determined, selling prices must be similarly governed Hence, to the extent that hours arc shortened and wages increased, pric- eS will be raised and every increase in the price of commodities means a cut in real wages. So we go aroune the circle.
 Our highest standards of livini have been found where the above economic principles have been fol. lowed. The direct ways to higher wages are by working more or b. increasing the unit of production per man. These are the ways Am. erica has advanced in the past the ways 1t must go in the future There are no others.