Evening star., 1941-05-21
Stagger Plan
For Pay Days
Backed in Poll
Trade Board Gets
Favorable Replies;
Plans Further Study

AIS SONS4 4LAiLIiiu pay ouyc lao WI
voiced by all Washington business.
men who have replied so far to tht
QUESTIONABLE sent out by the Wash.
ington Board of Trade, it wa:
learned today.
The trade board, in answer to 8
request from the District Commits
sioners that it express the opinion
OF it's membership on the propose
for staggering the now semi-month-
ly pay days, sent out 40 letters to
Individual firms and a number ot
trade associations.
1--WE have received no unfavorable
replies so far" William H. Press
executive secretary of the Board OF
Trade, reported. "All the replies
received to date are generally in
favor of some type of staggering
although many technicalities affect
ing various types of business need
to be worked out"
Further Study Planned.
He said the Board of Trade would
60 into the matter further before
reporting back to the Commission
ers.
Some replies indicated approval
Of pay day staggering to the fullest
extent. while others favored a four
pay-day-a-m month plan.
Legislation introduced in the Sen
ate last week by Senator Capper,
Republican of Kansas, and in the
House Yesterday by Representative
Hebert, Democrat, of Louisiana, pro-
vides that half the monthly pay roll
would be distributed On the first and
the fifteenth of the month. the
other half on the seventh and twen-
ty-second.
The Hebert bill was referred TO
the House Civil Service Commit
tee headed by Representative Rams
neck. Democrat, of Georgia. Mr..
Ramspeck has been out OF town
but is expected back late today.
Report Is Awaited.
No hearings have been scheduled
before the Senate subcommittee on
the Capper bill as yet, pending re-
mort on it by the Commissioners.
The Senator's Office said no ooJec-
tions had been received to the pro-
posal. ,r
Approval of the Capper bill, voted
by the Federation of Citizens AS
sociations last Saturday, was given
last night by the Federation OF BUS
inessmen's Associations and the
AScnniatlNn IN
dorsement of staggered plan was
also voted yesterday by the Mary
land State-District of Columbia
Federation of Labor in annual con-
vention at HagerStown, Nd.
Treasury officials, however, also
are discussing a procedure unoer
which Monday to Friday each week
would be pay day for certain FED
eral units, with the indivlduai
worker being paid every two weeks
instead of on the first and fifteenth.
In replying to the Board OF
Trade QUESTIONABLE, one depart.
ment store said it was in favor OF
staggered pay days to the fullest
possible extent.
Peaks REQUIRE Extra Workers.
Department stores in favor OF
spreading the pay days as lar as
20 times a month have previously
pointed out that at present they
are forced to hire part-tlme or con-
tingent workers to take care OF the
nav dav rush. These workers, they
maintain. are not only unframed
In their jobs but are getting harder
to find because of defense employ
nent. BY leveling out the present
spending peaks, they feel, service
to Government employees might be
absorbed by regular workers.
Another department store eXecu-
tive, in his answer to the Board OF
Trade, said he favored limiting the
staggered schedule to four pay days
a month, however, because he felt
further staggering would make 1t
difficult for the merchandising and
promotional divisions of his store to
plan soundly. He said his store
favored a staggered pay day be-
cause it would make for more ef-
ficiert service and have a tonic ef-
feet on employees.
Two chain store companies ex-
pressed approval of staggered pay
days, in their replies to the Board
of Trade. although one of them was
in favor of limiting the stagger-
ing to four pay days month While
the other said any new arrangement
would be of great help.
Peaks Swamp Grocery Stores.
One of them, speaking for a
grocery company, said tnat under
the present arrangement, several
hundred additional meat cutters and
grocerymen are needed in the COM
pany's stores to handle the trade at
the peak periods.
A drugstore chain official said
he believed a change in the pay day
arrangement would permit better
service to the public through level
ing off the peak periods.
Staggering the pay days as
means of more nearly equalizing
business conditions throughout the
month was discussed by the spokes-
man of a credit company in reply
to the questionnaire. He pointed
out that a twice month pay roll
resulted in undue pressure on every
part of the business community for
q short period and then a consider
able lag during the week or more
that follows.
Utilities See Benefit.
Two utilities company spokesmen,
answering the trade board question
naire, agreed staggered pay would
reduce burdensome peaks in the
work and one of them came out
strongly for paying every day OF the
month except Saturdays and Sum-
days.
One of the officials said that the
more the work of his company
could be spread out, the easier it
could be taken care Of.
The second spokesman said stag
sering the pay days, by spreading
the load more evenly throughout the
month, would enable his company to
render a faster and better service
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