Salt Lake Telegram | 1939-08-08 | Page 7 | Wages-Hours Chief Plans Huge Enforcement Drive

Wages-Hours Wages Chief Plans Huge Enforcement Drive WASHINGTON Aug 8 INS One INS One of the greatest government enforcement drives since the prohibition era was mapped today by y Wages-Hours Wages Administrator Elmer F F. Andrews as he prepared to really crack down on violators of the wages hours law Armed with a appropriation from the congress which adjourned Saturday Andrews with the he full backing of President Roosevelt and loosevelt and it was the president president dent who asked congress for the enforcement fund planned fund planned to announce an an- flounce within a few days tempo tempo- ary appointments which will place nearly inspectors in the field to o track down wages and hours violators Never Really ally Enforced The wage-hours wage act fixing minimum pay at 25 cents an hour and maximum hours at 44 hours a week for wage earners in n the nation was enacted in 1933 1938 but Andrews never had money to enforce it More bore than complaints have lave been filed with the wage- wage hours ours division of the department of f labor which Andrews Andrews' heads but action on them has been slow leading to some dissatisfaction among workers who filed char charges es against employers Of the complaints com com- plaints only 1000 have been settled mainly because of lack of funds Of the complaints filed tiled it itras vas was ras learned Andr Andrews ws believes that violations were Indicated in but ut that in th the other employers employ employ- ers rs were guiltless Andrews planned to lean over backwards to be fair to employers employ employ- ers rs where disgruntled filed charges without foundation but mt where violations exist an unimpeachable unimpeachable un- un impeachable source said Andrews was vas prepared to really crack crackdown down own Since he has been administrator administrator ad ad- Andrews has not lost one ne of the 3 cases which he prosecuted prose prose- on a criminal basis The 30 convicted violators paid total fines of f Andrews al also alpo o has invited in in- employers he has had indicted to o carry their cases to the supreme court ourt but none has so so far accepted the he challenge Inspectors from Andrews' Andrews office were ere to be Instructed to promise who file complaints full protection under the law which makes it a crime on the part of ot 3 an Jn n employer to ret retaliate liate against workers workers' workers workers' work work- ers ers' rs' rs who seek recourse from the wages ages wages and hours division One of pt the he biggest jobs faced by Andrews will ill be to enforce the cent 30 hour our which goes Into effect ef ef- October 24 Starts Quietly Andrews was starting the drive without fanfare One reason was that mt a recent press conference statement he made praising the C 2 I 0 O boomeranged on him In a torrent of criticism Another was the ic fact that he has had warning from rom congress that It de depends ends on how low wen welt he enforces the act between be- be tween now and January whether congress at its next session will amend mend the the law Before congress then will be I It t three ree sets of proposed amendments to the law One of them Andrews said would virtually d destroy troy the act He hoped to head off proposed proposed proposed pro pro- posed changes with an enforcement enforcement enforcement enforce enforce- ment drive showing that none were needed By the time federal courts reconvene reconvene reconvene re re- re- re convene in the fall Andrews hoped to have hundreds of new cases ready for prosecution