Evening star., 1942-04-21


their machinery and close thef
doors when 20 hours have beer
worked In a week They also be
Aeye that this Is mandatory unde
the law. That is grossly unfair a
both industry and 70 the millions
of American workers who have beer
and are toiling week in and weei
out many hours in excess OF 20 "
that we may retain the freedom anG
liberty which Ia ours and which
has become 10 very precious 10 us
This libel has been cunningly
and widely spread by certain groups
who would deprive underpriviieged
workers. Of living wage. These
same groups have consistently op-
posed wage and hour legislation
In any form from the very start
and they are now seizing upon the
war emergency 10 achieve their
ends. I do not link members of
Congress In particular with this
gross misrepresentation OF the 40
hour week. but 1t is spread by that
minority OF people throughout the
country opposed to all forward
looking legislation in the interest
OF the millions of men and women
who work with their hands. 1t
Is encouraged heartily by the Bit
ter foes Of the Roosevelt admins
tration and everything for which 1t
stands.
Provides Time and-Half PAY.
What does the so-called 40-hour
law provide7 II provides that time
and Q half be paid to any worker
for every hour he works over 40
hours In any one week. Since the
President made this clear several
weeks ago. the line Of attack has
shifted. Now we hear that EN-
noyers are reluctant to pay time
and half for additional hours
over 40 and that the war effort is
suffering as result. This Is ut
terly Illogical since almost all Gov
eminent contracts provide for time
and q half for every worker work
ing hours In excess OF 10.
The 4o-hour provision in Federal
statutes Is not now, nor was 1t ever
intended for organized labor. Hours
Of work and rates of pay are taken
care of under union contracts.
Since practically all industries
working on defense contracts are
organized, this campaign certainly
La not aimed at the war program.
I have been advised that accord
ing to actual facts, II the law were
repealed, 1t would have little or no
effect on skilled workers. 1t would.
however. destroy millions of work
ers throughout the country who
are unorganized and who, until the
wage-snd-hour Law was enacted,
were receiving starvation wages.
This applies to the South particu-
larry and also to. parts OF the Mid
die West where until the wage
and-hour law, thousands of men
and women were working for as
low as two or three dollars a week.
Even in New York. Connecticut
and my own State of New Jersey.
abuses OF CHS kind were found
though there were laws In existence
designed to protect labor and pro-
hibit such slavery. II this was
true In States with such protec-
tive laws In force, imagine what
the conditions would be where there
Is no such policy for the protection
OF labor.
Now, let us take a look at the
ofncial record rs kept by the United
States Bureau of Labor Statistics.
That record shows that more than
four-ffths OF our aircraft plants
and nearly three-flfths of our alu-
minum plants are working 100 hours
or more a week and one third of
them are working 160 hours or
more; and don't forget that there
are only 16S hours in a week.
Nearly three-fourths Of our ship
building plants are working 40
hours In q week or more and one
third OF them are working $50 hours
or more. More than 81 per cent
OF our chemical plants and blast
furnaces are working l2o hours or
more, and more than four-fif
are working l60 hours or more.
Other war-industry plants show the
same high percentages.
! remind you again-there are
only l68 hours in a week. Does
that sound as though the so-called
4o-hour law is interfering with war
production2 1t certainly does not.
Let's look at the Official record of
the average amount of hours actu-
ally put in by the workers in Is
important war industries. Well over
90 per cent Of the workers in the
machine tool. shipbuilding and loco
motive industries are working from
81 to 81 hours week, and remem-
Der that these industries would be
working and will be working longer
hours when necessary materials are
available. Does that look as though
employers are reluctant 10 pay time
and q half for overtime?