St. Paul recorder. [volume] (St. Paul, Minn.) 1934-2000, 1961-09-22
Goldberg Asks End
Of Ruce Bios In
Industry 81 Unions

problem that affects the whole
broad structure of our society, and
it must be broadly attacked" the
Secretary said.
Goldberg called on the communi-
ty, businessmen, and labor unions
to take a strong position against
discrimination and in support of
social and economic justice for all
men.
Must Face Responsibilities"
The community itself must face
its responsibilities" Secret airy
Goldberg said. The denial of OPP
portunity in employment, promo
ton, and upgrading is far too pre-
valent in commerce and industry
and must be corrected by the man.
ayers Of industrial life. And in the
years ahead, as our employment
patterns change from predominant
ly blue collar to predominantly
white collar, executive and pro-
fessional employment, it will be
more and more important to in
sist that opportunity in such en-
ployment not too be foreclosed be-
cause of prejudice"
Businessmen have a particularly
important contribution to make in
this area, the Secretary declared.
Likewise labor unions" he added.
Trade unionism as a way of life
imposes the highest requirements
Of moral behavior, and particularly
in the area of economic opportuni-
ty."
The Secretary noted that the
American Negro is making gains.
For example, wage and salary in
comes for all non-white workers
rose in the 2o-year period from
1889 to 1859 by some 400 percent.
This increase was greater than
that of white workers, which rose
by about 800 percent.
Progress Painfully Slow"
But this progress has been
painfully slow in many areas" Mr..
Goldberg added In recent years
the unemployment rate for nom
whites has remained about twice
as high as the unemployment rate
for whites.
Furthermore, it is a hard fact
Of economic life that Negroes, dur
ing times Of business downturn,
are among the first to be laid off,
and, in times Of recovery, among
the last to be rehired.
There are two reasons for this.
The first Is the lower seniority rat
ings of Negroes because Of their
more recent entry into factory and
office work. The second is the
large proportion Of Negroes in un-
skilled, semi-skilled and service &C.
equations. Last April some so per-
cent of all non-white male workers
were in these work categories, as
compared with less than 80 per-
cent Of all white male workers.
In the higher occupation brac-
kets the situation is reversed.
Only Al percent of all non-white
male workers hold professional or
technical jobs, while 1872 percent
of all white male workers have
these jobs. Similarly, only per-
cent of the non-white male work.
ers are occupied as managers or
proprietors, in comparison to a
1873 percent participation in these
occupations by white male work.
ers.
1T is evident from these figures
that the Negro has still a long
way to go before his goals are
fully realized. This Administration
is making every effort to help
him"
The Secretary stated that in ap-
pointments made at all levels Of
the Executive Branch of Govern
ment, ability, integrity, and pro-
fessional competence have been the
qualifications for office. Religious
and racial attributes have been,
and will continue to be, disre-
garded.
And in this Administration, we
do not believe that any persons
ultimate position in life, economic
ally or socially, should be determ-