The Butler County press. [volume] (Hamilton, Ohio) 1900-1946, 1943-11-19


and charts in the current issue of La
boris Monthly Survey graphically tell
the story of why the American Fed
GRAFTON of Labor favors a broadened
social security program for the double
purpose of providing postwar secur-
ity for the American people and rails
ing tax revenues now to help win the
war.
Higher income taxes for workers
in low-pay brackets or a 10 per cent
sales tax would be destructive to the
nations economy and bring about in
fiation, the Survey showed.
BY contrast, the Wagner Murray
Dingell Bill amending the Social Sc
curity Act, which would increase pay
roll taxes by per cent, offers these
constructive benefits to workers:
Taking a typical case of worker
earning $40 week and supporting a
wife and two children, he will receive
benefits of $50 week for 26 weeks
in sickness or unemployment. Ii he
is permanently disabled, the family
will receive disability payments of at
least $114 a month while the children
are under 18, and after that he will
receive at least $45 month for the
rest of his life. All his doctors bills
will be paid and he may choose his
own doctor.
"All hospital bills for minimum es-
sential services will be paid for him
self and each member of his family up
to at least 80 days for each person in
one year. He will have care of spe-
cialists, laboratory work, X-rays,
treatments, eyeglasses and other ap-
pliances for himself and his family
free of charge. At 65, his old age
benefit will bring him $45 or more
each month to the end of his life, plus
$22.50 or more for his wife after she
reaches 60. If he dies, his widow re-
ceives three-fourths of his benefit and
each minor child one-half up to a
maximum of $120 month for the
family"
On the other hand, 10 per cent
sales tax would bring about none of
the foregoing benefits but would:
Take $40 of the entire income Of
workers earning $500 year
Take 7.2@o of incomes between
$1,000 and $500.
Take 6.2qo of incomes between
$4,000 and $2500.
But from incomes over $4,000, a
1000 sales tax would take only 2.1%.
The Survey continued:
"Thus a sales tax would place a
burden on workers, earning from
$1,000 to $250O year, three times the
burden paid by wealthy persons, or
even more. And on the lowest income
group, the burden would be four and a
half times that placed on the
wealthy"
A high-ranking Government official
was quoted as saying:
"A sales tax is realized in large
part at the expense of the essentials
of life for the low income groups. The
imposition of the tax would therefore
undermine the morale and productive
efficiency of these groups"
On the infationary effects of 10
per cent sales tax, the Survey added:
'The Treasury points out that a
1870 sales tax would add go to food
prices because the operation of the
parity price formula would raise farm
prices to compensate farmers for tax
costs This go added to the 1910 tax
would raise food costs for workers
1910. Wage increases would be essen
tial Also, the tax would add to bust
ness costs and force some prices above
cailings. Thus instead of stopping in
fation, sales tax would wreck our
present controls and start us on a
new upward spiral of wage and price
increases. Also, the cost of collecting
and enforcing such a tax would
greatly reduce the returns, and
shortage of workers to collect it would
make effective administration ex-
tremely difficult.
people who have more than their
usual amount of money to spend are
investing heavily in war bonds. Sec
retary Morgenthau states that where
wages are high the sale of bonds is