The Kennewick courier-reporter. [volume] (Kennewick, Wash.) 1939-1949, 1939-03-09
Bruckart's Washington Digest
Small Telephone Companies Hit
By Apple alton of Labor Law
Again the People Are Made Victims of Too Much
Government; Act Forces Small Industries Into
Spot Where They Cam OF Do Business or Hire
BY WILLIAM BRUCKART
WNU Service. National Press Bldg, Washington. D.!

should apply to 12,461 such com
panies. They decided the law Cal
be applied, even though the com
panies are entirely within the con
fines of county, in most instances
because the little switchboards arr
able to make a connection will
long distance" companies. It ma!
not happen more than five times {
month, but the little company is do.
ing interstate" business. Hence
your Uncle Sam, acting through tbs
bureaucratS, proposes to tell the 10.
cal companies they must pay the
wages designated by the federal Law
and limit the hours of those who
earn their living that way.
Would Force Companies to
Increase Their Rates
Now, I am thoroughly familiar
with the limitation of opportunities
Of employment for women and
girls in the small towns. know
that the small telephone compan-
les employ them as operators, or
they employ somebody not physi-
cally able to do other types Of work.
The pay is small, but it provides a
comfortable living in most cases.
Perhaps, the pay ought to be high
er, but if the pay is higher, the town
and country subscribers will have to
pay more. The reason those COM
panies succeed and render the val
liable service that is rendered is be-
cause they hold down expenses and
provide service at a dollar, or
around that figure, per month. One
realizes better what that rate
means when comparison is offer
ed of the five or six dollars per
month charged in cities.
Should the smart boys In the
wages and hours administration get
away with their program, 1t would
mean that small exchange would
have to increase the pay for opera
tors. The minimum for operators
would be $3.50 a year instead of
whatever rate now is paid; and it
would mean, moreover, that there
would have to be three or four OPP
orators. That is to say, no operator
could work more than AZ hours per
week-a seven-hour day of q six
day week. And what would that
mean? Every one of those compan-
les would be forced to collect three
or four times as much per month
from the subscribers, or close down
the system.
Then, to show how widespread
the effect would be, let me cite the
number of exchanges in few
states: Iowa, 802; Illinois, CIT; AL
ALBANIA, 1877; Arkansas, 299, Indiana,
sos; Maine, 1873; Michigan, 315;
Minnesota, 578; Missouri, TIC, and
Texas, 1913. It is. to be remember
ed that these are purely local COM
panies. Whatever number Of ex-
changes are operated in those states
by the Bell Telephone company are
in addition. But we are not con-
cerned with the Bell system. That
outfit is big enough to fight its own
battles.
Cannot See What They
Are Doing to the Country
Why these smart boys cannot see
what they are doing to the coun-
try, Is question which I cannot |
answer. Either they are utterly
dumb or they are promoting the
work for passage Of |
the wages and hours law. The CT.
o. certainly has demonstrated it
does not belong in the list Of real
organizations, but it still
has political power. The connec-
ton with CLIO. agitation might be
Traced through the fact that the
law contains provision permit