Evening star., 1947-12-09

Many Members Seek
Woge-Hour Law Changes
To Aid Output Gains
By David Laurence
Congress soon will be called on to
adopt a program to cure the work!
shortage" which is one of the basic
causes OF present-day imitation.
Many members of Congress are
proposing that the Wage and Hour
Law be re-examined in the light of
current conditions. When it was
adopted in 1887, the nation was still
suffering from the effects of de-
preston. The spread-the- work
movement therefore was popular and
the 4O-hour week was adopted with
all time over that limit to be paid
time-and-a-half rates.
This was in the nature of q pen
atty against longer hours but it did
not work always in the direction of
compelling the employer to hire men
on a. new shift. Many jobs required
only one or two or sometimes three
hours more and 1t was not prac-
ticable to hire whole shift for eight
hours. Where overtime was paid, it
increased costs. AS hourly rates
rose, it added sharply to costs and
forced prices higher.
Penalty on Production.
Today. with everybody crying for
goods, the law penalties increased
production. 1t is an anomaly that
has been allowed to 60 on because
political courage to tackle 1t Is lack
ing. The Truman administration,
for instance, which has been exces-
sively timid about proposing any re-
forms whatsoever in labor matters,
has not come to grips with the over
time problem at all.
Actually labor unions are not too
fond of the wage-and-hour law
Some of them opposed its adoption
in the first instance This is because
labor-union tradition places the sub
ject of the length of the work week
as properly one for collective bar
gaining between employer and union
in specific industries.
The answer made to this was that
labor unions were still free to agitate
for and strike for a shorter work
week. In some industrieS-like
printing, for example-there has
been a 35-hour week and in some
cases 371z hour week. The short
ening of the work week has long
since been separated from the idea
OF the health Of the workers. It is
a transparent device for getting
wage increases. In Akron, O., where
six-hour shifts are worked at the in
stance Of the unions, many workers
60 from their jobs at the rubber
factories to part time jobs in other
fields.
The Government has never taken
any steps to insure that the health
Of workers be protected by limiting
working hours and, SO far as is
known, no labor union has done so
either-the worker can work at one
job for 40 hours and at another for
IL hours more. Fifty-hour weeks
are not the rule but it is surprising
how many people work at two jobs
that is, for two different employers
Could Aid Union Organizing.
The unions would not lose much
sleep If the present law were re-
pealed. 1t would help them tre-
mendously in their organizing
strategy. As matter of fact, an
argument has often been made that
the exercise of the power, to Ak
minimum wages and maximum
hours on particular job prevents
unionization. For the law takes care
of the vast number of workers who
do not belong to any union. When
ever the law can do things for work.
ers that unions usually do, 1t makes
the unions less essential.
A few advocates of repeal of the
Wage-and-Hour Law have arisen
but they are mistaken in their ap-
proach. The placing of a floor un-
der wages is an effective way to
prevent exploitation OF large num-
ber OF unorganized workers. But
the determination of what shall con-
stitute the work week is something
else. This could very well be left
to collective bargaining but with q
limit on the number of hours that
could be worked before overtime
rates would apply.
If Congress changed the law tc
make q 44-hour week permissive, II
would enable unions to enter into
agreements for AZ or 40 or 35-houi
weeks dependent on changing needs
and fiuctuating conditions. If the
spread-the-work principle is sound
it Is important that fiexibility be re-
tanned because a boom in one indus
try sometimes occurs at the very
moment when there is depression In
another.
The present law is too rigid and
needs better definitions of the
classes covered. The minimum rate
could well be raised, too. It ought
to be possible also for the rates OF
overtime pay to be adjusted so that
those who want to work longer hours
at straight time may do so volun-
tarily and thus earn more money at
the same job rather than be forced
as at present, to 60 to a second en-
ployer and work in a different trade.
Revision of the Wage-and-Hour
law is essential to meet the shortage
of manpower and work shortage to-
day.
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