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Hourly Earnings in 11 Industries
Selected Wage Areas
June-December 1947

From the M onthly L abor R eview
of the Bureau of Labor Statistics
United States Department of Labor
October and November 1947; January,
March, April, and M ay 1948 issues




Bulletin No. 974
UNITED STATES DEPARTMENT OF LABOR
Maurice J. Tobin, Secretary
BUREAU OF LABOR STA TISTIC S
Ewan Clague, C om m issioner

LETTER OF TRANSMITTAL
U nited S tates D epartm e nt of L a b o r ,
B ureau of L abor S tatistics ,
Washington, D. C., November 28, 1949.

The S ecr etary of L a b o r :
I have the honor to transmit herewith a publication which provides brief summaries of straighttime hourly earnings for a limited number of occupations in 11 manufacturing and nonmanufacturing
industries. The studies were made by the Bureau of Labor Statistics in 1947 in the leading localities
for the industries selected. They were part of the Industry Wage Studies program of the Division of
Wage Statistics. The studies were conducted in the Branch of Industry Wage Studies under the
direction of Harry Ober.
This publication was originally printed as Serial No. R. 1923.
E w a n C l a g u e , Commissioner.

Hon. M au rice J. T o b in ,




Secretary of Labor.

Contents
Page

Hotel wages in large cities, June 1947___________________________________________________
Earnings of power laundry workers in large cities, July 1947__________________________
Automobile repair shops: wages in July 1947___________________________________________
Wholesale groceries: earnings in large cities, July 1947_________________________________
W om en’s dress manufacture: earnings in August 1947--------------------------------------------------Supplementary wage practices______________________________________________________
Hosiery manufacture: earnings in September 1947_______________________________________
Full-fashioned hosiery________________________________________________________________
Seamless hosiery______________________________________________________________________
Ferrous foundries: earnings in November 1947__________________________________________
Supplementary wage practices_______________________________________________________
Machinery industries: earnings in November 1947_______________________________________
Machine tool accessory plants: earnings in December 1947____________________________
Wage and related practices_____________________________________________________________
Paint and varnish manufacture: earnings in August 1947______________________________
Paid vacations and holidays____________________________________________________________
Wood and upholstered furniture: earnings in September 1947__________________________
Supplementary wage practices__________________________________________________________




1
2
3
4
4
6
7
7
8
9
10
10
12
12
13
13
14
15




Hotel Wages in
Large Cities, June 19471

ences in earnings of office than of other hotel
workers studied.
Among the occupational classifications covered
by the survey, the lowest rates in most cities were
reported for chambermaids and men elevator
operators, who sometimes carry baggage and
receive tips. Earnings of women elevator opera­
tors were typically above those of men.
Comparison of earnings in three jo b s 2 with
those reported for April 1943, the date of a previous
wage study of the industry,3 indicates that in
almost all cities hourly wage rates had increased
over the period by at least a third, and in many
cities, by at least a half. There was a slight
tendency for the earnings of general clerks to rise
less than those of chambermaids and housemen.
Altogether, hotels in the 31 cities employed
about 140,000 workers in June 1947, excluding
establishments with few^er than 21 employees,
which were not studied. Information was collected
by field representatives of the Bureau, who ob­
tained information directly from establishment
pay rolls and other records, and classified workers
on the basis of uniform job descriptions.

A mong 31 large cities located in all parts of the
United States, Seattle hotels paid the highest
hourly rates to their employees and Birmingham
paid the lowest hourly rates in June 1947. This
information was obtained by the Bureau of Labor
Statistics in a survey of average hourly earnings
(excluding premium pay for overtime and night
work), for a limited number of occupations in yearround hotels. The earnings data exclude tips and
uniforms, as well as the cash equivalent of room
and board provided some hotel workers in addition
to their cash wages.
The level of earnings in southern cities was
generally lower than in other regions. All four
Pacific Coast cities studied reported compara­
tively high wage levels for nonoffice jobs, and
Detroit and New York ranked high in rates paid
office workers. Measured in percentage terms,
there were somewhat narrower intercity differ* Prepared in the Bureau's Wage Analysis Branch. Greater detail on
wages and wage practices for each city presented here is available on request.
T

able

» Chambermaids, housemen, and men general clerks.
« Monthly Labor Review, July 1944 (p. 139).

1 .— Straight-time average hourly earnings 1 for selected occupations in year-round hotels, in SI large cities, June 1 94 7
Average hourly earnings* for—

Clerks,
general
Atlanta______ . . . . . . . . . . ___. . . . . . . . _____ . . .
Baltimore....... ..... ................................. ..............
Birmingham__________________________ ____
B o s t o n . . . . . . . . . . . . . . ______ __________ :____
Buffalo........................... ....................................
Chicago.................................................................
Cleveland.__ __ ________
_____ __ __
Dallas_________________ ___ ________ ________
Denver__________ _________________________
Detroit. ______________ ______________ ______
Houston__________________ ________________
Indianapolis___________________ ____________
Jacksonville.__ _______ ____________________
Kansas City_______ ________ ______________
Los Angeles.______ _____ ______ _______ ___
Louisville.............................................................
Memphis...... .................................. ..................
Milwaukee....................... ............................. .
Minneapolis-St. Paul................ ............... .......
Newark-Jersey City........................ ...............
New Orleans....... ..............................................
New York...... .....................................................
Philadelphia.................... ..................................
Pittsburgh.......................................................
Portland (Oreg.)........................................ .......
Providence___ ________ _____ _____________
St. Louis....................... ................. . . ________
San Francisco.....................................................
Seattle............. ........... ............... ........................
Toledo_____________________________________
Washington__________ ______ ___________

Women

Men

City

$0.92
.81
.70
.83
.76
.81
.77
.77
.72
.96
.80
.91
.80
.73
.79
.73

Clerks,
room

Elevator
operators,
passenger

$0.49
$0.88
.83
.97
.81
1.05
.87
1.07

.53
.46
.71
. 50
.39
.44
.80

.91

.43

1.01
.84
.82
.78

.71
.70
1.00
.87
.77
.90
.81
.69
1.20
.89

.78
1.10
.91
.97
.94
.83
1.01
1.29
.95
1.06

.46
.66
.37
.36
.67
.57
.42
.41
.69
.55
.54
.68
.55
.48
.75
.69
.66

* Excludes premium pay for overtime and night work, tips, uniforms,
and cash equivalent of room and/or meals provided some employees.




Housemen

Chamber­
maids

$0.41
.45
.35
.65
.60
.71
. 65
.49
.59
.70
.38
.55
.46
. 54
.78
.48
.44
.63
.73
.56
.44
.75
.63
.69
. 75
.66
.68
.79
.95
. 66
.64

$0.27
.35
.25
. 52
.51
.60
. 53
.33
.49
.57
.29
.42
.28
.44
,68
,39
.27
.58
.66
.46
.28
,65
.54
.61
.70
. 56
.47
.72
.78
.62
.59

Clerks.
general

Clerks,
room

Clerktypists

$0.72
.67
.69
.74
.64

$0.80

$0.78
.67

.61
.87

.72

.76
.64
.79
.56
.67
.61

.58
.74
.63

.67
.71

.58
.90
.82
.65
.78
.67
.60
.94
.70

.78

.80
.94
1.05
.87
.75

Elevator
operators,
passenger
$0.33
.42
.24
.62
.51
.69
.52
.41
.49
.77
.38
.43
.27
.45
.73
.40
.27
.58
.71
,46
.39
.72
.57
.62
. 70
.55
.54
.75
.80
.51
.66

» Where no figures are given, either there were no workers or insufficient
data to justify presentation of an average.

(i)

2

Earnings of Power Laundry Workers
in Large Cities, July 1947 4
I n 19 of 33 large cities throughout the country,
women flatwork finishers (machine) and bundle
wrappers in power laundries were paid an average
straight-time hourly wage 5 of less than 60 cents
in July 1947; in 9 of these cities the average was
less than 50 cents.6 Shirt pressers (machine)
averaged 60 cents or more in 24 cities, with a top
average of 93 cents. Among men workers, wash­
ers equaled or exceeded $1 an hour in 16 of the
cities and in 12 others had city-wide average earn­
ings of 80 cents to $1. In contrast, extractor
operators in only 6 cities attained $1 or more, in
10 others, they averaged 80 cents to $1.*•
4 Prepared in the Bureau’s Wage Analysis Branch. This is the second of
a series of local industry wage studies which will be made on an annual basis.
Data for a limited number of occupations were collected by field representa­
tives under the direction of the Bureau’s regional wage analysts. Greater
detail on wages and wage practices for each city in the current article is
available on request.
• Exclusive of premium payments for overtime and night work.
• Approximately 112,000 workers were employed in power laundries in the
33 cities in July 1947, exclusive of establishments with fewer than 8 workers,
which were not studied.

Pacific Coast cities, especially San Francisco,
Seattle, and Portland, generally showed the
highest hourly earnings for power laundry workers.
Men washers and extractor operators had city
averages of $1 or more in all four cities studied
in that region. In these cities, only flatwork
finishers in Los Angeles, among the 3 women’s
jobs currently studied, averaged less than 80 cents.
Men washers and extractor operators in Buffalo
and Detroit also had averages of $1 or more.
Women shirt pressers in Chicago, Detroit, and
New York were the only groups of women, ex­
cept those on the Pacific Coast, who were able to
earn more than 80 cents, on the average.
At the other extreme, earnings in southern
cities were relatively low, with Birmingham having
lower averages than any other city for the five
occupations studied. It was the only city in which
all three women’s occupations had average
straight-time earnings of less than 40 cents, and the
only one in which men extractor operators aver­
aged less than 50 cents.
Comparison of the figures obtained in the current
study with results of a similar study in July 1945

T able 2.— Straight-time average hourly earnings 1 fo r selected occupations in power laundries in 8 3 large cities , J u ly 1 945
and J u ly 1947
Men

City

Extractor oper­
ators
July
1947

Finishers, flatwork, machine

July Per­ July
cent
1945 change
1947

40.0 $0.72 $0.55
12.7
.82
.70
9.1
.63
.56
10.5 1.03
.84
38.9 1.07
.88
20.7 1.16
.92
16.1
.88
.81
12.7 1.00
.95
37.7
.80
.70
.93
31.6
.77
21.7 1.20 1.01
.94
20.0
.74
.89
9.6
.83
- 6 .2
.78
.66
.85
21.0
.74
30.0 1.15
. 93
15.2
.98
.80
10.9
. 67
. 50
ie! 9 1.13
’.98
30.8 1.06
.81
9.9 1.00
.90
.85
11.8
.69
18.3 1.22 1.03
18.8 1.00
.79
14.7
.95
.83
24.5 1.37 1.14
23.5 1.04
.83
28.6
.67
.62
.91
21.8
.67
25.8 1.38 1.07
29.3 1.42 1.17
37.9 1.15
.90
.85
23.4
.74

4 Exclusive of premium payments for overtime and night work.




Washers, machine

July Per­ July
cent
1945 change
1947

Atlanta-------------------------------- ---------- ------------------- $0.63 $0.45
Baltimore------------- --------------------------------------------.71
.63
Birmingham____________________________________
.44
.48
.84
Boston_________________________________________
.76
.72
Buffalo.----------- -------------------------------------------------- 1.00
.99
Chicago________________________________________
.82
.72
Cincinnati----------------------------------- ---------------------.62
Cleveland______________________________________
.80
.71
Dallas----------- ------------------- ------- -------------------------.73
.53
Denver..---------------------------------------------------------- .75
.57
Detroit-------- ------------------------------------------------------ 1.01
.83
Houston__________________________ _____________
.66
.55
.82
Indianapolis............. ................... ..................... .........
.73
Jacksonville____________________________ ____ _
.64
.60
.75
Kansas City------------------------------------------------------.62
Los Angeles _ _____ - ..............................- .........
1.04
.80
Louisville______ __________ ____ ________ _______
.76
.66
"Memphis
. 51
.46
Milwaukee.......................... ............................... ........
.90
.77
Minneapolis-St. Paul.................................. ..........
.85
.65
Newark-Jersey City....... .................................... .
.89
.81
.51
New Orleans.................. ........................................... .
.57
New York----------------- ------------------------- ------- ------.97
.82
Philadelphia................ ................................................
.64
.76
Pittsburgh____________ _________ ______________
.78
.68
Portland, Oreg_________ _________ ______________ 1.17
.94
Providence............... .................... .................... .........
.84
.68
Richmond__________________ ___________________
.63
.49
St. Louis__________ _____________ ______________
.67
.55
San Francisco__________________________________ 1.22
.97
.99
Seattle____ __________ _________ ________________ 1.28
Toledo............................................ ............................ .
.91
.66
Washington.................................................................
.79
.64

Women
Pressers, shirts,
machine

Per­
July cent
July
1945 change 1947

30.9 $0.36 $0.28
17.1
.55
.43
12.5
.33
.25
22.6
.57
.50
.65
21.6
.54
26.1
.68
.54
8.6
.57
.48
5.3
.59
.58
.44
14.2
.37
20.8
.54
.44
18.8
.75
.54
27.0
.40
.32
7.2
.56
.50
18.2
.37
.33
14.9
.55
.45
23.7
. 73
. 56
22.5
.'55
! 42
34.0
. 38
. 31
15! 3
*.61
*.52
.63
39.0
.46
11.1
.66
.52
23.2
.44
.32
18.4
.69
.57
.53
26.6
.46
14.5
.57
.42
.84
19.3
.61
27.7
.63
.47
.45
8.1
.33
.44
35.8
.38
.65
29.0
.85
23.1
.89
.64
27.8
.52
.71
14.9
.61
.51

Per­
July
cent
1945 change

28.6 $0.45 $0.33
27.9
.45
.61
32.0
.39
.30
14.0
.72
.60
20.4
.61
.72
25.9
.71
.88
18.8
.57
.61
1.7
.74
.73
18.9
.41
.50
22.7
.61
.60
38.9
.59
.91
.37
25.0
.49
.57
12.0
.61
12.1
.37
.41
22.2
.51
.63
. 64
30.4
. 82
3L0
*70
22.6
43
. 32
17.5
*.63
*68
37.0
.,68
.48
26.9
.79
.67
37.5
.42
.53
21.0
.90
.72
15.2
.58
.68
35. 7
.65
.53
37.7
.87
.62
34.0
.55
.76
36.3
.42
.50
.49
15.8
.55
30.8
. 93
. 72
.66
39.0
.90
36.5
.68
.76
.55
19.6
.65

36.4
35.6
30.0
20.0
18.0
23.9
7.0
1.4
22.0
22.0
54.2
32.4
7.0
10.8
23.5
28. 7
29! 6
34.4
7.9
41.7
17.9
26.2
25.0
17.2
22.6
40.3
38.2
19.0
12.2
29.2
36.4
11.8
18.2

Wrappers, bundle
Per­
cent
change

July
1947

July
1945

$0.40
.52
.34
.59
.60
.72
.55
.61
.44
.56
.73
.45
.57
.42
.55
. 84
! 54
. 37
! 65
.66
.71
.44
.77
.59
.58
.86
.67
.41
.45
1.05
.97
.74
.59

$0.32
.43
.27
.54
.49
.56
.48
.58
.39
.42
.58
.39
.54
.43
.46
. 64
.44
. 29
! 56
.46
.57
.33
.59
.51
.45
.65
.47
.32
.43

25.0
20.9
25.9
9.3
22.4
28.6
14.6
5.2
12.8
28.6
25.9
15.4
5.6
- 2 .2
19.6
31.3
22.’ 7
27.6
16! 1
43.5
24.6
33/3
30.5
15.7
28.9
32.3
42.6
28.1
4.7

.74
.57
.51

31.1
29.8
15.7

3
shows that workers in power laundries generally
received substantial wage increases during the
2-year interval. A majority of the city occupa­
tional averages in July 1947 were at least 20
percent higher than in July 1945. In 13 cities,
women flatwork finishers showed gains of 30 per­
cent or more, and women shirt pressers fared
equally as well in 10 communities.

Automobile Repair Shops:
W ages in July 19477
Straight- time average hourly earnings of
class A mechanics in automobile repair shops
ranged from $1.24 to $2.05 in July 1947 among 32
large cities representing all sections of the county.
The lowest average earnings in this job classifica­
tion were found in Providence, where less than a
fourth of the workers were paid on an incentive
basis, and the highest average earnings were paid
in Detroit where 9 out of 10 mechanics partici­
pated in incentive plans. This information was
obtained by the Bureau of Labor Statistics in a
survey of average hourly earnings (excluding
premium pay for overtime and night work) for
selected jobs in general automobile repair shops
and repair departments of retail motor vehicle
dealers.8
A majority of the establishments studied used
one or more incentive plans in their shops, workers
in repair-work jobs commonly receiving a per­
centage of the labor charges on assigned work.
With few exceptions, incentive workers in each
city and occupation studied earned more than did
time workers. An examination of average hourly
earnings of class A automotive mechanics in 8
Great Lake cities, for example, revealed that rates
for incentive workers were from 15 to 43 percent
higher than those for time workers.
The wage spread for most of the other occupa­
tions studied exceeded that indicated for class A
7 Prepared in the Bureau’s Wage Analysis Branch. Greater detail on
wages and wage practices for each city presented here is available on request.
? In July 1947, approximately 70,000 workers were employed in automobile
repair shops in the 32 cities, exclusive of employment in establishments with
less than 5 employees, which were not studied. Information was collected
by field representatives of the Bureau who obtained information directly
from establishment pay rolls and other records and classified workers on the
basis of uniform job descriptions.




mechanics. Body repairmen and electricians usu­
ally had higher average earnings than the me­
chanics. Earnings in the Great Lakes and Pacific
Coast cities were substantially above those paid in
other regions. Southern cities as a group showed
the lowest rates for car washers but were neither
lowest nor highest for the other five classifications.
Comparisons of earnings in four jo b s 9 with
those reported for July 1946, the date of a previous
wage study of the industry,10 indicates that hourly
earnings have increased by at least 10 percent in
half of the cities. Owing to a decline in earrings
of incentive workers, the increases in earnings of
automotive mechanics and body repairmen (com­
monly employed on an incentive basis) were gen­
erally smaller than those for greasers and washers.
In 12 of the 32 cities in the study, earnings declined
in one or more of the 4 jobs during the 1-year
period. Decreased occupational earnings were
more common in the South than in all other
regions combined.
T able 3.— Straight-time average hourly earnings 1 for men
in selected occupations in automobile repair shops in 8 2
large cities, J u ly 1 947
Average hourly earnings for—

City

Atlanta............................
Baltimore_____________
Birmingham___________
Boston..______ ________
Buffalo________________
Chicago...... ............ .........
Cincinnati_____________
Cleveland........... ............
Dallas_________________
Denver________________
Detroit________________
Houston_______________
Indianapolis___________
Jacksonville___________
Kansas City___________
Los Angeles____ ______
Louisville ____________
Memphis______________
Milwaukee___ _______
Minneapolis-St. Paul...
Newark-Jersey City___
New Orleans..................
New York_____________
Philadelphia. ...............
Pittsburgh...... .............. .
Portland, Oreg________
Providence.....................
Richmond.......................
San Francisco_________
Seattle................ ...........
Toledo............. ................
Washington, D. C.........

Body Electri­
repair­ cians, Greas­
auto­
men,
ers
metal motive

$1.62
1.61
1.51
1.64
1.74
2.15
1.53
2.26
1. 68
1.46
2.37
1.79
1. 52
1.58
1.65
2.03
1.43
1.73
1.66
1.62
1.55
1.66
2.05
1.83
1.38
1.61
1.30
1.53
2.01
1. 75
2.04
1.83

$1.41
1.46
1.47
1.44
0)
1.90

(?)
(?)
(2)

1.66
(2)
1.85
(2)
(2)
1.82
1.97
(2)
1.81
(2)
2.00
1.55
(2)
1.66
1.97
1.28
1.88
1.27
1.40
1.89
(*)
(2)
(2)

$0.91
.78
1.08
.90
1.05
1.18
.85
1.25
1.15
1.03
1. 57
1.09
.98
1.05
1.17
1.63
.87
1.00
1.01
1.18
.95
.87
1.04
.81
.86
1.33
.81
.73
1.39
1.27
1.30
.83

Mechanics,
automotive
Class
A

Class
B

$1.32
1.40
1.43
1.44
1.47
1.67
1.35
1.89
1.59
1.55
2.05
1.65
1.42
1. 45
1.64
1. 87
1.34
1.48
1.43
1.50
1.54
1.57
1.53
1.45
1.40
1.60
1.24
1.46
1.81
1.63
1.73
1.47

$0.93
.90
.88
1.07
1.19
1.24
1.01
1.62
(2)
(2)
1.51
(2)
.98
(2)
(2)
1.44
.95
1.02
1.07
(2)
1.12
.78
1.15
1.09
1.17

(?)

1.02
.88
(2)
(2)
1.19
1.10

Wash­
ers,
auto­
mobile

$0.61
.71
.57
.82
.92
.96
.83
1.19
.70
.89
1.03
.70
.83
.63
.89
1.12
.65
.57
.93
1.08
.96
.64
1.01
.83
.77
1.15

(?)

.64
1.37

(?)

.99
.75

1 Excludes premium pay for overtime and night work.
2 Insufficient number of workers to justify presentation of an average.
• Body repairmen, class A automotive mechanics, greasers, and washers.
Monthly Labor Review, May 1947 (p. 824).

4

Wholesale Groceries:
Earnings in Large Cities, July 194711
L ocal delivery truck drivers in the wholesale

grocery industry received an average wage of
$1.20 or more an hour in 13 of 30 large cities in
July 1947.12 Order fillers and stockmen fared as
well in 9 and 7 cities, respectively (table 4).
Over-all averages were below $1.00 an hour in
only 10 cities for truck drivers, averages were
under this figure in only 8 cities for order fillers,
and in 14 cities for stockmen or helpers.
Hourly earnings of truck drivers averaged $1.40
or more in Chicago, Newark, New York, and in the
Pacific Coast cities of San Francisco, Los Angeles,
and Seattle. Workers in the 3 occupations studied
in these cities, as well as those in Portland, Oreg.,
averaged at least $1.20. At the other extreme
were 5 southern cities (Birmingham, Houston,
Jacksonville, New Orleans, and Richmond) with
averages under 75 cents an hour for truck drivers;
only in Richmond were the average rates of pay
above 75 cents for the other two jobs.
Truck drivers earned more than order fillers in
21 of the 27 cities in which comparisons were
possible. The advantage in favor of truck drivers
amounted to 20 cents or more in 4 cities (Cleve­
land, Los Angeles, Newark, and New York) and
to at least 10 cents in 7 additional cities. Although
order fillers generally had higher earnings than
stockmen, their advantage was usually small.
Only Detroit, New Orleans, Philadelphia, St.
Louis, and Washington had averages for order
fillers 10 cents or more above those for stockmen.
The scheduled workweek in about half the
wholesale houses in the study was 40 hours.
About a fourth had scheduled workweeks of over
40 but not more than 45 hours and slightly more
than a fourth of more than 45 hours. Cities with
schedules of 48 or more hours in a majority of
establishments were Atlanta, Birmingham, Hous­
ton, Jacksonville, and New Orleans.
Paid vacation plans which applied to warehouse
11 Prepared in the Bureau’s Wage Analysis Branch. Greater detail on
wages and wage practices for each city presented here is available on request.
12 The wage information in this summary refers to average hourly earnings
(excluding premium pay for overtime and night work) in general line whole­
sale grocery establishments and grocery chain-store warehouses engaged in
wholesale distribution of merchandise to retail outlets. The study included
174 establishments with 8 or more workers located in 30 cities of at least
300,000 population.




employees after 1 year of service were reported in
all but 6 percent of the 374 establishments.
Three-fourths allowed 1 week with pay and nearly
a fifth allowed 2 weeks. Cities with a majority
of establishments in the latter group were Boston,
New York, and Pittsburgh. After longer service,
varying from 2 to 5 years, a large majority of
firms allowing 1 week with pay increased the time
to 2 weeks. Pay for certain holidays, typically
6 days a year, was also provided by most firms.
T able 4.— Straight-time average hourly earnings 1 for men
in selected occupations in wholesale grocery establishments
in SO cities , J u ly 1947

City

Atlanta.............. ............................. ........
Baltimore.................................................
Birmingham....... ............................ .........
Boston........ ............ _................................
Buffalo............................................. .
Chicago........................ .................. .........
Cincinnati....................................... ........
Cleveland.................................................
Denver........... ........................................
Detroit.....................................................
Houston.......................................... ........
Indianapolis.................................... .........
Jacksonville________ ______ ____ ____
Kansas City............................................
Los Angeles........................ „.......- _____
Milwaukee.... ..................... ........... .........
Minneapolis-St. Paul............................
Newark-Jersey City..................... .........
New Orleans..........................................
New York.................. ..............................
Philadelphia..... ............................. .........
Pittsburgh................................................
Portland, Oreg........ ..............................
Providence.... ........ ....................... .........
Richmond............................... ...............
§t. Louis.... ........................ ............ .........
San Francisco_____ _________________
Seattle....__ _____ ________ ____ ____.
Toledo ___ _ _ ___
_ ...
Washington, D . C....................... .

Order
fillers

$0.84
1.01
.71
1.16
1.05
1. 25
1.05
1.09
<*)
1.20
.69
.99
.66
1.19
1. 27
1.06
1.07
1.30
.74
1.36
1.18
1.24
1.24
(s)
.87
1.10
1. 28
1.23
1.18
.99

Stockmen
or stock
helpers

$0. 75
.96
.63
1.14
1.05
1.23
.97
1.08
.92
1.08
.66
.93
.71
1.14
1.40
.97
1.05
1.30
.64
1.33
1.03
1.18
1.20
.98
.79
.98
1.28
1.20
1.14
.89

Truck
drivers,
local de­
livery
$0.87
1.10
.62
<*>
1.16
1.44
1.08
1.35
.99
1.28
.72
.98
.73
1.29
1.47
1.11
1.14
1. 54
.68
1. 57
1. 29
1.34
1.27
.89
.65
1.01
1. 46
1.42
1.25
,97

1 Exclusive of premium payments for overtime and night work.
2 Insufficient data to justify presentation of an average.

Women’s Dress Manufacture:
Earnings in August 194713
T he manufacture of women’s and misses* dresses
is one of the major divisions of the garment indus­
try, which is New York City’s greatest employer
of manufacturing labor. In August 1947 an esti­
mated 68,000 workers were employed in New
is Prepared by Kermit B. Mohn of the Bureau’s Division of Wage Analysis.
Data for limited number of occupations were collected by field representatives
under the direction of the Bureau’s Regional Wage Analysts. Greater de­
tail on wages and related practices for each city presented here is available
on request.

5
of unionization in all except a few areas, (2) a
labor force composed predominantly of women,
(3) small establishments, the majority employing
fewer than 50 workers, (4) the predominance
of payment on a piece-work basis, and (5) season­
ality of operations.
A survey by the Bureau of Labor Statistics,
covering selected occupations in 14 cities in
August 1947, revealed that workers in New York
generally had higher earnings than those in the
other industry centers (table 5). Women sewingmachine operators, single-hand (tailor) system—

York City dress shops;14 another 7,000 were in
the neighboring communities of Newark, Jersey
City, and Paterson. Chicago ranks second in
the industry in terms of employment, with
slightly more than one-tenth as many workers as
in New York. Among the other more important
centers of dressmaking are St. Louis, Philadelphia,
Los Angeles, and Boston.
The industry is typified by (1) a high degree
u Excluding those establishments primarily engaged in the manufacture
of aprons, smocks, and hoover and industrial uniforms, and those establish­
ments with fewer than 8 workers, which were not covered in this study.

T able 5.— Straight-time average hourly earnings 1 fo r selected occupations in wom en's and misses' dress manufacturing ,
A u gust 1947

Chicago, 111.
Occupation and sex

Atlanta, Boston,
Ga. 2 M ass.2

Dresses
priced
by the
unit

Dresses
rieed
y the
dozen

$1.94
.84
1.82
2.92
.91
1.31
.90

$2.10

$1.48
.83
.82

.90
1.50

(4)
1.54

1.50
.78
.91

All
dresses

g

Cleve­
land,
Ohio *

Dallas,
Tex. *

$1.99

$1.17
.73
.81

Los
Kansas
M inne­
Hart­
City, Angeles, apolis
ford,
Calif.2 Minn.*
Conn.2 M o .2

Plant occupations
Cutters, machine, men..............- .......................- ................
Inspectors, final examiners, women..................................
Pressers, hand...................................... ..................................
Men.................................................................. - ..............
Women............... ............................................................
Sewers, hand finishers, women.----------------------------------Sewing-machine operators, section system................. .
Men............................................................................... .
Women.......... ...................... ...........................................
Sewing-machine operators, single-hand (tailor) system.
M en................... ......................... ................- .......... .
W om en ...........................................................................
Thread trimmers, women..................................................
Work distributors, women..............................................

$1.46

$1.90

.60

2.96
3. 74
1.06
1.09

.60
.71
.83

1. 21

1.21
1.60
2.00
1.58
.73

.86

2. 46
2. 92
1.16
1.35

.85

1.45
2.38

.82

0)

1. 07

$1.54

.81
.82
.83

(4)

1.07
1. 57

1.54
.79

<4)
.67
(*)

1. 57
.76
.76

1. 35
.94

1.36
1.03

1.29

1.19

1. 21
.67

1.16

1.15

1.17

1.00

.86

$2.20
1.04
1.94
2.49
1.59
1.23

$1. 57

.94
1.09
.92
.82

$1. 51
" ’ .'93
" ' . ‘ 93

.96
.96
1.69

1.13

2.11
.94
.84

1.68
.84
1.06

1.13
.72

1.48

1.18

Office occupations
Bookkeepers, hand, women.......
Clerk-typists, women,................
Stenographers, class A, women.
Stenographers, class B, women.

1.17
.67

1.10

.88

New York,
N. Y .

Newark, N . J.
Occupation and sex
All
dresses

Dresses
priced by
the unit

$1.98
.99
2.01
2.45
1.63
1.16
1.30

$2.01
.99
2.11
2. 62
1.70
1.16
1. 39

1.13
(4)
1.13

1.30
1.68

1.39
1.67

.84
2.04

68

1.67
.79
.95

2.04
.70
(4)

Dresses
Dresses
priced by priced by
the dozen the unit

.93

.81
St. Louis,
Mo.

Philadelphia, Pa.
Pater­
son,
N . J .2

All
dresses

Dresses
priced by
the unit

Dresses
priced by
the dozen

$1.91

$1. 94
.95
2.06
2.73
1.14
1. 32
1.45
2. 53
1.32
2.14
2. 42
2.06
.75
.76

$1.88
(4)

Dresses
priced by
the unit

Plant occupations
Cutters, machine, men......... .........................
Inspectors, final examiners, women............
Pressers, hand.................................................
Men.................................... .......................
Women......................................................
Sewers, hand finishers, women....... ..........
Sewing-machine operators, section system.
Men........................................................ .......... .......... ........
Women........................................................................ ........
Sewing-machine operators, single*hand (tailor) system ...
Men............... ................
Women...........................
Thread trimmers, women..
Work distributors, women.

78
91

$1.74

.84

$2. 34
1.20
3. 31
3. 38
2.41
1. 44
1. 25
1. 25
2. 30
2.78
2.20
.92
.84

$1.14
2.68
2.68
1.30
1. 44
1.44
1.87
1.68
1. 87
.81

.88

1.58
2. 73
1.06
1.32
1.26
2. 34
1.19
2.09
2.38

2.01
.75
.76

1.02
1.02

$1.64
.82
1.68
2.27
1.07
.76

1.04
1.04
1.04
( 4)

1.21

$ .75

1.21
.58
.73

Office occupations
Bookkeepers, hand, women—
Clerk-typists, women-------------Stenographers, class A, women.
Stenographers, class B, women .
1 Excludes premium pay for overtime and night work.
2 Predominantly unit-priced dresses at wholesale.
865524 0 - 49 - 2




1.46

1.06
.84

1,
(«)

1.12
.79

1.47
.73

.93

(«)

.96

.85

3 Predominantly dozen-priced dresses at wholesale.
4 Insufficient number of workers to warrant presentation of an average.

6
the largest occupational group in New York as
well as in most other areas—had average earnings
of $2.20 an hour. In the 13 other cities the aver­
age for this job ranged from 85 cents (Atlanta)
to $2.01 (Philadelphia); the average was below
$1.50 in only 4 of the 14 cities. Hand sewers,
second largest group of women, averaged $1.44 in
New York, $1.31 in Chicago, $1.32 in Philadelphia,
$1.30 in Paterson, and $1.23 in Los Angeles;
the lowest earnings level for this job was 68 cents,
in Minneapolis. Thread trimmers, a much less
skilled occupation and typically paid on a time­
work basis, had city averages ranging from 58
cents in St. Louis to 92 cents in New York.
Most of the men in the industry are employed
as cutters, pressers, or sewing-machine operators
on the single-hand (tailor) system. In New York,
cutters (usually time workers) were receiving
$2.34 an hour on the average, while the pressers
and sewing-machine operators (generally paid
piece rates) earned $3.38 and $2.78, respectively.
Pressers in Boston, however, had the highest
earnings for this occupation, with a $3,74 hourly
average. The lowest average for cutters prevailed
in Dallas ($1.17); in the other cities, only the
Atlanta cutters and those working on dresses
priced by the dozen in Chicago had averages
below $1.50.
Many factors contribute to the variations in
the wage levels among the cities. Among these
are differences in type and quality of garments
manufactured, size of establishment, size of city,
location, method of wage payment, extent of
unionization, etc., but the specific effect of each
can not be measured. Tabulations by type of
garment in 3 cities (table 5) show that workers
T

able

making dresses priced by the unit at wholesale
usually had higher earnings than those making
dresses priced by the dozen; separate figures for
this latter group in New York were not obtained,
but it is known that only a very minor portion
of the shops were producing such garments.
The wholesale-price range of the garments
manufactured is an important factor in wage
levels. According to an analysis of earnings by
price range in unit-price shops in 4 cities (table 6),
earnings of workers generally tended to increase
with the price range, i. e. workers on the cheapest
dresses usually earned less per hour, on the average
than those in the next high price range, and so on.
On the other hand, the effect of the type of shop
(i. e., inside versus contract)15 was not uniformly
apparent. In New York, the averages in 6 of 8
occupations were higher in inside shops. How­
ever, in Newark contract-shop workers had a
wage advantage in 6 of 8 and in Chicago in 5 of 8
comparable jobs, while the advantages were evenly
divided among the occupations in Philadelphia
and St. Louis.

Supplementary Wage Practices
A 35-hour week was almost universal in New
York, Chicago (unit-price shops), Boston, Pater­
son, and Atlanta, and predominated in Newark
unit-price shops. A workweek of 40 hours pre­
dominated in all other areas; it was very prev­
alent in shops specializing in dresses priced by
the dozen and in the less-unionized cities.
Over four-fifths of all establishments studied
15 Inside shops are those which purchase material and cut, sew, press, sell
and ship the garments for their own account. Contract shops fabricate pro­
ducts from piece goods (or cut goods) for a jobber or other manufacturer who
owna the material and sells the finished garments.

6.-— Straight-time average hourly earnings 1 fo r selected occupations in unit-priced wom en's and m isses' dress establish­

ments in 4 cities, by wholesale price range per garment , August 1 9 4 7 2
Newark

Los Angeles
Occupation and sex




Philadelphia

$10.75 $6.75 $10.75 $6.75
$10.75 $6.75
$16.75 $10.75 $6.75
$16.75 and
and
and
and Under and
and
and Under and
and Under
and under under under under $6.75
under
under
$6.75
under
under $6.75
over $16.75 $10.75 $16.75 $10.75
over $16.75
$10.75
$16.75 $10.75

_______________ $2.43
Cutters, machine, men________________
Pressers, hand................................................................................ 2.27
2.60
M en_______ _________________________________________
1.92
W o m e n _____ _______________________________________
Sewers, hand (finishers), women...............................................
1.22
Sewing-machine operators, section system, women...............
1.85
8ewing-machine operators, single-hand (tailor) system........
Men_________________________________________________
1.84
Women................................................................ ...................
Thread trimmers, women...........................................................
.97
1 Excludes premium pay for overtime and night work.

New York

$2.07
1.92
2.49
1.54
1.26
1.44
1.70

$2.04
1.44

1.36

1.69
.81

1.36
.78

i. 45
.97

1.64
2.27
2.85

$2.10
2.45
1.92
1.22
1,60
1.67

$1.88
1.78
2.25
1.47
1.01
1.09
1.54

2.85
.92

1.66
.74

1. 54
.78

$3.60
3.78

$2.35
3.32
3.45

$2.33
3.60
3.60

1.62
2.42
2.98
2.92
3.00
1.04

2.50
3.14
2.24
.95

1.44

$2.32
3.37
3.37
3.40
1.21
1.54
2.03
2.33
1.98
.90

$2.34
3.09
3.17
2.67
1.21
1.26
1.83
2.03
1.82
.83

$2.00
2.80
2.80
1.45
2.52
2.32
2.42
2.27
.84

$2.50
2.95
1.01
1.56
1.83
2.07

$1.89
1.36
2.31
1.16
.82
1.11

2.07
.73

1 Where no figures given, there were either no workers or insufficient data
to justify presentation of an average.

7
granted holidays with pay, varying in number,
to at least a portion of their plant workers. All
establishments studied in Minneapolis, over 90
percent of the New York shops, and a majority
of those in Newark (unit-price group) and Paterson
paid for at least 6 holidays not worked. In
Boston, 19 of the 20 shops paid for 2 or 3 holidays.
Although paid-holiday provisions were very
common in Chicago (unit-price group), Los
Angeles, and St. Louis, only time workers bene­
fited. None of the Atlanta shops, only 2 of 15
plants in Dallas, and only 3 of the 10 Chicago
establishments (dozen-price group) provided any
paid holidays.
Vacations with pay were common in the in­
dustry. In Atlanta, Boston, Cleveland, Los
Angeles, Newark, New York, Paterson, and Phila­
delphia, under terms of the collective-bargaining
agreements, plans were in effect whereby employ­
ers contributed amounts equal to a fixed percent­
age of their pay rolls to a fund from which vacation
payments were made to union workers.16 The
amounts and conditions of eligibility for such pay­
ments varied among the several cities. Other
benefits, such as paid sick leave and hospitaliza­
tion, were also disbursed from these funds.
In the other cities, and in the nonunion estab­
lishments in some cities having the aforemen­
tioned plans, vacations were usually granted in the
customary manner, with employers making pay­
ments directly to the workers. One week's vaca­
tion after 1 year's service was the most prevalent
practice.

Hosiery Manufacture:
Earnings in September 194717
A mong the major hosiery- production centers

included in a study of occupational hourly earnings
in September 1947,18 Reading, Pa., had the highest
16 See Monthly Labor Review, February 1947 (pp. 201 et seq.).
w Prepared by Toivo P. Kanninen of the Bureau’s Division of Wage An­
alysis. Data for a limited number of occupations were collected by field
representatives under the direction of the Bureau’s regional wage analysts.
Greater detail on wages and wage practices for each city presented here Is
available on request.
is More than 24,000 workers, or about 40 percent of total employment in the
full-fashioned hosiery industry were employed in the four cities included in
the study; seamless-hosiery mills in the five cities reported on account for
approximately 25,000 workers, or about 45 percent of total employment in
the seamless-hosiery industry.




wage level in the full-fashioned branch and the
Burlington-Greensboro area of North Carolina
held a comparable position in seamless-hosiery
manufacture. In most of the jobs selected for
study in the full-fashioned hosiery industry, aver­
age hourly earnings in Philadelphia also exceeded
those in the two North Carolina areas studied—
Burlington-Greensboro and Statesville-Hickory.
The latter area had the lowest level of earnings in
each of the hosiery industries. The relative posi­
tion of earnings in seamless-hosiery mills in Chat­
tanooga, Philadelphia, and Reading differed among
the occupations studied, with a slightly higher
general level indicated for Chattanooga than for
the Pennsylvania cities.
Differences in types of equipment and yarns
used in the production of full-fashioned and seam­
less hosiery account, in part at least, for the
generally higher earnings in the full-fashioned
hosiery industry. The interindustry differences
in wage levels were most pronounced in knitting.
Among the various knitting classifications in the
full-fashioned hosiery industry, area job averages
ranged from $1.36 to $2.98 an hour on a straighttime basis in September 1947. The area job
averages for knitters in the seamless-hosiery cen­
ters ranged from 63 cents to 99 cents. Nearly all
of the full-fashioned hosiery knitters were men,
whereas women predominated in this work in
the seamless-hosiery industry. To the extent that
comparisons could be made in occupations com­
mon to both industries, the earnings data indicated
that workers in full-fashioned mills held a wage
advantage in each of the four areas in which both
industries were studied.
The earnings of a great majority of the workers
in both industry divisions are determined by their
individual output, paid for on a piece-work basis.
Of the occupational categories for which average
hourly earnings are presented in this report, only
the adjusters and fixers of knitting machines are
typically paid time rates.

Full-Fashioned Hosiery
Earnings of knitters varied according to the
type of machine, number of sections in the ma­
chine, and gauge of hosiery produced. Men
knitters on legger machines equipped with backrack attachments, and workers on the newer,
single-unit type of knitting equipment, earned
more per hour than did knitters on the con

8
ventional legger machines (table 7). The spread
in average hourly earnings among the knitting
classifications was much greater in Reading and
Philadelphia than in the southern areas. The
highest earnings for men knitters in each of the
four areas were recorded for single-unit and backrack knitters, operating machines with 26 or more
sections, making hosiery of 51 gauge or over;
these workers had averages ranging from $1.79
an hour in the Statesville-Hickory area to $2.98
an hour in Reading. A comparison of earnings
in this classification with the averages for knitters
on similar machines of 24 sections or less, making
hosiery below 45 gauge, reveals that the knitters
tending the greater number of sections and pro­
ducing the finer-gauge hosiery held an earnings
advantage amounting to about 45 percent in
Reading and Philadelphia, 25 percent in the
Statesville-Hickory area, and 15 percent in the
Burlington-Greensboro area.
T able 7.— Straight-time

average hourly earnings 1 fo r
selected occupations in the full-fashioned hosiery industry
in selected areas , September 1 94 7

Occupation and sex

BurStateslington- Phila­ Head­ villeHickGreens- del­
ing,
phia,
boro,
ory,
Pa.
Pa.
N . C.
N. &

Men
Adjusters and fixers, knitting machines,
(4 years' or more experience).......................
Boarders, machine__ -- __________________
Knitters, legger:
24 sections or less, below 45 gauge..........
24 sections or less, 45 gauge......................
26 or more sections, 51 gauge and up—
Knitters, single-unit or backrack:
24 sections or less, below 45 gauge..........
24 sections or less, 45 gauge.....................
24 sections or less, 51 gauge and up........
26 or more sections, below 45 gauge.......
26 or more sections, 45 gauge...................
26 or more sections, 51 gauge and up___

$1.71
1.61

$1.86
1.58

$1.71
1.03

(2)
(2)
(2)

1.54
1. 76
1.88

(*)
1.89
2.53

(a)
1.36
(2)

1.58
1.52
1.65
(2)
1. 58
1.82

1.70
1. 86
2.02
2.36
2.29
2.48

2.05
2.22
2.28
(2)
2.53
2.98

1.43
1.39
1.56
(2)
1. 72
1. 79

1.12
1.06
.95

1.51
1.09
1.03

1.58
1.36
1.09

1.04
.86
.85

1.12

1.20

1.09

.99

.87
.91
.94

1.07
1.07
1.25

1.24
1.22
1.24

(2)
.87
.94

$1.84
1.23

Statesville-Hickory area. In contrast to the inter­
area differences in average earnings noted among
these and other piece-work jobs, average wage rates
paid to adjusters and fixers of knitting machines
did not differ significantly by region. Fully
qualified men adjusters and fixers averaged $1.86
in Reading, $1.84 in Burlington-Greensboro, and
$1.71 in Philadelphia and Statesville-Hickory.
Comparisons of earnings in these four areas
with those reported for January 1946 in a previous
wage study, indicated that three-fourths of the
area occupational earnings had increased by at
least 20 percent and half of the job averages by
30 percent or more.
Increases in Reading,
ranging from 23 to 55 percent among the selected
jobs, were somewhat higher than in the other areas.
A 40-hour workweek was scheduled by nearly
all of the full-fashioned hosiery plants in September
1947. More than 90 percent granted paid vaca­
tion leave to plant and office employees having a
year or more of service. With few exceptions,
employees with a year of service qualified for a
1-week vacation and almost half of the establish­
ments provided a 2-week vacation to workers with
5 years of service or more.

Seamless Hosiery
Men and women operators of automatic knitting
machines in the Burlington-Greensboro area
averaged 99 cents an hour in September 1947, the
highest earnings in the knitting classifications
among the two northern and three southern areas
T able 8.— Straight-time

average hourly ea rn in g s1 fo r
selected occupations in the seamless hosiery industry in
selected areas , September 1947

Women
Boarders, machine............................................
Folders............... ........................................ .......
Inspectors, hosiery............. ..............................
Loopers, toe only (1 year’s experience or
more)............................... .............. - ............
Loopers, toe and heel (1 year’s experience
or m ore)---................................... .................
Pairers........................................ —............ .........
Seamers...............................................................

1
1 Exclusive of premium pay for overtime and night work.
* Insufficient number of workers to justify presentation of an average.

Occupation and sex

BurlingChatta­ Phila­ Read­
tonGreens- nooga, delphia, ing,
boro,
Tenn.
Pa.
Pa.
N . C.

States­
villeHickory,
N . C.

Men
Adjusters and fixers, knit­
ting machines (4 years’ ex­
perience or more)................
Knitters, automatic...............
Knitters, rib._........................

$1.39
.99
(2)

$1.27
.93
.82

$1.37
(*)
(2)

$1.21
.82
(2)

$1.21
.82
.71

.86
.79
.99
.63
(2)
.73

.68
.74
.91
(2)
.74
.79

.67
.67
.88
.85
.91
.79

.74
.88
.80
(2)
.87
.78

.70
.65
.78

.88
.83

.82
.81

.83
.79

.84
.75

Women

Women seamers averaged $1.24 and $1.25 an
hour, respectively, in Reading and Philadelphia,
and 94 cents in the southern areas. Among the
selected jobs studied, the highest earnings for
women were found in machine boarding work, with
averages of $1.58 in Reading, $1.51 in Philadelphia,
$1.12 in Burlington-Greensboro, and $1.04 in the




Folders and boxers.............
Inspectors, hosiery...............
Knitters, automatic...............
Knitters, rib-__......................
Knitters, string.......................
Knitters, transfer................. .
Loopers (1 year’s experience
or m ore ................................
Pairers............. .........................

(2)

* Exclusive of premium pay for overtime and night work.
1 Insufficient number of workers to justify presentation of an average.

.71
.64
.79
.67

9
studied (table 8). The lowest earnings level in this
knitting category was found in the StatesvilleHickory area, where the averages were 82 cents
for men and 78 cents for women. The relative
earnings position of workers in the more important
knitting jobs varied from one area to another.
Among women workers, for example, the hourly
earnings of automatic knitters in Chattanooga
were, on the average, 23 percent higher than those
of string knitters; in Reading, earnings of string
knitters averaged 9 percent more than those of
automatic knitters.
Wage levels for women loopers, the largest
occupational group in the industry, showed the
least variation from area to area; experienced
loopers averaged 88 cents in Burlington-Greensboro, or 9 cents more than in Statesville-Hickory,
the area with the lowest general level of earnings.
Knitting-machine adjusters and fixers were by far
the highest-paid workers in the study. Average
hourly earnings of experienced men workers in this
job, ranging from $1.21 in the Reading and
Statesville-Hickory areas to as high as $1.39 in
Burlington-Greensboro, exceeded the earnings of
men automatic knitters by more than a third in
each of the areas.
Straight-time average hourly earnings of workers
in a majority of the selected jobs had increased by
20 percent or more in each of the five production
centers during the 20-month period ending Sep­
tember 1947,
A comparison of occupational
earnings presented in this report with those found
in the January 1946 study revealed that for the
five areas as a group, a third of the occupational
earnings averages had increased by 30 percent or
more.
With the exception of two northern mills operat­
ing on a 48-hour week, the establishments in the
study reported a 40-hour weekly “work schedule
for their employees. Formal provisions for grant­
ing paid vacation leave to plant and office em­
ployees with at least a year of service had been
established by all or a majority of the seamlesshosiery establishments in Reading, Philadelphia,
and Chattanooga; only 6 of 18 mills in the States­
ville-Hickory area and 11 of 26 mills in Burling­
ton-Greensboro had provisions for paid vacations.
As in the case of the full-fashioned hosiery indus­
try, vacation plans typically provided a 1-week
vacation for employees with a year of service.
Two weeks of vacation leave were granted to




employees with 5 years of service, however, by a
considerably smaller proportion of the seamlesshosiery firms.

Ferrous Foundries:
Earnings in November 194719
hourly earnings of machine
molders in ferrous foundries averaged over $1.70
in November 1947 in 12 of 23 large cities; average
earnings of floor molders and hand bench molders
generally ranged between $1.50 and $1.70 an
hour.20 This information was obtained by the
Bureau of Labor Statistics in a study of earnings
for 8 key jobs in ferrous foundries in 23 of the
country’s large cities, which together employed
about 70,000 foundry workers. The results of this
survey are summarized in the accompanying table.
For the 8 occupations studied, increases in
straight-time hourly earnings averaged roughly
10 percent between October 1946 and November
1947, and about 30 percent between January 1945
and November 1947.21 Wage changes were not
uniform from job to job or from city to city,
partly because of varying incentive earnings; in
the majority of cities increases in earnings generally
ranged from 6 to 13 percent during the year period
and from 25 to 40 percent during the 3-year
period.
Over the 3-year period, the greatest proportionate
gains in hourly earnings in most cities were for
shake-out men— one of the less skilled jobs
studied; although in a number of cities, the
highest wage occupation—wood patternmakers—
showed the greatest relative gain. Among indi­
vidual cities, Birmingham showed the greatest
percentage increase in earnings— at least 40 per­
cent since January 1945 in each of the occupations
studied. Except for patternmakers, however, the
level of earnings remained lower in Birmingham
than in any other city studied. Detroit wages
generally exceeded those in other cities. On the

Straight- time

59 Prepared in the Bureau’s Wage Analysis Branch. Further detail for
each of the areas studied will be furnished upon request.
20 Machine molders are frequently paid on an incentive basis, whereas other
molders are more commonly paid on a time basis. Straight-time hourly
averages in this study include incentive pay, but exclude premium pay for
overtime and night work.
21 Refers to median change for all occupations and cities combined.

10
T a b l e 9 . — Average straight-time hourly earnings

City

1 for

Chippers
and
grinders

men in selected occupations in ferrous foundries
November 1947
Core­
makers,
hand

Holders,
floor

Molders,
hand
bench

Molders,
machine

Pattern­
makers,
wood

in

Shake-out
men

Baltimore______________________________________________
Birmingham...______ __________________________________
Boston______ _________________________________________
Buffalo-------- ------------------------------------------------------------------Chicago________________________________________________
Cincinnati___________________________________ _________
Cleveland_____ _____________________________ ______ _____
Denver__________ _________________________________ ____

$1.00
.86
1.04
1.58
1.42
1.15
1.42
1.05

$1.34
1.10
1.50
1.71
1.73
1.45
1.69
1.36

$1.44
1.24
1.49
1.63
1.61
1.57
1.70
1.40

$1.36
1.08
1.49
1.55
1.63
1.45
1.62
1.40

$1.46
1.23
1.47
1.78
1.78
1.57
1.85
1.46

$1.55
1.70
1.63
1.67
2.05
1.47
2. 05
(*)

$0.95
.84
1.01
1.50
1.28
1.06
1.36
1.12

Detroit--------------------------------------------------------------------------Hartford (Conn.)_____ _________________________________
Houston________________________________________________
Indianapolis____________________________________________
Los Angeles____________________________________________
Milwaukee..______ _____________________________________
Minneapolis-St. Paul__________ __________ ___________ _
Newark_____ ________ __________________________________

1.66
1.14
1.01
1.27
1.23
1.56
1.16
1.04

1.84
1.34
1.45
1.53
1.54
1.72
1.37
1.46

1.84
1.58
1.63
1.53
1.69
1.80
1.41
1.49

1.82
1.35
1.41
1.48
1.58
1.43
1.42
1.53

1.93
1.84
1.38
1.71
1.71
1.91
1.39
1.68

(*)
(t)
1.94
(*)
2.1C
1.60
1.42
1.71

1.45
.95
1.02
1.24
1.17
1.23
1.11
.97

New York______________________________________________
Philadelphia____________________________________________
Pittsburgh----- ---------------------------------------------------------------Portland (Oreg.)________________________________________
San Francisco__________________________________________
Seattle_______ _________________________________________
Toledo------------------- ------- ------- ------- ---------- ----------------------

1.15
1.48
1.35
1.39
1.33
1.34
1.42

1.53
1.82
1.55
1.61
1.63
1.63
1.66

1.55
1.67
1.57
1.64
1.63
1.64
1.66

1.51
1.50
1.50
1.64
1.67
1.64
1.52

1.92
1.67
1.57
1.71
1.72
1,60
1 81

1.43
1.78
1.74
2.11
2.14
(’ )
(’)

1.20
1.02
1.24
1.37
1.32
1.25
1.36

i Excludes premium pay for overtime and night work.^but includes
earnings under incentive systems.

whole, earnings tended to be highest among cities
in the Great Lakes region and lowest in the South,
in New England, and in the Mountain area.22

Supplementary Wage Practices
Three out of 4 foundries included in the 1947
study had a 40-hour scheduled workweek; 1 in
14 reported a schedule of 45 hours, and 1 in 12
had a workweek of 48 hours or longer. Those
operating in excess of 40 hours were found in
relatively greater numbers in New England and
Great Lakes cities than elsewhere.
Formal provisions for paid vacations were
reported by 9 out of 10 establishments studied.
All but a few of these foundries granted 1 week of
paid vacation after 1 year of employment, and as
many as four-fifths paid for 2-weeks* vacations
after 5 years* service. In addition, nearly half
of the establishments studied granted their plant
workers from 2 to 11 paid holidays a year; the
great majority provided 6 such holidays. All
establishments that granted more than 6 paid
holidays were located in the New York City area.
Relatively few southern foundries studied pro­
vided paid holidays.
22 Additional wage increases since the November 1947 survey, ranging from
9 to 13 cents an hour, have been reported for some establishments in such areas
as Boston, Cincinnati, Newark, and Philadelphia.




28

cities

,

Truckers,
hand

(*)
$0.82
(*)
1.13
1.11
1.02
1.14
(’ )
1.27
(*>
(*>
(3)

(’ >
<*>
(5)
(*)
(*)

.92
1.25
1.08
.97

1.10

1.13

(2) Insufficient data to justify presentation of an average.

Machinery Industries:
Earnings in November 1947*923
W age l e v e l s o f s k i l l e d w o r k e r s in the ma­
chinery industries in November 1947 showed less
variation among the 31 large cities studied by the
Bureau of Labor Statistics than did average earn­
ings of workers performing less skilled operations.24
Straight-time average hourly earnings in the
highest wage cities were from 42 to 55 cents an
hour above those in the lowest wage cities for
skilled jobs; the corresponding range for less
skilled groups was generally from 54 to 72 cents.
Hand truckers had nearly a 100-percent range
in their average earnings—from 66 cents in Char­
lotte to $1.30 an hour in Detroit. For tool and
die makers, who typically received the highest
pay, average earnings ranged from $1.45 in At­
lanta, Denver, Dallas, and Providence, to $2 an
hour in San Francisco (a difference of about twofifths). Although earnings averaging $1.60 or
more an hour were reported for production
machinists in 4 cities and for class A engine lathe
23 Prepared In the Bureau's Wage Analysis Division by Donald Helm.
Further detail for each of the areas studied will be furnished upon request.
24 Earnings exclude premium pay for overtime and night work.
Information was collected by field representatives of the Bureau from all
or a representative sample of establishments in the machinery industries in
each of the cities included in the survey. In classifying workers by occupa­
tion, uniform job descriptions were used in all establishments and areas.

11
T a b l e 10.— Average straight-time hourly earnings

1 for

Drill-press opera­
tors, single and
multiple-spindle

Assemblers

men in selected occupations in machinery establishments in 31 cities
November 1947

Engine-lathe opera­
tors

City
Class
A

Class
B

Class
C

Class
A

Class
B

Class
C

Class
A

Class
B

Class
C

Atlanta..................... $1.34
1. 28
Baltimore..................
Birmingham. ...........
1.42
1.36
Boston........................
Buffalo.......................
1.45
Charlotte............. .
1.16
Chattanooga.............
1.44
Chicago-Gary...........
1.56
1.32
Cincinnati........ .........
Cleveland.......... .......
1.67
1.19
Dallas.........................
Denver.......................
1.56
1.66
Detroit.......................
Hartford....................
1.40
1.46
H ouston..................
Indianapolis............
1.38
Los Angeles.............
f. 48
Milwaukee_________
1.68
M in n e a p o lis -S t.
1.38
Paul..................
Newark-Jersey City. 1.53
New York City........
1.53
Philadelphia............. 1.43
Pittsburgh...............
1.41
Portland, Oreg.........
1.60
Providence.............. 1.29
1.53
St. Louis..... ..............
San Francisco...........
1.55
Seattle........................
1.65
Syracuse..................... 1.69
Tulsa. ........................
1.23
1.44
Waterbury..... ..........

$1.07
1.14
1.24
1.21
1.22
1.02
1.09
1.37
1.17
1.61
1.02
1.14
1.58
1.21
1.30
1.26
1.34
1.42

$0.89
.98
1.16
1.00
1.09
.80
.93
1.24
1.01
1.26
.92
(2)
1.38
1.10
1.16
1.45
1.13
1.44

(2)
(2)
$1. 34
1.44
1.29
(2)
1.31
1.40
1.26
1.59
1.22
1.45
(2)
(2)
1.47
1.39
1.40
(2)

$0.98
1.13
1.16
1.17
1.13
.91
1.27
1.36
1.15
1.56
.99
1.18
1.46
1.30
1.33
1.36
1.28
1.42

$0. 83
1.03
1.07
1.01
.96
.71
.94
1.25
1.09
1.22
.88
(2)
1.39
1.27
.96
1.09
1.19
1.38

$1.34
1.34
1.49
1.46
1. 43
1.19
1.44
1.54
1.32
1.66
1.49
1.31
1.67
1. 72
1.56
1.44
1.56
1.54

$1.18
1.11
1.26
1.24
1.20
.99
1.31
1.42
1.14
1.71
1.20
1.07
1. 50
1.33
1.32
1.34
1.42
1.47

$0.86
.92
(2)
1.09
.86
.84
(*)
1.37
1.05
1.20
(2)
(2)
(2)
(2)
1.22
1.19
1.26
1.24

1.32
1.33
1.37
1.26
1.58
1.45
1.14
1.28
1. 38
1.45
1.46
1.07
1.32

1.02
1.11
1.11
1.11
1.39
(2)
1.03
1.10
1.21
1.27
1. 39
.90
1.23

1.36
1.51
1.48
1.51
1.47
1.44
1.19
(2)
1.60
(2)
1.39
1.18
(2)

1.27
1.25
1.29
1.32
1.45
(2)
1.06
1.32
1.39
1.44
1.38
1.05
(2)

(2)
1.24
1.11
1.12
1.14
(2)
.97
1.05
1.27
(2)
1.33
.77
1.39

1.44
1.61
1.57
1.61
1. 50
1. 55
1.23
1.55
1.71
1.66
1.49
1.32
1.43

1.30
1.32
1.37
1.33
1.35
(2)
1.08
1.35
1.44
(2)
1.30
1.21
1.20

(2)
1.27
1.07
1.14
1.40
(2)
.91
(2)
(2)
(2)
1.04
(2)
(2)

* Excludes premium pay for overtime and night work.

operators in 7 cities, in the majority of wage areas
these workers averaged at least 14 cents an hour
less than tool and die makers. Indeed, in at least
a dozen cities, earnings of production machinists
and class A engine lathe operators averaged less
than $1.45 an hour.
The establishments studied were engaged in
producing a wide variety of machinery, including
engines and turbines, agricultural machinery and
tractors, construction and mining machinery, in­
dustrial machinery, office and store machines,
household and service industry machines, and
metalworking machinery (except machine tools
and machine tool accessories). Altogether, almost
487,000 of the more than a million workers in the
machinery industries were employed in the 31
cities studied in November 1947; these cities
represented all sections of the country.
Between October 1946 and November 1947,
straight-time earnings for the occupations studied
rose by about 9 percent on the average,25 with the
majority of increases falling within a range of 6
to 15 percent. Increases of 15 percent or more
were most frequently reported in cities in the
M Refers to median change, considering all cities and occupations.




Class
A

Class
B

Class
C

Ma
chinists,
pro­
duc­
tion

$1.35
1.35
1.45
1.41
1.35
1.33
1. 51
1.57
1.34
1. 57
(2)
1.40
1. 75
1.34
1.69
1.49
1. 75
1.45

(2)
$1.43
1.52
1.48
1.53
(2)
(2)
1.51
1.45
1.57
1.44
1. 39
1.67
1.62
1.61
1.47
1. 54
1.54

$1.05
1.15
(2)
1.33
1.39
(2)
(2)
1.37
1.27
1.47
(2)
(2)
1.57
1.25
1.45
1.40
1.34
1.39

(2)
(2)
$1.05
1.10
(2)
(2)
(2)
(2)
1.10
1.22
(2)
(2)
1.43
1.12
(2)
1.16
1.22
1.21

$1.42
1.47
1.46
1.32
1.35
1.16
1.40
1.58
(2)
1.54
1.36
1.34
1.60
(2)
1.49
1.48
1.54
1.42

$1.45
1.61
1.55
1.46
1.52
(2)
1.55
1.78
1.60
1.77
1.45
1.45
1.83
1.58
1.69
1.71
1.72
1.61

$0. 79
.84
.80
1.01
1.03
.66
.90
1.09
.93
1.13
(2)
1.09
1.30
1.01
.85
1.10
1.10
1.06

$1.35
1.39
1.30
1.38
1.52
(2)
1.60
1.61
1.39
1.73
1.25
1.47
1.78
1.63
1.63
1.41
1.57
1.75

$1.16
1.16
(2)
1.17
1.30
(2)
(2)
1.37
1.33
1.67
1.11
1.25
1.56
(2)
1.50
1.41
1.51
1.69

(2)
1.49
1.56
1.46
1.49
1.69
1.35
1.40
1.77
1.67
1.41
1.38
1.39

1.45
1.46
1.50
1.71
1.64
1.66
1.27
1.39
1.61
1.67
1.36
1.26
(2)

(2)
1.23
1.34
1.38
1.37
(2)
1.20
1.25
1.37
(2)
1.17
1.03
1.26

(*)
1.04
1.11
1.13
1.17
(2)
(2)
1.11
1.22
(2)
1.05
(2)
1.09

1.43
1.42
1.49
1.45
1.53
1.58
1.27
1.65
1.67
1.67
1.48
1.41
1.38

1.59
1.68
1.75
1.71
1.56
1.77
1.45
1.87
2.00
1.91
1.53
1. 55
1.57

(2)
1.06
1.03
1.03
1.05
1.23
.94
.98
1.27
1.26
1.01
.91
1.05

1.43
1.52
1.52
1.60
1.41
1.58
1.46
1.43
1.68
1.63
1.51

1.31
1.35
1.36
1.43
1.30
(2)
(2)
1.11

Inspectors
Elec­
tri­
cians

Tool
Welders, band
and Truck­
ers,
die
mak­ band
Class Class
ers
B
A

1.33
(2)

(2)1.60

1. 73
1.17
1.32

* Insufficient data to justify presentation of an average.

southeastern region and in Hartford, Cincinnati,
Cleveland, Indianapolis, and St. Louis. For the
period from January 1945 to November 1947,
wrage increases averaged about 29 percent, typi­
cally ranging from 23 to 36 percent. In percent­
age terms, the greatest gains wrere generally
registered for the less skilled occupations.
A scheduled wTorkw~eek of 40 hours was reported
by 5 out of 8 machinery establishments studied; 1
out of 9 worked 45 hours, and 1 in 12 reported a
schedule of 50 hours or longer. Workweeks in
excess of 40 hours wTere most common in New
England cities, whereas in Pacific Coast cities, a
40-hour wreek was prevalent.
Paid holidays (typically, 6 a year) were pro­
vided for plant workers by 4 out of 7 establish­
ments; however, the extent of this practice varied
widely among regions. Such provisions were
most common and most liberal in Middle Atlantic
cities, where 3 out of 4 establishments provided
paid holidays, with 1 out of 4 of these plants re­
porting more than 6 paid holidays a year. On
the other hand, in Southeast and Southwest cities
only about one-fifth and one-fourth of the estab­
lishments granted paid holidays; typically, estab­
lishments in these regions paid for no more than

12

5 holidays a year.
Formal paid vacation plans were in effect for
plant workers in 9 out of 10 establishments
studied. In most cases these workers received
a 1-week paid vacation after a year’s employment;
after 5 years of service, paid vacations of 2 weeks
were granted in five-eighths of all establishments
studied. All but a few establishments in all
regions had formal vacation provisions for office
workers; more than half paid for 2-week vacations
after 1 year of employment and 4 out of 5 pro­
vided 2-week periods after 5 years’ service. The
most libera] vacation plans for plant workers were
found in Pacific Coast cities; on the other hand,
office workers fared best in New England cities.

Machine Tool Accessory Plants:
Earnings in December 1947*226

the intercity range in earnings amounted to about
50 cents an hour, and for other highly skilled
workers, such as class A engine lathe operators, to
somewhat more. Among the lesser skilled jobs,
the spread was generally smaller in terms of cents
than for tool and die makers.
Levels of wages in the Great Lakes cities were
distinctly above those in other important centers
of the industry. Average hourly earnings in De­
troit were highest in 10 of the 13 occupations sur­
veyed and were exceeded only by those of Chicago
in the remaining jobs.
During the period since the January 1945 study,28
earnings of tool and die makers rose by amounts
ranging from 13 to 28 percent; half of the areas
showed increases of at least 20 percent. The pro­
portionate increase was generally greater for other
jobs studied, with the lesser skilled jobs usually
showing the larger percentage gains. Increases
for these latter jobs usually were from 24 to 40
percent, with half of the changes amounting to 32
percent or more.

T ool and die makers in Detroit machine tool

accessory establishments in December 1947 had
straight-time earnings of $2.10 an hour— the
highest average among 12 centers of the industry.
Rates for tool and die makers in other areas
ranged from $1.58 to $1.94. In 9 out of the 12
areas shown in the accompanying table, hourly
earnings for this job averaged $1.73 or more.
This information was obtained by the Bureau of
Labor Statistics in a survey of average hourly
earnings (exclusive of premium pay for overtime
and night work) for a limited number of key occu­
pations in this industry.27 In December 1947,
about three-fifths of all workers in machine tool
accessory establishments with 8 or more workers
were employed in the 12 cities surveyed.
As in many other industries, considerable varia­
tion in rate level among cities characterized the
wage structure of machine tool accessories. For
tool and die makers and production machinists,
Prepared by John F. Laciskey of the Bureau’s Wage Analysis Branch.
Field work for the study was under the direction of the Bureau’s regional
wage analysts. Greater detail on wages and wage practices for each area
presented is available on request.
2- Data used in this study were obtained from company pay-roll records
by trained field representatives of the Bureau, who classified workers on the
basis of uniform job descriptions. Copies of the descriptions used are avail­
able on request.
The survey included tool and die jobbing shops, as well as other establish­
ments primarily engaged in manufacturing machine tool accessories. It
corresponds to industry 3543 of the Standard Industrial Classification Manual
(1941 edition, issued by the Bureau of the Budget).




Wage and Related Practices
With the resumption of peacetime operations,
many establishments have substantially reduced
the normal hours of work for individual workers
and have curtailed or eliminated their extra shift
operations. In December 1947 a scheduled work­
week of 40 hours was most common in the in­
dustry, although a seventh of the plants reported
a scheduled week of 45 hours, and a fifth, 48 hours
or more. In January 1945, scheduled workweeks
of 48 hours and over were most common; a week
as short as 40 hours was reported by very few
plants. About 1 of every 6 establishments
studied in December 1947 operated at least 2
shifts, and 1 of every 30 had 3 shifts. Of the
plants surveyed in January 1945, about 1 in 3 had
at least 2 shifts; 1 in 10 was on a third shift basis.
Shift differential payments were provided by
6 of every 7 plants operating a second shift and
by all those reporting a third shift in late 1947.
The most frequent second-shift differential was
10 cents an hour added to the first-shift rate,
reported by more than half the plants paying any
differential. For third-shift work, 10 percent
above the day rate was typical.
2S See Monthly Labor Review, March 1946 (page 438), and mimeographed
report (Wage Structure: Machine Tool Accessories, 1945, Series 2, No. 2).

13

T able 11.— Average

1

straight-time hourly earnings for men in selected occupations in machine tool accessory establishments
in 12 areas, December 194-7
Average hourly rates in2—

Occupation
Boston,
Mass.

Electricians, maintenance _ _ _
__
__________
Engine-lathe operators, class A ............................... ..........
Engine-lathe operators, class B
_ _ ____
Grinding-machine operators, class A ................................
Grinding-machine operators, class R
Inspectors class A
Inspectors, class R
_________
Janitors
_________________________________________
Machinists, production_________ _____ ____ _________
Milling-machine operators, class A
__ ______
Milling-machine operators, class B
_
_________
Milling-mpohine operators class G
Tool and die makers..................................................... .......

$1.42
1.22
1.39
.83
1.32
.94
1.62

Chi­
cago,
111.
$1.51
1.72
1.63
1.74
1. 71
1.66
1.54
1.05
1.80
1.62
1. 81
1. 40
1.94

Cleve­ Detroit, Hart­
ford,
land,
Mich. Conn.
Ohio
$1.56
1.55
1.48
1.65
1.45
1.58
1.34
1.02
1.59
1.59
1.42
1.30
1.74

2 Excludes premium pay for overtime and night work.

$1.39
1.29
1.42
1.58
1.58
1.44
1.26
.86
1.39
1. 42
1.37
1.58

$1.49
1.66

$1.37
1.67

New­
ark,
N . J.

New
York,
N. Y .

$1.58

$1.58
1.33
1.49

$1.54
1.44
1.60
1. 43

1.80
.97
1.61
1.49

1.05
1.65

1.79

1.83

.94
1.52
1.55
1.44
1.25
1. 73

Provi­
dence, Toledo,
Ohio
R. I.
$1.36
1.37

$1.75
1.73
1.76

.1.88

1.53

1.51
1.55
1.25

1.61
1.16
1.50
1.29
.87
1.33
1.63
1.13

1.79

1.85

1.59

1.60
1.27
1.73

1.01
1.67

2 Where no figures given, data were insufficient to justify presentation of average.

Paid vacations were commonly provided plant
workers with a year’s service, 1-week vacations
being granted by four-fifths of the establishments
visited. More than half of the plants provided
2-week vacations after 5 years of service.

Paint and Varnish Manufacture:
Earnings in August 194729*
A verage hourly earnings 30 were, for the most
part, highest in San Francisco and Detroit and
lowest in Philadelphia and Louisville, according
to a study made by the Bureau of Labor Statistics
in 12 cities in August 1947.31 Earnings in the 9
occupations studied generally varied by about 40
cents between the highest and lowest paying
areas. The numerically important group of mixers
had average wage rates of $1.25 or more an hour
in cities in the Pacific and Great Lakes States,
although in other areas their earnings ranged as
low as $1.01. Earnings of men labelers and pack­
ers ranged from 89 cents in Philadelphia to $1.30
in San Francisco, while those for women varied
from 79 cents to $1.19 in the same cities.
29 Prepared in the Bureau’s Wage Analysis Division. Greater detail on
wages and wage practices for each city presented here is available on request.
39 The 12 cities studied employed about 25,000 workers—Three-fourths of
all workers in the paint and varnish industry at the time of the survey.
Establishments with fewer than 8 workers were not studied. Data were
obtained from company pay-roll records by Bureau field representatives.
Uniform job descriptions were used.
31 Hourly wage averages are straight-time earnings and exclude overtime
and shift premium pay but include earnings under incentive systems.




$1.97
1.96
1.65
2.06
1.68
1.94
1.61
1.26
1.81
1.96
1.62
1.39
2.10

Mil­
Los
Indian­
apolis, Angeles, waukee,
Ind.
Calif.
Wis.

Wages increased generally during the year pre­
ceding the study in all but 1 of the 9 occupations
studied. Such increases typically ranged from 11
to 20 percent, although there was wide variation
within each city and each occupational group.
The most substantial gains were reported for
varnish makers, particularly in New York, St.
Louis, and Philadelphia, who earned at least a
third more in August 1947 than in July 1946.
In contrast, probably because of turn-over, 1947
earnings of technicians in 8 of the 12 cities studied
ranged from 5 to 15 percent below 1946. In
most cities, the wage gains of clerical workers
compared favorably with those of plant workers.
In 6 cities, earnings of clerk-typists increased at
least 16 percent.

Paid Vacations and Holidays
Nearly all establishments engaged in the manu­
facture of paints and varnishes granted paid
vacations to plant workers, according to the
Bureau’s study in August 1947. Such vacations
are typically 1 week in length after 1 year’s em­
ployment, although nearly a sixth of the establish­
ments studied provide for 2-week vacations.
Vacation policies for workers with greater length
of service are more liberal; about half the plants
provide 2-week vacations after 3 years’ employ­
ment, and three-fourths grant 2 weeks or more
after 5 years’ employment. In addition, nearly
all establishments provide paid holidays, typically
6 a year. About a third grant more than 6 days;
most of these establishments are located in the
New York City, Newark, and Boston wage areas.

14
T able 12.— Average straight-time hourly earnings 1 for selected occupations in paint and varnish establishments in 12 cities,
J u ly 1 946 and August 194 7
MEN
Maintenance men,
general utility

Labelers and packers
Wage area

Boston......... ............................
Cleveland_______________
D e tro it_____ _____________
Los Angeles....... .....................
Louisville.................................
Newark-Jersey City............ .
New Y ork...............................
Philadelphia...........................
Pittsburgh........... ..................
St. Louis___________________
San Francisco.........................

August
1947

July
1946

$0.95
1.23
1.10
1.28
1.10
.94
1.07
1.06
.89
1.03
1.11
1.30

$0.79
1.06
1.01
1.17
1.00
.73
.92
.88
.81
.89
.90
(2)

Per­
cent of August
1947
change
20.3
16.0
8.9
9.4
10.0
28.8
16.3
20.5
9.9
15.7
23.3

$1.24
1.53
1.42
1.40
1.61
1.21
1.42
1.35
1.22
1.38
1.21
(2)

July
1946

$1.04
1.19
1.25
1.32
(2)
1.09
1.22
1.28
1.07
1.15
1.09
(2)

Per­
August
cent of
1947
change
19.2
28.6
13.6
6.1
11.0
16.4
5.5
14.0
20.0
11.0

$1.13
1.25
1.27
1.33
1.25
1.02
1.23
1.17
1.01
1.13
1.12
1.41

July
1946

$0.97
1.11
1.11
1.21
1.09
.85
1.10
1.01
.90
.95
.93
1.15

Per­
cent of August
1947
change
16.5
12.6
14.4
9.9
14.7
20.0
11.8
15.8
12.2
18.9
20.4
22.6

$1.25
(2)
1.28
1.42
1.35
1.08
1.38
1.31
1.18
1.39
1.50
1.45

Boston............................... .......
Chicago......... ................. .........
Cleveland.................................
Detroit........ ..................... .......
Los Angeles________________
Louisville_____ ______
___
Newark-Jersey City__..........
New York................................
Philadelphia..........................
Pittsburgh...............................
St. Louis....... ..........................
San Francisco..........................

$0.96
1.13
1.07
1.22
1.12
(2)
1.10
1.07
.82
(2)
1.00
1.31

(2)
$1.05
.94
1.04
(2)
.82
.96
.85
(2)
(2)
.92
(2)

Varnish makers

7.6
13.8
17.3
14.6
25.9
8.7

July
1946

$1.47
1.22
1.23
1.50
1.53
1.19
1.24
1.50
1.33
1.17
1.63
1.53

Per­
August
cent of
1947
change
-1 5 .0
4.1
- 5 .3
-1 1 .8
- 9 .2
11.3
-1 2 .7
-1 1 .3
18.8
- 8 .0
- 5 .2

$1.31
1.45
1.46
1.42
1.32
1.25
1.41
1.45
1.16
1.17
1.26
1. 52

July
1946

$1.04
1.22
1.26
1.42
1.26
1.01
1.21
1.26
1.00
.96
1.03
1.38

Per­
cent of
change
26.0
18.9
15.9
4.8
23.8
16.5
15.1
16.0
21.9
22.3
10.1

WOMEN

MEN
Truckers, hand

Tinters

Technicians

Mixers

$1.32
1.43
1.47
1.45
1.29
1.23
1.52
1. 54
1.52
1.27
1.49
1.46

$1.15
1.21
1.26
1.28
1.22
1.09
1.24
1.08
1.14
1.02
1.10
1.31

14.8
18.2
16.7
13.3
5.7
12.8
22.6
42.6
33.3
24.5
35.5
11.5

Labelers and packers
$0.86
.96
.89
1.07
.99
(2)
.99
.93
.79
.83
.84
1.19

$0.71
.86
.82
.96
.84
.65
.84
.71
.70
.65
.76
.93

21.1
11.6
8.5
11.1
17.9
17.9
31.0
12.9
27.7
10.5
28.0

Stenographers, class B

Clerk-typists
$0.73
.96
.78
.89
1.01
.87
.89
.92
.79
.75
.91
1.11

$0.69
.79
.74
.75
.90
.64
.70
.79
.73
(2)
.68
(2)

5.8
21.5
5.4
18.7
12.2
35.9
27.1
16.5
8.2
33.8

$0.86
.93
.94
.99
(2)
.87
.95
1.11
.79
.80
.80
(2)

$0.69
.90
.82
.90
.98
.75
.82
.97
.77
.71
.81
(2)

24.6
3.3
14.6
10.0
16.0
15.9
14.4
2.6
12.7
- 1 .2

1 Excluding premium pay for overtime and night work.
* Insufficient data to justify presentation of an average

Wood and Upholstered Furniture:
Earnings in September 194732
O ccupational earnings in wood furniture pro­
duction in Los Angeles were typically higher in
September 1947 than in 8 other leading production
centers. Among the selected occupations, average
hourly earnings in this city on a straight-time
basis33 ranged for men from $1.08 for machine offbearers to $1.58 for hand shaper operators; for 7
additional jobs the average wage amounted to
$1.20 or more (table 13). In 5 comparable occu­
pations, averages in Grand Rapids were at least
$1.20, and all jobs except off-bearers averaged at
least $1 in Grand Rapids, Chicago, and Jamestown
32 Prepared in the Bureau’s Division of Wage Analysis. Further data
for each of the areas studied will be furnished upon request.
Establishments in the select ed areas studied included only those primarily
engaged in the manufacture of wood or upholstered furniture and employ­
ing 8 or more workers.
33 The hourly averages include earnings under pay incentive systems, but
exclude premium pay for overtime and night work.




(N. Y.). Occupational averages for men in the
Winston-Salem-High Point area ranged from 71
cents for off-bearers to $1.01 for general utility
maintenance men. Two additional southern areas,
Morganton-Lenoir (N. C.) and Martinsville (Va.),
had slightly higher pay levels, with 2 and 4 jobs,
respectively, averaging above $1. Earnings of
men hand sanders were only 1 cent an hour above
those for women in both Los Angeles and Grand
Rapids, whereas in the other area somewhat
greater differences in favor of the men were re­
ported. This information was secured by the
Bureau of Labor Statistics in a survey of average
hourly earnings in selected occupations in wood
and upholstered furniture manufacture for leading
production centers, as part of the Bureau’s pro­
gram of occupational wage research. Nine areas
were covered for wood furniture manufacture, and
4 for upholstered furniture.
M en’s earnings in New York City upholstered
furniture plants for the 6 jobs for which data
were obtained ranged from $1.62 for gluers of

15

T able 13.— Average

straight-lime hourly earnings

1

for selected occupations in wood furniture establishments in selected wage
areas September 1 947

,

Average hourly rates * in—

Occupation, grade, and sex
Chicago,
111.

Fitchburg,
Mass.

Grand
Rapids,
Mich.

James­
town,
N. Y.

MorgantonLenoir,
N . C.

WinstonSalemHigh
Point,
N . C.

JasperTell City,
Ind.

Los
Angeles,
Calif.

Martins­
ville, Va.

$1.36
1.34

$0.95
.89

1.43
1.30
1.56
1.08
1.29
1.30
1.16
1.58

$0.95
.96
.94
1.02
1.01
1.05
.78
.79
.75
.79
1.02

1.05
.88
1.04
.74
.78
.80
.79
.98

$0.84
.85
.79
.86
.80
1.01
.71
.75
.76
.73
.93

.76
.70

.63
.64

.68

.94
1.08

.81
.94

Plant occupations
Men:
Belt Sanders. .............................................................
Case-clamp men.................................... ....................
Chair makers............................................................ .
Cut-off saw operators..................................................
Gluers, rough stock.............................................. .......
Maintenance men, general utility............................
Off-bearers, machine...................................................
Packers, furniture........................................................
Rubbers, hand.............................................................
Sanders, hand______ _______ ___________________
Shaper operators, hand, set-up and operate...........
Women:
Off-bearers, machine____________________________
Sanders, hand............................................................

$1.21
1.44

1.06

$1.22
1.38
1.23
1.18
1.06
1.20
.83
1.16
1.25
1.06
1.33

1.04
1.04
1.11
.79
1.06
1.33
1.22
1.13

$1.06
1.21
1.11
.97
.93
.98
.85
1.02
1.33
1.04
.99

.77
.83

.90
1.05

.82
.76

.91

1.15

.76
.83

.82
1.11
.92

.81

.80
.94
.82

1.16

$1.01
1.01
1.01
.95
.92
1.11
.76
.90
1.04

$1.16
1.22
1.23
1.12
1.02
1.21
.90
1.02
1.16
1.06
1.31
.89

Office occupations
Women:
Clerk typist..................................................................
Stenographers, class A ____ _____________ ________
Stenographers, class B . . _______________________

.96
1.26
1.02

.67

.98

.81
.73

i Excludes premium pay for overtime and night work, but includes earnIngs under incentive systems.

* Where no figures are given, data were insufficient to justify presentation
of an average.

rough stock to $2.27 for complete suite upholster­
ers. These jobs paid substantially less in the
Winston-Salem-High Point area (table 14). Wo­
men cover sewers averaged $1.80 in New York
and 95 cents in the southern area. In most
cases, hourly pay levels of both men and women
in Los Angeles were somewhat below those in
New York, but slightly above those in Chicago.

furniture areas surveyed advanced between 20
and 50 percent in the 2-year period since October
1945, the date of a previous Bureau of Labor Sta­
tistics survey. Expressed in hourly pay, the
greatest gains occurred in Grand Rapids, where
averages for most jobs advanced between 30 and
45 cents an hour. In the upholstered furniture
branch, gains in hourly pay over October 1945
were comparable to those for similar jobs in wood
furniture. The greatest variations in the extent
to which earnings had increased were found among
upholsterers, whose earnings in many cases were
based on incentive pay plans.

14 .— Average straight-time hourly ea rn in gs 1 for
selected plant occupations in upholstered furniture estab­
lishments in selected areas, September 194 7

T able

Average hourly rates* in—

Plant occupation and sex

WinstonSalemHigh
Point,
N .C .

Los
Ange­
les,
Calif.

New
York,
N. Y.

$1.71
1.84
1.62

.92
(*)
(*)
(*)

$1.44
1.50
1.33
1.61
1.08
2.70
2.24
1.83

2.19
2.27
2.18

$0.84
.85
.75
.97
.67
1.14
1.38
1.22

1.15

1.37

1.80

.95

Chi­
cago,
111.

Men
Cut-off saw operators...............................
Frame makers............................................
Gluers, rough stock...................... ...........
Maintenance men, general utility.........
Off-bearers, machine ...............................
Upholsterers, chairs..................................
Upholsterers, complete vfork.................
Upholsterers, section work............. .........

$1.31
1.45
1.15

Women
Sewers, cover..,...... .................................

i Excludes premium pay for overtime and night work, but includes earn­
ings under incentive systems.
* Dashes indicate insufficient information to justify presentation of an
average.
* No break-down reported for the 3 categories of upholsterers’ occupations;
combined rate of $1.69.

A large majority of the job averages in the wood




Supplementary Wage Practices
Upholstered furniture establishments, with few
exceptions, had workweek schedules of 35 hours
in New York and 40 hours in the other 3 areas
surveyed. A 40-hour schedule was also generally
reported in wood furniture establishments located
in the Los Angeles, Martinsville, and WinstonSalem-High Point areas, whereas schedules of
44 or more hours were found in the majority of
the establishments in the 6 additional areas cov­
ered. Establishments with schedules exceeding
40 hours for men often had shorter workweeks for
women plant workers.
Paid vacation policies allowing 1 week after a
year of service were customary in both branches

16
of the industry in most areas. Exceptions, with
a majority of the plants reporting no formal
policies for plant workers, were the WinstonSalem-High Point area in both industry branches,
and the Morganton-Lenoir area in wood furniture;
in New York City upholstered furniture plants,
2-week vacations were provided in a majority of
the plants. Many plants allowing 1 week after
a year of service increased the time to 2 weeks
after longer service, usually after 5 years. Most
of these plants were located in Chicago, Los




Angeles, Fitchburg (Mass.), Grand Rapids, and
Jasper-Tell City (Ind.).
In addition to paid vacations, New York City
establishments allowed both plant and office
workers from 6 to 10 paid holidays. Establish­
ments in other areas usually allowed 6 days for
office workers. Both types of establishments in
most cases also reported 6 days allowed to plant
workers in Chicago; 2 days in Los Angeles; and
in wood furniture, 1 to 2 days in MorgantonLenoir. In other areas few firms reported paid
holidays for plant workers.

For sale by the Superintendent of Documents, U. S. Government Printing Office, Washington 25, D. C.
Price 10 cents
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