Full text of Facts on Women Workers : May 1959

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on WOMEN WORKER^^"^3A
UNITED STATES DEPARTMENT OF LABCJR

25 MAY1959

James P. Mitchell, Secretary
ROMEN'S BUREAU
Alice K. LeoDold. Director

May 1959

Status of Women Conference Sponsored

Conference on the Status of Women Around the World in the auditorium of the
Museum of Natural History. Taking part in the Conference on the Status of
Women Around the World included (left to right) Mrs. Esther Peterson, Mrs.
Tamar Shoham-Sharon, Dr. Eleanor F. Dolan, Begum Shireen Aziz Ahmed, Judge
?fedine Lane Gallagher, Dr. Uldarica Manas, Miss Margaret Mealey, Miss Minerva
Bernardino, Mrs. John F. Latimer, Miss Jeantine Hefting, Mrs. Chloethiel
Woodward Smith, and Mrs. Lorena B. Hahn.
An opportunity to hear firsthand
reports of the recent meeting of the
United Nations Status of Women Commission
’ was given at a conference on the Status
i of Women Around the World, held March 30
'• in the Auditorium of the Museum of
Natural History in Washington, D.C.

Six members of the Commission and
one member of the U.N. Secretariat talked
on subjects discussed at the recent Com­
mission meeting and were interviewed by
women from the United States active in
work and service concerned with women.

Mrs. Lorena B. Hahn, the Delegate
of the United States to the Commission,
spoke on the background and organiza­

tion
of the Commission.


Others who took part were Miss
Jeantine Hefting of the Netherlands, who
spoke on Political Rights of Women;
Miss Minerva Bernardino of the Dominican
Republic, who spoke on the Status of
Women in Private Law; Dr. Uldarica
Manas, Cuba, on the Nationality of
Married Women; Begun Shireen Aziz Ahmed,
Pakistan, on Access of Women to Educa­
tion; and Mrs. Tamar Shoham-Sharon,
Israel, on Economic Opportunities for
Women.

The Commission members were inter­
viewed by Mrs. Chloethiel Woodward
Smith, American Institute of Archi­
tects; Mrs. John F. Latimer, League
of Women Voters of the U.S.4.;
(Continued on page U)

Page 2

FACTS

Help for Girls

Job Information
Is Available
Overwhelming response to the pub­
lication of Future Jobs for High School
Girls by the Women’s Bureau made it
necessary for the Government Printing
Office to place a new order for sales
copies in less than 3 weeks after the
initial release.
The booklet which gives a preview
of job futures to teen-age girls is
proving itself useful to high school
girls, their parents, teachers, and
counselors.
It clearly brings out that most
girls work at paid jobs at some time
during their lives, and good, basic
information is provided in the job guide
section. Qualifications needed are
included, as well as nature of the work
and opportunities for advancement in
occupations which range from beauty
operator to radio and television
technician.

Jobs to which a high school diploma
opens doors are described, as well as
other occupations which need additional
training and work experience for
advancement.

Copies are available from the
Superintendent of Documents, Government
Printing Office, Washington 25, D.C.,
price UO cents per copy.

Latest Figures on
Women Workers
March winds blew a little better
for women workers according to the
statistics. In March, the number of
women working was 21 million, over
li00,000 more than in February. This
figured about hU0,000 above March 1958*



May 1959

Accent on Youth
Young Americans—their education
and opportunities—have been the prime
concern of Mrs. Alice K. Leopold,
Assistant to the Secretaiy of Labor,
recently. Mrs. Leopold was the keynote
speaker at the main banquet at the
meeting of the Intercollegiate Associa­
tion of Women Students at Arizona State
University in April.
During a trip to Denver, she was
interviewed by Aurora (suburb of Denver)*
high school students on a radio panel.
Mrs. Leopold was the speaker at
the AH Women’s Day activities which
took place at Purdue University in
Lafayette, Indiana, in April. She spoke
informally at the morning session, and
was the after-dinner speaker in the
evening.
____

Two Agencies Join
to Survey Day Care
A questionnaire survey to measure
the interest and activity of national
voluntary and public organizations in
stimulating community developments of
day care services for children is new
being conducted by the Women’s Bureau
and the Children’s Bureau of Health,
Education, and Welfare. Organizations
which are participating include social,
civic, religious, professional,
business, and welfare groups.

Findings of the survey will be
published later this year.

CUBAN WOMAN WRITES ABOUT
THE AMERICAN WOMAN
Dr. Anita Arroyo, 1957 exchange
grantee on the Women Community Leaders
Program, has just had a book published
about The North American Woman.
The activities of many famous
women are described in Dr. Arroyo’s
well-illustrated book.

Page 3

FACTS

May 1959

Aloha Hawaii
The movies gave Americans a glam­
orized view of the balmy Hawaiian
Islands with their surf riders, hula
dancers, and easy living. But World
War II and better- transportation brought
a more realistic and practical view—a
w view that recognizes the significance
of an area that boasts a billion dollar
a year economy.
This income is provided by Federal
expenditures, by sugar and pineapple
exportation, and by tourists, in that
order.
An interesting fact about this
group of Pacific Islands is that most
of their growth in production, employ­
ment, and income has occurred within
the last 90 years.

The population represents a
blending of races and nationalities
from many parts of the world.

ABOUT THE WOMEN

According to the census records of
1950, there were more than 50,000 women
in Hawaii’s labor force. This was some­
what more than a quarter of the entire
labor force, as compared with continental
United States where women comprise onethird of the labor force. Like us on
the mainland, they are typists, sales­
ladies, teachers, nurses, and waitresses.
But Hawaii has women pineapple canners,
dressmakers (almost a lost art in some
localities), and sugar and pineaple
farmers.

About 7 out of 10 of the semi­
skilled workers in pineapple canneries
are women, and more than U out of 10 of
the skilled workers are women. Schools

Continued—Col. 2.




SURVEY RESULTS
TO BE RELEASED

The publication of First Jobs of
College Women and its accompanying
leaflet, From College to Work,will
show the results of a new survey made
by the Women’s Bureau in cooperation
with the National Vocational Guidance
Association. It is expected to be
released before the end of May.
This survey of June 1957 graduates
reports activities, occupations, and
starting salaries of college women.

When the bulletin and leaflet are
released they will be available from
the Superintendent of Documents,
Government Printing Office, Washington
25, D.C. The bulletin will be priced
at 35 cents per copy, and the leaflet
will be 5 cents per copy.

HAWAII—Continued from Col. 1.
and other educational services employ
most of the wcmen, and many work in
eating and drinking places, hospitals,
and pineapple canning factories.
Women are employed on sugar and coffee
farms as well as pineapple farms.

The legal status of women in
Hawaii compares favorably with that
of women in some of the older states.
More detailed information on this
subject will be available in a bulletin
on the Legal Status of Women in Hawaii
in preparation by the Women’s Bureau
of the United States Department of
Labor.

Of the small proportion of U. S.
girls under 18 years of age who are
not enrolled in school, more than
one-third are engaged in clerical
work.

Page U

Dal 1 as, Texas, has
14th Forum
The Business and Professional
Women’s Club of Dallas, Inc. sponsored
an Earning Opportunities Forum for
Mature Women, Saturday, May 2, in the
Hotel Adolphus, Dallas, Texas. The Club
was assisted by other civic organiza­
tions and the U.S. Department of Labor.
Mrs. Margaret W. Harlan, special
consultant for Mrs. Alice K. Leopold,
Assistant to the Secretary of Labor,
spoke from the topic "The Nation’s
Interest in the Mature Worker.” The
all-day session included success
stories and counseling. The speakers
were employers interested in hiring
mature workers, Employment Service
representatives who gave the employment
picture, and authorities who discussed
attitudes and job applications.

STATUS OF WMEN CONFERENCE
—Continued from page 1.
Miss Margaret Mealey, National Council
of Catholic Women; Judge Nadine Lane
Gallagher, International Association
of Women Lawyers; Dr. Eleanor F. Dolan,
American Association of University
Women; and Firs. Esther Peterson,
Industrial Union Department, AFL-CIO.

FACTS

May 195>9
MINIMUM-WAGE LAWS
TRENDS ARE PUBLISHED
A total of 31 States, the District
of Columbia, Hawaii, and Puerto Rico
have minimum-wage laws now. Facts about
these laws and a brief history of State
minimum-wage legislation since 1912 are
published in a report entitled State
Minimum-Wage Laws and Orders, 19k2125&, released in April by the Women’s
Bureau of the U.S. Department of Labor.

State minimum-wage laws in effect
supplement the Federal Fair Labor
Standards Act, which applies to
employees engaged in manufacturing and
other types of interstate commerce.
The importance of these laws lies in
the fact that they can set a floor to
wages in local establishments not
covered by Federal legislation.
This recent publication is in
three parts: Part I, Historical
Development and Statutory Provisions
(at 75? cents per copy) and Part II,
Analysis of Rates and Coverage(at 60
cents per copy), Puerto Rico (20 centsi
These may be obtained from the
Superintendent of Documents, Govern­
ment Printing Office, Washington 2f>,
D.C.

TWO STATES PASS EQUAL-PAY LAWS

Mrs. S. Grinberg-Vinaver, Chief,
Section of the Status of Women, United
Nations Secretariat, summarized the
meeting.

Ohio and Wyoming have joined the
States with equal-pay laws. Ohio, with
the most recent enactment, was the 19th
State to pass equal-pay legislation.

The conference was- sponsored by the
American Association for the United
Nations in the Capital Area and the
Women’s Bureau of the United States
Department of Labor. Mrs. Howard K.
Hyde, President of the AAUN in the
Capital Area, and Mrs. Alice K. Leopold,
Assistant to the Secretary of Labor,
presided.

Equal-pay bills have been intro­
duced this year in Florida, Hawaii,
Indiana, Maryland, Minnesota, and
Wisconsin, and strengthening amend­
ments in Illinois, Michigan, New York,
and Pennsylvania.




Fifteen Federal equal-pay bills are
pending in the 86th Congress, lU in the
House and 1 in the Senate. Hearings
have not yet been scheduled.