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4-2082
FED~RAL \70P.KS AG:r:;rcy
WORJ{ ?ROJECTS ADrHNISTR.ATICN
For Rel eas e to Morriin~ Newspape rs
Fri day , January 26, 1940 .
Su"""RV~r[ OF rTPA ·.:roRKERS DISriIISSZD u1IDER 1 8- MONTHS RULE SHOWS
87 PEI;C::SliT r!ITEOUT JOBS
i:Iore than 87 pe rcen t of t ;rn 775 , 000 Horke r s r\.ropped fr om
WPA roll s durinr July and August 1.m,ier t l:. e l 8- mo1-;.ths dis rr:issal claus e
of t l1e curre_n t approprio.ti-:m n. ct were without joos in rfovem"ber ,
Colonel F . C. fa-1.rri ngton, Con;11i ss ione r of the ?Tork Pro je cts Admin istra,....
tion, reporte d today t o Re-::1 re sentt.1.ti y e Cli f ton R. Woodru..'ll of the Hous e
Appr opri2.tions Committ ee .
I n spi t e of the fn ct t lw.t t he ir d. i smi ss:i.ls occurred durL1g
a perioc. of shnrply rising inrlus tr5. r 1 r'.c tivi ty , CoJ.onel Harri ngton S':'..ic1 ,
les s th8-n 13 out of every 100 were f ou..nd 'co h[',ve jobs as much ci,s tl1.roe
months o.f t e r the l ayoff .
.A:rproxi;_;,::,,,tely h c',lf of t ~1ese , he ndcled , we r e
eo.r ning le ss than the securi t:, w,:.ge they p r eviously ht,d ear irn d on TTPA .
The Commissioner e:x:1)1::d ne d tha.t t he numbe r findin 6 jobs \72.S
no gre:~.t er , prop ortiont.\tel~r , thc,11 thos e -,,,h o wo .1l d have l eft th e rolls
0
of their mm a ccor d. , since volw1to.r:r sepn.ro.tions h,>.v e 2.v e r l:'.t;;ed wel l
ove1' 100 , 000 n r:io n th durinc':: the l ac t c::,l end.1,r yeo.r .
'.i'he mo.jori ty of
the se leave 1TPA, he so.i d , to tO.::e jobs i n pri v : 1,te employment .
Effe: cts of th e 1 8- mont hs r:11 0 wore det e r 1!i i ned , Colonel
Harring ton sc.id , through r. s:;:ieciD-1 surv ey of those rrorkor s who ho.d
been drop:nod up to Soptern"ber 1.
Tl1e surv ey rJ.so brought out t h at , 2.s
l nt o D.s Novenoer , of the 87 out of each 100 vlho d i d not Li).ve jobs ,
28 vre r e on loca l reli e f r olls , 27 hnd be en r no,csi 6 ned to WPA nnd 32
were ·,;i thout public supp0rt of o.ny kind. s.:--.ve ,-rh2 t the;r could :proc1.,1.ro
through sur nlus commoditi es .
L'.ore than throe- fourt h s of tho se r:ho ho,d not returned to
WP.A.. in lfovombor wore subsistin 6 on income s oelov.r their p revious
oc1rninc;s o.s r rojoct vrn r kers , Colo:ael H2.rri ngton s[1,id .
In none of tho
23 citie s surveyed wo,s the [Wer2.ge income of t h is group ( inclucling
w3,.z:es of tho se p ri vr.tely employed. , r eli ef e ro,nts , 2.nd t ho vn.luo of
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NORTHWESTERN UNIVERSITY
4-2082
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foocl , fuel and clothing d i stribut ion ) as much as $14 a. y:eel: , he said .
In 10 of the 23 cities it was less t han $5 .
Hore than 100 , 000 of a.1 1 those d.ismissea_ had no income
whatei:er L.1 t h e · two weeks 1Jr ececHn6 t he survey .
Uncter a p rovis io n of the 1 939 Work Relief Appropr i a ti on Act ,
Colone l Harring ton expl ained , no one who had. ·oeen continou1_1_s l y
emplo:•ed on TTPA for more t han 18 months c ould. be retained on the roll s
after Sep t embe r 1 , and t hose so d. is missed could not be recertifi ed as
in need. of employment on VT?A u._11til af t er a l apse of 30 r..ays .
Dismi Frno.J.s
in accorcla,nce with this :provision batwe"m Jul y 1 and Au !;;u.st 31 t otnlcd
ne a rly o:·w- t hi rd of th e total nu;nber employed as of July l .
To de termine the ef fe ct of t l'lis pol i cy , the WPA Di v i sion
of Rese.:i..r ch conducteo.. a sur,-ey cove ri ng ap:nro::im::ct oly 1 38 , 000 worke rs
abciut one- fifth of the total dis mi ssed -- i n 23 r epr esent a tive cit ies
throughout the country .
after
t:10
They wero :5_ r s t intervi ewed about three wo c::s
l ayoff , and those who he.d not oeen r eassignod t o WPA a t the
end of t\'l o to three months woro 3.go,i n intorvi cy:cd. d.urL1g lfovombc r .
Tho s tuo.y indi cates tho..t tho o,vo r aie vreekly curninr,s of tho so
who had jobs when int e rvi ewed in rovcmber was $17 . ;]2 , the r ange being
The De troit fi gur e was unum:,_._'1.1, however , 'be c ause of t :10 sc,asor.cLl pi c2;:-,x9
in t ho a ut omobil e indu~try .
Thero was a s:proo,d_ of t3 ,. .:'.,l ootwoon i t o.ncl
Moro thn.n one- fif t h of a lJ. those cmplo;;'cd had 11vcr,.1,e;o r:o cl:ly ec;r:r.ings
of less tbo.n $10 .
'.i'ho ri1ost cri tic:::i.l cone::. tic.Es wore oxpc ri onc ,,d 0;,.r those wor~:c rs
- - neo..rl:r one- t.hi rd of all E1ose cl.is 1::iss od -- who d id. not have T)ri•:o,tc:J
jobs Phon int e rviewed in Novombor , vrho wore not returned to rTPA , rmd
for rrhom no direct rel iof r:ns n.v.::.ilo..'blo, Col onel Ho,rri ne;ton observc6.•
Fort:r pe rc ent of this gr oup repo rt ed no income vhatover during c, period
of tno \'/Oo::s 1:icfor e they wore i ntcrv ic\-;od .
(Tho complete text of ti10 r epo rt, including s frrn r oJ. t2,blos ,
by cities , i s a ~ ~ . )
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NORTHWESTERN UNIVERSITY
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