Detroit evening times., 1945-08-08
PAUL
NHALLON
The News

WASHINGTON, Aug, Ten
w New Deal senator's pre-
sented a bill practically dou-
bling the minimum wage law,
proposing TO slide II up from the
current 40 cents 20 Is cents IN
two years, or less. Their brief
fanfare of statements sounded
as if they all wrote it. As a
matter of fact. none of them
did. 1t is CIO bill, although
its true authorship -MaS-not
mentioned.
The two leading sponsors
CFloridas $ Senator Pepper and
New York's Mead issued ex-
plantations in a tone as If this
was somewhat a routine mat
ter. As YOU know. even the
least efficient help is not avail
able nowadays for 40 cents an
hour (S16 for a 40-hour week.
Work not requiring either apti-
tude or application pays %
cents (S26 40-hour week
which is the proposed lmme-
date new minimum, to be m
creased 5 cents a year TO 10
cents $3.50 a week.
In truth, President Truman
has already advocated a S25
week minimum. So on the sur
face. the 10 New Deal senator's.
fronting for the CIO, acted as
il they were simply stealing a
march. and SIS more week, on
Truman-just a little political
grab with the congressional
elections coming on and many
votes to be cast by those least
apt and least inclined TO apply
themselves, who are the mini
mum wage workers.
DUT that is on the surface.
ID The negligence of the spon-
sors in explaining their bill eN-
tended vastly beyond their con-
cealment of its CIO authorship,
They also avoided mentioning
that hidden down in II IS an
apparent directive To the gov
ernment 10 alter the whole
wage policy of the nation, NOT
lust the MINIMUM, but all
wages on up the scale, through
reclassification.
The bill presents whole new
theory of government direction
of wages beyond anything con-
ceived by union leaders pre-
ViouSly.
The old minimum wage law
expressed the will of Congress
that the government. through
it's labor boards. establish pol
icy Of eliminating SubStandard
wageS-in short abolish the OBJ
normally low wage standards in
some industries, and bring them
up TO normal l40 cents). This
new 10-man-fronted Go bill
adds another directive TO the
boards: ITO provide for the
maintenance OF reasonable wage
differentiaIs between the inter
related job cIaSsificatiOns In
such industries"
Thus. it orders reclaSsifica-
tion all up the line. When the
minimum is increased for those
least apt and least applying. the
scales of the apt and applying
must be increased also TO pre-
serve the gap between. In short,
the skilled must get the same
increase granted the unskilled.
IF YOU ask one of the Spon-
Il Sors about this. you will be
informed this was put in merely
because the War Labor Board
has made a lot of new claSSif-
cations in its orders and we
wanted to continue these"
This is a sensational under
statement, in both particulars.
The WLB has Studiously
worked out a national system
Of overthrowing the Little Steel
Formula without seeming to, by
increasing the classification Of
nearly every worker, elevating
him TO the next higher grade or
two or three grades higher, so
he would get more money. and
keep quiet, and Dot rail too
much about the Little Steel re-
StriCtions.
This workers reclasSifica ton
device has raised the national
wage scale far beyond the Is
per cent of the Little Steel For
mula, and that formula has only
been nominally retained for
more than a year.
This proposed law, disguised
as is publicly dscernible. 1t
put the compulsion power of the
government TO work in labor S
collective bargaining.
The CIO seems TO have de-
cided the government can get
more than II can by direct
methods, which may be true.
now that wage scales have
reached the high point where
economic justification for fur
ther increases is hard to find.
and where further increases are
running counter to the govern
ment's policy against initiation.
Under this sly joker. no iusti-
fication for wage increase
need be furnished and no consid-
GRAFTON is given the problem Of
initiation The only reason any