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Show oo MINIMUM WAGE LAW FOR GIRLS Salt Lake, May 14 The Tribune says : A year ago yesterday the minimum wage law for girls and women employes em-ployes of Ulah, the first of its kind passed by any state, went Into effect ef-fect Durlns tbe year the state bu reau of Immigration, labor and statistics, sta-tistics, which has charge of the law s enforcement, collected a total of nearly near-ly $7000 In back wages due girls who wero paid less than the minimum scalp H. T. Haines commissioner of the bureau, yesterday began prep aration of a report on the working of tbe law. which he will submit to Governor Gov-ernor William Spry Commissioner Haines and his assistants, as-sistants, A. L Toone and Mrs. Elizabeth Eliza-beth Neilsen. who comprise the board, have investigated about 500 cases of alleged violations of the law Out of this number It was only necessary to take the matter Into the courts in six instances. Of this number five were decided in favor of the state and the offending employers fined. The other case Is still pending in the court. Of the total number thrcp were in Salt Lake, two In Fillmore, and one In Glenwood. The system used by the board which resulted in heavy collections of the wages due women and the few lawsuits, law-suits, was explained yesterday by Mr. Haines In every case where he or hl6 deputies have investigated the records and found that an employer was paying his girl workers less than the legal wage, they always figured the total amount due the girls since employment, subtracted the amount she actually had been paid, and then gave the employer opportunity io pay her what was due. In the event this was done and the employer agreed to keep the girl, no action was taken Publicity has been the Important weapon of the board In this work Fear of the story of their violation of the law getting Into the newspapers newspa-pers and of being pointed out aa men who failed to pay their women workers work-ers a living wage, has done more than anything else to effect a settlement, set-tlement, according to Mr. Haines Then, too, be says, the employers usually realize that the state and courts are back of the law and they know that a lawsuit would be much more expensive than a settlement io far there has been no attempt to test the constitutionality of the statute Watched With Interest. Owing to the fact that Utah was the first state to adopt such a meas ure. the law and its workings out has I attracted wide attention all over the. J country, and Commissioner Hainos has had almost daily letters frou other 6tate oMcials. persons and societies so-cieties engaged In work or bettnir; industrial conditions, and from v.m-ous v.m-ous universities, inquiring ;i to th" success or the law To every let t r Mr Haines has replied thai the la is even exceeding the hopes or its makers and backers. The state law covering th minimum mini-mum wage question Is a briel onn Section 1, which defines the wage scale, follows: "It shall be unlawful for an regll lar employer of female workers in j the state of Utah to pay ar.v woman less than the wage specified in this section, to wit: "For minors, under the age of H years not less than To cents per da : ror adult learners and apprentices, nol less than 90 cents per day; provided, pro-vided, that the learning period or apprenticeship shall not extend for more than one year, for adults who tre experienced lu the work they are BP to perform, not less than $1.25 per in his last letter sent out explain- ing the bill, Mr. Haines said: L, We have about 12 000 girls and jL women in Utah coming under th -ions of the law. or this nuni- hor about 7 per cent came under the K'- 18 ypars or classification , about 12 E& percent unnVr the Inexperienced class k- over IS, and the balance under the Jfc; third class Less than 2 per cent g& or tb entire number or employes were F discharged hecause or their rallure g . to meet the required standard of ef- W "The attitude of labor generally (s jp- ravorablc to the law. The operation I nt th3 law meets with general satis- iff taction rrom all classes, and there fe; will be no attempt for its repeal b; K the next legislature." r. |