Jasper County Democrat, Volume 4, Number 9, Rensselaer, Jasper County, 8 June 1901 — A Blow To Municipal Ownership and Street Improvements. [ARTICLE]

A Blow To Municipal Ownership and Street Improvements.

One of the bright acts passed by the late lamented legislature is that fixing a minimum wage rate for unskilled labor on public work of state, county, cities and towns at twenty cents per hour. The complete act is as follows. Section X. Be It enacted by the General Assembly of the State of Indiana, That from and after the passage of this act, unskilled labor employed upon any public work of the State, counties, cities aud towns, shall receive not less thau twenty cents an hour for said labor, which may be enforced in a proper action, and in case a suit shall be necessary for the recovery of the compensation herein provided for. and where the compensation is recoveted, the persou suing shall recover also a reasonable attorney’s fee. together with a penalty not exceeding double the amouut of wages due: Provided, That Boards of Commissioners, Common Councils of towns or cities are prohibited from making contracts with such luborers by the week or auy definite length of time wherein a price is agreed upon at a rate less than as provided herein. Sec. 2. Any contractor or other person in charge of public work of the State, counties, cities or towns, whose duty it is to contract with, employ and pay, the unskilled labor on such public work, who shall violate the provisions of Sectiou one of this act shall lie deemed guilty of a misdeumor, and upon conviction thereof shall be lined in any sum not exceeding ten dollars, to which muy be added imprisonment in the county jail not exceeding thirty days. Sec. 3. All laws and parts of laws in conflict with this act are hereby repealed.

Under this act every person employed in any capacity on public work is entitled to 20 cents per hour, and the man who mows grass along the streets, carries a chain for the surveyor, digs a sewer or drain, or performs any other public service for any corporation above mentioned comes under the provisions of this law. This act will n<? doubt apply to town and city marshals, court house janitors, the employes of municipal heating, lighting and water plants, as well as to all street improvements hereafter made. If so, it would increase the salary of our marshal, sls per month, assuming that he puts in only ten hours per day; the court house janitor sls per month; court house heating plant engineer, S3O; superintendent of poor farm, sls, and all other employees of poor farm at the above rate of 20 cents per hour. Each of the engineers and fireman at the light and water plant, who put in about twelve hours per day, nearly S3O per month, or a total increase for the five men employed of $l5O per month, making the pay of each about $75 per month. Also the salary of the sexton of Weston cemetery, about S3O. It increases the cost of all street improvement at least J for the nec essary labor. As Rensselaer is about to improve some of her streets this increased cost of labor must be taken into consideration by the contractors and added to the bids for such improvement, thus giving us a taste of the law and its effect upon public improvement at once. This beautiful piece of legislation took effect at the time Gov. Durbin issued his proclamation putting the laws in force, May 15, 1901, and every person who has since performed any public work for any county, city, town or the state, is entitled to the wage rate fixed above. Its effect would not be so damaging were it not for the fact that private corporations and individuals can employ unskilled labor at from 12| to 15 cents per hour.