Evening star., 1940-05-03
Administration Seeks
To Kill All Wage-Hour
Act Amendments
Convinced House Wants
To Go Too Far, Leaders
Try to PigeonhoIe Bill
BY the Associated Press.

BY the Associated Press.
Reportedly convinced that the
House wants to go too far on amend
ing the Wage-Hour Act, admins
tration leaders were said today to
favor dropping the whole subject.
They were reported to be prepar-
ing a request that the House send
the revision question back to COM
mittee for further study. This
would kill chances for action this
session.
Most labor committeeman said
that while they still believed mod
crate" amendments were necessary,
the committees bill Of amendments
had been too heavily "loaded down.
with proposals to exempt too many
operations from the acts appnca-
ton.
Disgrace" Says Mrs. Norton.
It's chief sponsor called the meas
ure as it now stands "a disgrace to
the country"
Representative Norton, Democrat,
OF New Jersey, who made that
comment, expressed despair of STOP
ping the legislation in the House,
however, and told members to 20
ahead and add as many more ex-
emptions as they chose.
She predicted that the bill would
have "a long sleep in the Senate
Labor Committee.
After the House called an armi-
stice yesterday to noisy and bitter
debate over amending the wage
hour law Mrs. Norton YEARLY es-
timated that under the guise OF
help to the farmer more than
100000 industrial workers have
been voted exemptions from both
wage and hour standards"
Scene Of Confusion.
Three amendments which were
adopted, she said, would exempt
AL industries handling any agri-
cultural product"
The scene on the floor late yester-
day was one of confusion in which
members yelled through amend
ments, some of which received little
explanation.
The exemption considered mos,
far-reaching by the administration
side would remove the 80 cents ar
hour wage minimum and 42-hou,
maximum week regulations from:
ANY employe employed in Clean
ing. packing, grading or preparing
fresh fruits and vegetables in their
raw or natural state or any employe
employed in the canning. processing
freezing or preserving of any prod
uct consisting wholly or in CHIEF
volume Of perishable, seasonable
fruits or vegetables, including dried
fruits, or in handling or transpor-
tation in connection with or Incl
dental to such operations to the ex-
tent any employe is SO engaged"
Wins, 81 to 40.
1t was offered by Representative
Bland, Democrat, of Virginia, anc
won, So to 40. on a standing vote
Mrs. Norton said the Labor Depart.
ment estimated that 1000 900 work.
ers would be exempted under it.
provisions
A voice vote approved anothe,
amendment, by Representative An.
dresen. Republican. of Minnesota
which would eliminate the AREA o.
production" requirement from tn,
present acts exemption for agricul.
tural professors. (The present Law
applies to all professors except small
ones in towns of $500 or less which
process products coming from within
a 10-mile radius.)
The amendment would make tn,
law mot apply" to:
Any individual engaged in han.
ding, packing, storing, ginning
COMPRISING, pasteurizing, drying
preparing in their raw or natura
state, or canning of agricultural OF
horticultural commodities for mar
ket, or in making cheese or butter
or other dairy products
CO-Operatives Also Included.
A third amendment, definition
OF agriculture by Representative
| Buck. Democrat, of California
would assure certain farm co-opera.
tives of exemption.
| The House also voted to exempt
from the law commercial and indus
trial workers receiving $500 OF
more year or 5000 or more 6
month. 1t was offered by Repre-.