Evening star., 1939-07-14
President Puts
W.P.A. Wa|koul
In Outlaw Glass
You Cannot Strike
Against Government
Roosevelt Asserts
BACKGROUND


With Republican support and
ouer the rigorous opposition of
the administration leadership, the
requirement that prevailing lDages
must be paid ON relief work first
became la10 in 1885. This year,
at request of w. P. A. officials,
Congress rejected the principle.
Action has led to Nation -uide
protests. continuous for past 10
days.
President Roosevelt today placed
the stamp of illegality on strikes
against the Government and de-
clared the current w. P. A. work
stoppages are in this outlaw classifi-
cation.
you cannot strike against the
Government" Mr.. Roosevelt said
at his press conference this morn
ing. He gave special authorization
to reporters to quote him directly
on this unqualified statement.
In expressing this opinion Mr..
Roosevelt was in full agreement
with Attorney General Murphy, who
told newsmen yesterday there must
be no strikes against the Govern
ment. The Chief Executives COM
mitment on the matter came in re-
sponse to questioning as to whether
he agreed with the Attorney Gen
eral.
Later Mr.. Roosevelt received from
a committee of American Federation
of Labor officials, including Presi-
dent William Green, a set of recon-
mendations for removing the cause
of contention. Mr.. Green declined
to reveal to the press what the Fed
Grafton proposals were. but reported
that the President had promised tc
explore" the situation and "see
what can be done"
Great Distress" Cited.
I'VE represented to him the great
distress throughout the country ane
the need of correcting the situation,
Mr.. Green added. The one thine
that stood out above and beyond al
else was that minimum wage scale.
must be maintained"
The A. F. of L. delegation, he re-
ported, also appealed to the Presi-
dent to intervene and protect peo-
pie who are being discharged and
Disseminated against" Strikers who
have been absent from their jobs five
days are being laid off.
Another subject touched on, Mr.
Green said, was that of distress
among theater theater people, musi-
clans, artists and white-collar work
ers, whose work projects were dis
continued by congressional order.
Another development of the
morning was the drafting of cor
rective recommendations by the
United States Conference of Mayors
meeting here, for submission to w
P. A. officials.
Mayor Fiorello La Guardia of New
York, conference president, kept de-
tails secret, but said the suggestions
were designed to "avoid a narrow
and strict construction of some pro-
visions of the recently-enacted w
P. A. bill"
10000 Are On Strike.
As the Governments official atti-
tude toward the current protests
thus was being developed, the num-
ber of relief workers still on strike
hovered around 10000, with dis
charge slips for those who have been
idle for five consecutive working days
approaching 10000. Most of the pro-
test is being directed at the new re-
quirement of 100 hours work pei
month in return for the minimum
security wage.
In backing up Mr.. Murphy's strike
statement, the President said first
that there could not be strikes
against the Government. He was
asked then whether a w. P. A. strike
was a strike against the Govern
ment and replied that it was.
A questioner inquired whether he
(See w. P. A., Page A-10D