Full text of Working Women's Budgets in Thirteen States: Cost-of-Living Reports Prepared Chiefly for the Use of Minimum-Wage Administrations : Women's Bureau Bulletin, No. 226 (Revised)

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WORKING WOMEN’S

BUDGETS
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IN THIRTEEN STATES

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UNITED STATES DEPARTMENT OF LABOR
Maurice J. Tobin, Secretary

WOMEN’S BUREAU
Frieda S. Miller, Director

Bulletin 226
Revised 1951
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UNITED STATES DEPARTMENT OF LABOR
MAURICE J. TOBIN, SECRETARY

WOMEN’S BUREAU
FRIEDA S. MILLER, DIRECTOR

Working Women’s Budgets
4

m
Thirteen States
Cost-of-Living Reports Prepared Chiefly
for the Use of Minimum-Wage Administrations

Bulletin of the Women’s Bureau No. 226
Original Edition June 1948
Revised December 1951

U. S. GOVERNMENT PRINTING OFFICE
WASHINGTON : 1951

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

Price 15 cents

LETTER OF TRANSMITTAL

UNITED STATES DEPARTMENT OF LABOR,
women’s BUREAU,

Washington, December 28, 1951.
I have the honor of transmitting a compilation of cost-of-living
budgets for employed women without dependents. This compilation
is primarily a revision of Bulletin No. 226, entitled “Working Women’s
Budgets in Twelve States,” published by the Women’s Bureau in 1948,
and includes the most recent official budgets for 13 minimum-wage
jurisdictions. Maine, having developed an official cost-of-living bud
get since publication of Bulletin 226, is now included for the first time.
As the State of California has recently developed its own official
budget, the budget of the Heller Committee is not included in this
revision. An introduction to the compilation gives a brief description
of the basic concept and development of this type of cost-of-living
budget.
In order that the data may have maximum usefulness, there has
been included, along with the money amounts for the different cate
gories of each budget, a tabular presentation of the commodity and
service allowances for each. Authorization has been obtained Trom
the States for the printing of these data.
This revision, including the assembling of the tabular data, was
begun by Hazel Kefauver, Economic Analyst, and completed by
Ethel V. Weiss, Labor Economist, under the direction of Margaret L.
Plunkett, then Chief of the Bureau’s Division on Women’s Labor Law
and Civil and Political Status.
Respectfully submitted.
Frieda S. Miller, Director.
Hon. Maurice J. Tobin,
Secretary oj Labor.
Sir:

FOREWORD
The Women’s Bureau has long been actively concerned with the
cost of living of a self-supporting woman without dependents. This
interest was first stimulated by its work with States having minimumwage laws that in one way or another tie the legal minimum wage to
the cost of living. Although, since 1939, five of the State laws have
been made applicable to men, historically all the minimum-wage laws
have applied only to women or to women and minors. Therefore,
many of the States, over a period of time, have developed lists of goods
and services that reflect the living needs of a woman worker and have
translated these needs into a dollars-and-cents figure. The Women’s
Bureau has cooperated in the cost-of-living work of the States and in
many instances has materially assisted them in setting up and pricing
these budgets, and in revising the money estimates and otherwise
keeping the budgets up to date.
In 1948, the Women’s Bureau issued a compilation of 12 budgets
reflecting prices in different States in the period 1946-48. Since then,
two additional States, Maine and California, have issued budgets for
the first time. The Maine budget was priced originally in June 1948,
and a revised estimate prepared as of December 1950. The California
budget was priced as of October 1950 and represents the first “official”
California budget to be issued in recent years; the first issue of this
bulletin included the budget prepared by the Heller Committee for
Research in Social Economics of the University of California. Since
1948 two other States—Connecticut and New York—have revised the
list of commodities included in their budgets and presented revised
money amounts on the basis of actual repricing. Massachusetts
revised its own estimates of money value. Reestimates of money
value of the others, with the exception of Arizona, were prepared by
the Women’s Bureau of the United States Department of Labor with
the approval of the respective States; no revision of any kind was
made for Arizona.
In order to make these more recent data available, this revised
edition of the 1948 publication has been prepared. The budgets for
the listed 13 States represent the needs of a working woman in terms
of 1948-50 prices:
Arizona
California
Colorado
Connecticut
District of Columbia
Kentucky
Maine 1

Massachusetts1
New Jersey
New York
Pennsylvania
Utah
Washington

i The Maine and Massachusetts budgets are for a working “person” and cover the needs of a self-supporting
person of either sex without dependents.

Ill

FOREWORD

In addition to showing the money amounts for the various budgets,
this compilation includes a tabulation of the commodity and service
allowances in the following categories:
Clothing
Clothing upkeep
Personal care
Medical, dental, and optical care

Recreation, including vacation
Education and reading material
Transportation
Miscellaneous expense

These tabulations permit a comparison of the basic elements that are
represented in the money totals of each budget.
Care should be exercised in the use of the State cost-of-living
budgets. They differ as to contents as well as to date priced. Each
budget was constructed individually by a committee of experts to
represent the quantity and quality of the goods and services deter
mined to be necessary to maintain a self-supporting woman in health,
plus money needed for insurance, savings, and taxes as of the date to
which the budget figure relates. Since the budget contents vary, the
budget figures may not properly be used to show comparative costs as
between onel^State and another. Consequently, in the present
bulletin no effort has been made to present budget figures for the
different States as of a uniform date.
In using any one of the budgets, however, it is important to keep in
mind the fact of price changes since the date the budget was priced.
The consumers’ price index (old series) of the United States Bureau of
Labor Statistics, which records time-to-time changes in retail prices of
goods and services bought by moderate-income families in 34 large
cities, showed an increase of 5.4 percent from April 1948, the date of
the earliest budget in this collection, to December 1950, the date of the
latest budget. To be useful in showing the minimum necessary to
maintain a woman in health, each budget should be considered in the
light of price increases that have occurred since the date the budget
was issued.
After this bulletin went to press, 1951 revisions were approved for the
District of Columbia and New York State. These are shown as addenda.

Note:

CONTENTS
Page

Letter of transmittal
n
Foreword
m
The budget in minimum-wage administration________________________
1
Structure of the budget
1
Guides to the budget’s basic standard
2
Steps in ascertaining the cost of goods and services included___________
4
Keeping the budget up to date
5
Appraising the budget
7
Uses of the budget
10
Tables showing the cost of each budget:
Arizona
13
California
14
Colorado
15
Connecticut_____________________
16
District of Columbia
17
Kentucky
18
Maine
19
Massachusetts
20
New Jersey
21
New York State
22
Pennsylvania
23
Utah
24
Washington State
25
Tables showing the commodity and service allowances:
Clothing--------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 26, 27
Clothing upkeep 28, 34
Personal care28, 34
Medical care 30, 36
Recreation 31, 38
Education and reading material3l’ 38
Transportation. ________________________________________________32,39
Miscellaneous expense 32, 39
Addendum: 1951 revision of District of Columbia budget______________
40
1951 revision of New York State budget_________________
41

Working Women’s Budgets
in Thirteen States
The Budget in Minimum-Wage Administration

Twenty-six States and the District of Columbia 1 have minimumwage laws designed to protect women and girls from oppressively low
wages; 19 laws include male minors; 5 include men. Six of these laws
fix wage rates in the statute. Twenty-five, including four of the
fixed-rate laws, provide machinery, usually wage boards, whereby
rates may be established for various covered occupations or industries.
Nearly all the various State minimum-wage laws mention cost of
living. The legislators, at the time of enactment, took into account
the cost of living in deciding that a minimum wage was needed. Once
the need was recognized by legislation, most laws made the cost of
living a basic^criterion to be considered in setting the minimum rate
for a particular occupation or industry. Because the phrase "cost of
living” suggests a variety of meanings, 13 minimum-wage States
have adopted a budget as a means of providing the minimum-wage
administrator and wage boards with a workable guide to its interpre
tation.
Structure of the Budget

The cost-of-living budget has two main features: (1) A list of goods
and services; and (2) the amount of money necessary at a given date
to obtain at retail prices the goods and services listed, plus the amounts
allocated for insurance, savings, and taxes. The list of goods and
services, of course, varies according to the kind of person for whom the
budget is intended and the standard of living for which it provides.
Although each of the State budgets was developed independently,
all of them have certain similar characteristics. Minimum-wage leg
islation was a part of the social legislation that characterized the early
part of the twentieth century; its passage was stimulated by studies
made by interested groups showing that large numbers of women
workers were receiving wages below minimum adequacy and that the
consequences of such low wages were socially destructive. The most
common concept around which the budgets have been developed is
that of a completely self-supporting working woman without depend
ents.2 The level of living for which the State budgets are designed
1 Three of the Territories, Alaska, Hawaii, and Puerto Rico, also have minimum-wage laws, but these
are not included in the present analysis.
* In two States, Massachusetts and Maine, the budget takes into consideration the needs of a self
supporting man without dependents.

WORKING WOMEN'S BUDGETS

also derives from a common concept, namely a standard of living ade
quate to maintain health.
Each budget employs a priced list of the goods, services, and commit
ments which over the period of a year represent the minimum needs
of a self-supporting woman to maintain herself at the selected level.
These lists were developed in part on the basis of actual expenditures
of women with modest earnings, and reflect the customary expendi
ture pattern of women who would be affected by minimum-wage leg
islation. Prices shown are State-wide averages of retail prices in
effect as of the date of the budget.3 In addition to the commodity
and service allowances, most of the budgets provide a lump sum for
emergency expenditures. Federal income tax and social security
taxes, deductible from earnings at the source, and State income taxes,
where levied, are also incorporated in the complete list of living costs.
Guides to the Budget’s Basic Standard

The basic standard of living on which a budget is to be based has to
be determined prior to developing a commodity and service list. In
selecting the standard for women’s budgets, most of the State budget
makers were guided by the intent of the minimum-wage laws which
is expressed in such phrases as: Wages “sufficient to enable the em
ployee ... to maintain himself or herself under conditions consistent
with his or her welfare” (Wisconsin); a wage “adequate to supply the
necessary cost of living, and maintain the workers in health” (Wash
ington) ; a wage “sufficient to meet the minimum cost of living neces
sary for health” (Khode Island); wages “sufficient to maintain the
worker in health and supply him with the necessary comforts and
conditions of reasonable life” (Minnesota); “a wage . . . adequate to
supply . . . the necessary cost of proper living and to maintain the
health and welfare” (Arkansas); “a wage . . . sufficient to meet the
minimum cost of living necessary to health” (Arizona).
Such legal language rules out a subsistence standard, as one which
has been demonstrated over a period of time to be incompatible with
maintenance of health. Instead, the language clearly points to the
need for a standard which will be truly “adequate,” and development
of budgets has been in the direction of a more realistic concept of a
minimum-adequate standard. The question then becomes one of
determining what is an “adequate” standard. The answer to this
involves a careful appraisal of the contemporary social structure.
Standard of living, in the general sense, is closely allied with the cul8 All the budget lists were initially priced. Some States periodically reprice their budgets to keep them
current; New York has been doing this on a regular basis. Other agencies have estimated current costs on
the basis of retail price changes occurring subsequent to the pricing date as measured by a reliable retail
price index.

WORKING WOMEN’S BUDGETS

tural and economic development of a country. For the individual,
an adequate standard of living reflects the customary pattern of the
group to which he belongs.
Over a period of time the over-all living standard of a society (as
well as the standards of the various groups which make it up) changes
as the economy changes, and the more highly industrialized the society,
the more quickly the standards change. In a society geared to mass
production, wherein a market for output must be maintained, the
differences in living standards among the various groups tend to
become less clear. In 1912 when the first minimum-wage law was
passed in the United States, the difference between a luxury standard
and a minimum-adequate standard was clearly apparent. The extrav
agant customs of those whose incomes were large contrasted noticeably
with the comparatively plain life of the worker with modest earnings.
More recently, however, mass production, full employment, and
higher wages have brought more “luxury” items within the reach of
the worker. Criteria which formerly permitted sharp differentiation
between a luxury standard and a minimum-adequate standard have
become obscured. Today, comfortable housing with modern plumb
ing, heating, and lighting, a varied diet, radios, electrical appli
ances, clothing that meets standards of style as well as comfort,
are a part of the over-all standard. In contrast, living conditions
involving badly overcrowded housing, poor and unnourishing food,
lack of suitable wearing apparel, lack of money for necessary expend
itures such as personal care, medical attention, recreation, and for
transportation to and from work, are considered to reflect an inade
quate or substandard level.
In setting up the list of goods and services that would represent the
minimum level of an adequate standard in terms of contemporary
standards, the various groups of State budget makers were guided by
the local customs of their area. They were aware of the pressure that
is on the individual to conform to the customs of the group with which
he is identified as a means of obtaining group sanction. Group ap
proval is extremely important to a working woman in order to show
herself and others that she “belongs,” that she is “as good as” her
associates, and that she has a “right” to be accepted on equal terms by
her fellows. In fact, her urge to be identified with her group is so
strong that when funds are lacking she will often go without food,
medical care, or some other essential, in order to obtain the clothes or
the permanent wave that will enable her to meet the standards of her
group. Because of this tendency to conform, the spending pattern of
the single woman living on a moderate income was used by the States
982202—52---- 2

WORKING WOMEN'S BUDGETS

to a considerable extent as a guide for determining the basic neces
sities that should be included in the list of predictable, day-to-day
needs of a woman living at a minimum-adequate level.4
Inasmuch as these State budgets attempt to provide for the complete
financial obligations of a responsible citizen, they give consideration
to contingencies that cannot be included in the list of predictable
needs. The savings allowance and the allowance for insurance afford
the means of providing, in some measure at least, for an emergency
that requires an unforeseen cash expenditure.6 Insofar as these allow
ances take care of possible emergencies, such as the loss of a pocketbook or of personal property, an accident, a period of unemployment
which outruns the term of unemployment benefits, or unexpected
travel due to the death of a close relative, they stabilize the budget at
the selected level.
Federal and State income and social security taxes, which take an
ever-increasing share of the worker’s income, are a part of the cost of
living. Guided by this fact, many of the States which did not incor
porate taxes in their original accounting of living costs (because their
budgets were developed when taxes had little effect on persons with
small incomes), now recognize taxes as an important factor in the cost
of living and have added them to the official list of necessary expenses.
Since the payment of taxes is compulsory, if they were not provided
for in the total cost of the budget, money earmarked for necessary
goods and services would in reality be diverted to taxes, thus impairing
the adequacy of amounts allowed for commodities and services.
As a rule, if a sales tax is applicable it is included in the cost of the
items in the commodity and service list, rather than carried as a sepa
rate item.
Steps in Ascertaining the Cost of Goods and Services Included

Reliability of results is an important consideration when building a
budget for use as a guide in establishing minimum-wage rates. Just
as the authenticity of the allowances derives from a factual basis, so
the justification of the cost of the goods and services allowed is found
in the method used in determining the cost—a pricing technique which
has evolved over a period of years. Although construction of a budget
involves the collection of actual prices in the field, to say merely
that prices are gathered for the various items allowed in the budget is
to oversimplify the process.
The object of pricing is to arrive at a money amount that may be
accepted with confidence as representing the cost of the budget con
* The commodity and service allowances of the various State budgets are presented in tabular form at the
end of this Bulletin.
1 The Massachusetts budget, which is only a commodity and service listing, does not provide for savings
or taxes.

WORKING WOMEN’S BUDGETS

tents throughout the State as a whole, as of a specified date. It
would not be feasible to gather prices from every outlet regularly
patronized by workers in every community in the State. Therefore, a
limited number of cities and towns are selected which are representa
tive of all communities in the State where women are employed. This
involves (1) analyzing the communities as to the factors which may
influence retail prices, such as size, chief economic characteristics, and
geographic location, grouping them in accordance with the factors
they have in common and choosing from each group an appropriate
number to represent all the communities in the group; and (2) desig
nating in each of the chosen communities appropriate retail outlets
from which prices are to be obtained.
Pricing, as of a specified date, should be done by a trained staff and,
to insure uniformity, prices should be obtained only for those articles
which fulfill written specifications. The next step is to derive, from
the prices that have been collected, a weighted State average cost for
each article. Once the prices of individual items are known, money
amounts can be determined for major categories of goods and services,
and the total cost of the budget, including taxes and savings, can be
calculated.
Keeping the Budget Up To Date

In order to be truly effective, a cost-of-living budget should be kept
up to date and adjusted to changing conditions. This includes not
only bringing the cost of the items in the budget up to date, but also
revising the items in the budget to meet changing patterns of con
sumption and expenditure and to take into account changes in taxation
and other assessments.
There are two major ways of bringing the cost of the items in the
budget up to date. The first is to conduct a repricing survey by ac
tually going into the stores to obtain current prices. Some States do
this on a regular annual basis; other States do it on a less frequent and
irregular basis.
The second method is to apply consumer price indexes—either
those of the statistical agencies of the individual State or the Bureau
of Labor Statistics consumers’ price index—to previous pricings. A
method has been developed by the Women’s Bureau and the Bureau
of Labor Statistics, both of the United States Department of Labor,
whereby the original money figures can be revised by applying to the
original amounts the percentage changes in prices of the most appli
cable items included in the Bureau of Labor Statistics consumers’
price index. This index is designed to measure over-all time-to-time
changes in prices paid for goods and services bought by moderateincome families in large cities.

WORKING WOMEN’S BUDGETS

Certain limitations exist in interpreting the family-budget index in
terms of an employed woman’s budget. For example, the rent section
of the consumers’ price index measures changes in the rental value of
a house, whereas, with the exception of the New York budget, the
housing category of all of the budgets in the compilation is based on
the cost of a furnished room. The food section of the consumers’
price index measures the cost of food prepared in the home, while the
food component of most of the employed women's budgets is based in
whole or in part on the prices of food eaten in restaurants. Because
the cost of a furnished room may have increased at a different rate
than has cost of a rented dwelling, and because the cost of meals eaten
in restaurants or boarding houses may have increased at a different
rate than have costs of food sold for home preparation, the Bureau of
Labor Statistics has pointed out that the budget estimates may not
reflect the exact price changes that have taken place in these two cate
gories of the working woman’s budget since the date of the original
pricing.
Where possible, estimates based on the consumers’ price index uti
lize the most recent prices collected in the State for which the revision
is made. Where prices have been collected in more than one city in
the State, weighted indexes are used. In the absence of price informa
tion for a particular State, indexes showing the average price changes
in 34 large cities in the United States are used. These restrictive fac
tors in the application of the family index to the woman’s budget
should be borne in mind when revising a budget by this method. The
Women’s Bureau, however, does not feel that they invalidate the use
of the revised estimates of the cost-of-living budget as a guide in
measuring the amount needed to buy the articles in the budget as of
the date of the revision.
In bringing budgets up to date by either of the above methods, it is
also important to bear in mind the necessity of revising the amounts
needed for taxes by applying the tax rates which are applicable at the
date of revision and adjusting the total money allowances accordingly.
The item for savings and/or insurance is also scrutinized in the proc
ess of revision of a budget. Sometimes a revision is made on the
basis of a repricing of insurance rates, other times by making the item
the same proportion of the total of the commodities and services items
as it was in the original priced budget. In recent years, it has been
customary in some States to allow a flat 10 percent of the total
budget as an adequate amount to cover this item of savings
and/or insurance.

WORKING WOMEN’S BUDGETS

Appraising the Budget

A budget loses much of its significance without an understanding of
the basic considerations that entered into its development. A costof-living survey is a highly technical job. It requires careful planning
in advance, laying out each step of the work in detail, setting up staff
requirements for carrying out the work, and providing for the training
of the staff members in the technical aspects of the job. This may
be expensive in time, money, and effort, but it is worth doing because
it results in a cost-of-living figure which is based not on conjecture but
on sound factual data.
A brief history of the development since 1913 of women’s cost-ofliving budgets is useful background on which to base an appraisal of
current methods. A comprehensive analysis of the budgets used from
1913 through 1926, and a comparison of the rates set under the various
minimum-wage laws with cost-of-living figures, was made by the Wom
en’s Bureau in 1926 and reported in its Bulletin No. 61. In the early
days of minimum wage, cost-of-living figures and budgets were not
as carefully developed as they are now. Usually, the early budgets
allowed only for the three major categories of expense—room, board,
and clothing. It was not until later that an estimate was added for
“sundry items.” In these early budgets not only were the items in
cluded few in number, but they were also subject to much dispute.
In an attempt to settle some of these disputes and show more clearly
what was actually needed in the budgets, the lump-sum estimates for
clothing and sundries were later abandoned and replaced by estimates
which were built up from lists of articles in these two categories and
which reflected the annual requirement of each. Even with this addi
tional detailed information, the budget makers still found it difficult to
justify satisfactorily the inclusion of a specific article in such a list.
The next method, accordingly, was to use expenditure studies to
see what women workers actually bought. Many things were found
to be customarily used which had either been left out of the first
budgets or given insufficient weight: personal-care items, optical
care, reading material, union and club dues, contributions to charitable
organizations, stationery, and postage. Although individually some
of these things seem trivial, collectively they were important in that
they were a recognized part of the normal person’s needs. Study and
consideration of expenditure data to discover the actual consumption
pattern of women workers represented a great step forward in the
construction of a cost-of-living budget.

WORKING WOMEN'S BUDGETS

Another important development prior to 1923 was the addition
of allowances for insurance and savings as necessary items in a mini
mum-adequate budget.
Another development in this early period was the attempt to deter
mine actual prices for individual items allowed in the budget. The
first “priced” budgets were weak, however, because no attempt was
made to define the type and quality of the goods and services priced.
As a result, employer groups on minimum-wage boards might agree
on the required number of individual articles included in a budget but
could not agree on the sum of money necessary to purchase them.
In some States each wage board that met to establish wages would
arrive at its own set of “costs.” In one such State six separate wage
boards which met within a 9-month period arrived at six different
annual dollars-and-cents valuations ranging from $539 to $699 for an
identical commodity-quantity list.6 Although this occurrence was
not necessarily typical, it is nevertheless clear that the early cost-ofliving budgets, having been arrived at through compromise, often
failed to give objective evidence of the minimum amount necessary to
support a woman in health.
Constant criticism of the budgets stimulated efforts to increase
their reliability. As a result of trial and error, budget building tech
niques were improving with experience, and budgets gradually became
more realistic in content and objective in method.
By 1937 when the United States Supreme Court in the Parrish
decision 7 gave new life to minimum-wage activity, budget building
had progressed to the point where definite procedures could be formu
lated and set down in writing as a guide to making a cost-of-living
survey for minimum-wage purposes. Three Federal agencies, the
Women’s Bureau and the Bureau of Labor Statistics of the U. S.
Department of Labor, and the Family Economics Division of the
Bureau of Home Economics (now the Bureau of Human Nutrition
and Home Economics) of the U. S. Department of Agriculture,
collaborated in drawing up the first systematic presentation of such
procedures. A review of the recommendations will aid in evaluating
the State budgets, since this document and a later version 8 were
available to the States at the time that many of their basic cost-ofliving studies were made.
In accordance with the traditional Amcri can policy of setting wages
in terms of job rates, rather than on the basis of the worker’s financial
• Women’s Bureau Bulletin No. 61.
7 Case of West Coast Hotel v. Parrish, 300 U. S. 379, upholding the constitutionality of the Washington
minimum-wage law. This ruling reversed the Supreme Court’s decision in the Adkins case in 1923 which
held unconstitutional the District of Columbia minimum-wage law.
8 U. S. Department of Agriculture Miscellaneous Publication No. 549, issued 1944. This document,
which superseded the original publication, is still the standard general reference for cost-of-living budget
studies for minimum-wage purposes.

WORKING WOMEN’S BUDGETS

reponsibilities, a basic consideration implied was that the budget be
based on the needs of an individual without dependents. Because
it was intended to serve as a guide in establishing a minimum wage,
it was recommended that the budget be designed for a completely self
supporting individual who received no subsidies either from relatives
or private charity. In order to insure that the standard of living be
adequate, the budget was constructed on the assumption that workers
at the minimum-wage level would follow the spending pattern of their
group. Luxuries and innovations which had not yet been generally
adopted were omitted from the suggested spending pattern.
In developing detailed recommendations, the collaborating agencies
drew upon the previous experience of the States and upon the knowl
edge of experts, in order to evaluate appropriate standards for the
various categories of the spending pattern.
Studies and reports of the Federal Housing Administration, local
public housing authorities, citizens’ housing committees or associations,
building and loan companies, and public health authorities contributed
to the recommendations for housing standards necessary for mainte
nance of health. These involve such things as general appearance of
neighborhood, upkeep of property, heating, lighting and plumbing,
compliance with fire regulations, and accessibility to public trans
portation. Standards for a furnished room relate to the size of room,
ventilation, privacy afforded, comfortable and clean furnishings, closet
and storage space, bathroom facilities, and laundry privileges.
Food allowances were based on data relating to food requirements
recommended to maintain a good nutritional status, published by the
Bureau of Human Nutrition and Home Economics, Agricultural Re
search Administration, U. S. Department of Agriculture, and the Food
and Nutrition Board of the National Research Council.9 This in
cluded consideration of mineral and vitamin content as well as caloric
value.
Clothing needs were measured against the requirements of health,
cleanliness, quality or durability, and style. Attention was given to
the needs of an employed woman for suitable clothing. Further,
since to live adequately is to live normally in terms of group behavior,
the woman needs clothing for work, for dress, and for play, and she
needs sufficient clothing of all types to allow for laundering and dry
cleaning. It was recognized, of course, that geographic location, cli
mate, and local customs have an important bearing on the clothing
allowance.
The measure of adequacy for other commodity and service cate
gories of the budget, with the exception of medical care, was found
• Recommended Dietary Allowances. National Research Council (Washington 25, D. C.) No. 129.
Revised 1948.

WORKING WOMEN’S BUDGETS

in general practice among working women in the area which the budget
served. The recommendations acknowledged group hospitalization
as affording a partial solution to the problem of medical care. How
ever, because that kind of health protection is not available to every
worker, a supplemental allowance to pay for treatment on a medical
fee basis was incorporated in the recommendation with the suggestion
that the medical care allowance for any one year should be considered,
in part at least, as both payment of bills for past services and as a
reserve for future health care.
The State budgets presented here should be appraised as 13 sepa
rate expressions of what, according to contemporary customs, consti
tutes a healthful standard of living at a minimum-adequate level.
None of the budget lists should be considered as imposing a manner
of life. They are at best a means for indicating the amount needed
(as of a specified date) to maintain health and welfare. It is to be
expected that, within the framework of the list, substitutions and
adjustments may be made to satisfy individual choice. If such choice
is within reason, a minimum-adequate standard can be maintained
by a self-supporting woman without dependents at the derived cost
level.
Comparison of the various lists of goods and services may be made,
but only if it is remembered that living customs and viewpoints vary
from area to area, and that these customs and viewpoints affect
decisions as to the specific items and the quantity of each item that
is considered necessary over the period of a year. The budgets do not
show differences in cost of living in different regions because they are
not based on identical goods and services.
Uses of the Budget

A reliable budget has a wide variety of uses.
In the minimum-wage field the budget’s graphic accounting of
modest necessities is a useful tool, when combined with wage data,
to illustrate the need for a minimum-wage law in a State where no
such law is in effect. Likewise, it can be used to show the need for
amendments that will bring an existing but outmoded law in line with
a current situation. It has proved its worth to minimum-wage admin
istrators as a measure of the adequacy of wages paid in an industry
or occupation and the need for revising them. It has assisted admini
strators and wage board members in arriving at decisions as to appro
priate wage rates. A properly developed budget is helpful in upholdng
a wage recommendation and is acceptable evidence in defense of a
wage rate that has been attacked in court. In each of these phases
of minimum-wage administration a budget is a valuable aid in winning
public support.

WORKING WOMEN’S BUDGETS

Objectively developed budgets have proved helpful in fields other
than minimum wage. They have been used by employers and by
union representatives to test whether wages are adequate to meet
living expenses; as a point of reference in wage discussions between
workers and management; and by employment counselors, social
service workers and other interested persons and groups as a guide
in allocating wages and other income into various categories of expend
itures. They have also been used to develop practical spending
plans for women entering the labor market for the first time; to
illustrate the impact of living costs on the lives of individuals in the
moderate income group; and to compare living standards of workers
in the United States with standards of workers in other countries.
Effective application of the budget data to these relevant problems
requires a familiarity with the content of the budget and sound judg
ment in adapting it to particular situations. For example, if a prob
lem requires a solution in terms of current prices, the changes in
prices and in tax rates subsequent to the date of the budget should
be taken into consideration. If a problem involves a woman who
has dependents, the budget should be expanded to compensate for
the added responsibility. If the solution of a problem involves any
substantial change in the total amount of money involved, either
because of raising or lowering the standard provided for in the budget
or because of an adjustment in connection with dependents, the tax
allowance should be revised to correspond with the new situation.
In some cases a particular budget will serve a specified purpose
better than the others; for instance, the New York budget, which
bases housing and food costs on a woman living as a member of a
family group, might be applicable to a problem involving a woman
similarly situated in another State.
If the problem at hand is one of setting up spending plans or income
allocations, the cost-of-living budget data can best be utilized through
an analysis of the percent distribution of the costs of the various
categories to the cost of the total list of commodities and services.
In using these percentages, however, the user should remember that
the budget is a “minimum-adequate” one with the percentage dis
tributions that go along with such a budget. A budget aimed at a
lower or higher level will reflect a different percentage distribution of
expenditures.
Additional and equally valuable uses may be found for these costof-living budgets as time goes on. However, a budget designed for
one purpose cannot be used indiscriminately for another. On the
other hand, if judgment, discrimination, and resourcefulness are used
in applying and adapting the data, these budgets may very well show
a usefulness far beyond that anticipated by their originators.
982202—52-----3

WORKING WOMEN’S BUDGETS

Tables Showing Cost of Each Budget

The money amounts shown in each of the following 13 budgets
are based either on data contained in copies of current budgets sub
mitted by State agencies, or on revised estimates prepared by the
Women’s Bureau, of the money amounts shown in earlier budgets
submitted by the States. In many instances, it has been necessary,
in order to present the information in as uniform a manner as possible,
to change the terminology or grouping of items of expenditures con
tained in budgets as submitted by the States. Such changes, how
ever, are ones of form and not of content. Each budget, in the form in
which it is here presented, has been approved for publication by the
appropriate State officials.

WORKING WOMEN’S BUDGETS

Arizona
Estimated annual cost of specified items for an employed woman living in a furnished
room and eating meals in restaurants in Arizona, April 1948
Estimatedaverage
annual
Item of expenditure
cost 1

Housing (furnished room) $249. 68
Food (3 restaurant meals a day)--------------------------------713. 89
Clothing---------------------------- ---------------------------------294.67
Other living essentials
425. 67
Clothing upkeep$93.81
Personal care 73.
75
Medical, dental, and optical care---------------- 62. 00
Recreation, including vacation 76.
97
Education and reading material------------------ 16. 04
Transportation 39.
00
Miscellaneous expense 2
64. 10
Total commodities and services 3----------------------- 1, 683. 91
Federal income tax 4-----------------------------------------------194. 00
State income tax 4
7.00
Social security tax
19. 53
Savings and private insurance
48. 83
Total cost of budget 1, 953. 27
Source: The Industrial Commission of Arizona, Minimum Wage Division.
Cost of Living Survey and Wage Studies, 1937-38.
1 The original budget was based on prices prevailing throughout Arizona during
the winter months of 1937-38. The April 1948 figures are revised estimates
made by the U. S. Department of Labor, Women’s Bureau. (For explanation of
method used, see p. 5.)
3 A specific allowance of $23 is made for occupational expense.
3 A 2-percent sales tax is included in the allowances for food, clothing, personal
care, and recreation. The estimated total of this tax is $22.
4 Federal and State income taxes were not provided for in the 1937-38 budget.
They have been computed by the Women’s Bureau at rates applicable as of April
1948 and are shown with the State’s permission.

WORKING WOMEN’S BUDGETS

California
Annual cost of a minimum budget for a single working woman living in a guest house
and eating some of her meals in restaurants in the State of California, October 1950 1 *
Item of expenditure
Annual cost 1

Food and housing 3$1, 071. 68
Clothing------------------------------------------------------------Other living essentials
440. 01
Clothing upkeep$31. 16
Personal care 37. 15
Medical, dental, and optical care 4 104. 67
Recreation, including vacation 95. 79
Education and reading material__________
10. 00
Transportation 94. 79
Miscellaneous expense 66. 45

180. 77

Total commodities and services 1, 692. 46
Federal income tax 5
State income tax 6
Social security tax, including unemployment compensation

209. 42

Savings and private insurance______________________

52. 00

Total cost of budget

2, 003. 98

Source: California Industrial Welfare Commission. Budget for a Single
Working Woman: Items, Quantities and Costs as of October 1950.
1 The budget is designed for a woman who is “entirely self supporting, without
dependents, single, between 30 and 35 years of age, employed in a mercantile
establishment or an office, and living in a boarding and rooming house.”
3 Based on prices obtained by the Division of Labor Statistics and Research in
the areas of Los Angeles, San Francisco-East Bay, San Diego, and the City of
Fresno for October 1950. Allowances in total commodities and services include
sales and excise taxes.
3 Based on room and board in a guest house, including breakfast 7 days a week
and dinner 6 days a week, less reduction allowed for 1 week away for vacation,
plus lunch and Sunday dinner in restaurants, plus sales taxes. Food (including
taxes) amounts to $760.12; housing $311.56.
* Calculated as 6 percent of total cost of commodities and services plus savings
and insurance. In addition, an allowance of 1 percent of the total budget is
included under social security tax as the cost to the worker of the program which
provides cash benefits for unemployment due to illness.
3 Calculated on the basis of the first 9 months of 1950 at the tax rate effective
prior to October 1, 1950, and the last 3 months at the rate becoming effective Octo
ber 1, 1950. If, however, the tax were calculated entirely on the basis of the
newer rate, the Federal tax would be $247.80, unemployment compensation
disability benefit tax $20.44, old age insurance tax $30.65, and the total budget
$2,043.35. _
.5
6 California State income tax not paid by a person at this level of income.

WORKING WOMEN’S BUDGETS

Colorado
Estimated annual cost of a budget for an employed woman living in a furnished room
and eating meals in restaurants in Colorado, January 1949
Estimated
average
annual
Item of expenditure
cost 1

Housing (furnished room) $226
Food (3 restaurant meals a day)
645
Clothing
279
Other living essentials
431
Clothing upkeep$33
Personal care 62
Medical, dental, and optical care 53
Recreation, including vacation 91
Education and reading material 38
Transportation 74
Miscellaneous expense 80
Total commodities and services 1, 581
Federal income tax f
171
State income tax 2
Social security tax
18
Savings and private insurance

9
34

Total cost of budget 1, 813
Source: Industrial Commission of Colorado, Minimum Wage Division. Report
of Cost of Living Survey, 1937. [Unpublished data, 1937.]
1 The original budget was based on prices prevailing in Denver and in 12
other Colorado cities in October 1937. The January 1949 figures are revised
estimates made by the U. S. Department of Labor, Women’s Bureau. (For
explanation of method used, see p. 5.)
2 Federal and State income taxes were not provided for in the 1937 budget.
They have been computed by the Women’s Bureau at rates applicable as of
January 1949 and are shown with the State’s permission.

WORKING WOMEN’S BUDGETS

Connecticut
Annual cost of a minimum budget for a single working woman living in a furnished
room and eating meals in restaurants in Connecticut, March 1949
Average
annual
cost1

Item of expenditure

Housing (furnished room) $291. 20
Food (3 restaurant meals a day)
699. 72
Clothing
239. 52
Other living essentials
379. 26
Clothing upkeep 2$30. 52
Personal care___________________________
Medical, dental, and optical care 70. 30
Recreation, including vacation 96. 62
Education and reading material 23. 45
Transportation 51. 00
Miscellaneous expense 55. 60
Total commodities and services8 1, 609.
Federal income tax
179.
State income tax 4
Social security tax
18.
Savings
52.
Insurance, group

51.77

70
00
67
00
7. 20

Total cost of budget 1, 866. 57
Source: Connecticut Department of Labor, Bureau of Labor Statistics. An
Annual Minimum Budget for Working Women in Connecticut, March 1949.
Mimeo.
1 Based on prices obtained by the State of Connecticut in 14 cities and towns in
March 1949.
2 An additional amount ($2.60) is included in miscellaneous expense for home
laundry supplies.
3 A 1-percent sales tax included in allowances for clothing, personal care, medical
care, and recreation.
1 The State of Connecticut does not levy an income tax.

WORKING WOMEN’S BUDGETS

District of Columbia
[A 1951 revision of the District of Columbia budget, approved after this Bulle
tin went to press, has been added on page 40.]
Estimated annual cost of a budget Joy an employed woman living in a boarding bouse
and buying lunches in a restaurant in the District of Columbia, November 1950

Item of expenditure

Estimated
average
annual
cost 1

Housing and food (furnished room in boarding house where 2
meals a day are served; lunches bought in restaurants) 2___
Clothing------------------------------------------------------------------Other living essentials
325
Clothing upkeep$46
Personal care 48
Medical, dental, and optical care 41
Recreation, including vacation 50
Transportation 3
4
5 104
Miscellaneous expense 36
Total commodities and services 1, 530
Federal income tax 4
District of Columbia income tax 6
Social security tax
30
Savings and private insurance 6

$924
281

240
200

Total cost of budget2, 000
Source: Budget recommended by the Retail Wage Conference and accepted by
IMstrict of Columbia Minimum Wage and Industrial Safety Board, November 2,
1 In 1937 a budget amounting to $884 annually to cover the cost of maintenance
and protection of health of a woman worker living alone in the District of Colum
bia was approved by a conference called by the District Minimum Wage Board,
and this has since been the basis for estimating the current cost of living for such
a woman in the District. The November 1950 figures are revised estimates made
by the U. S. Department of Labor, Women’s Bureau. (For explanation of method
used, see p. 5.
2 Of the total housing and food estimates, 71 percent or $656 is for food and 29
percent or $268 for housing.
3 Based on 52 weekly passes at $2 per pass, the rate which went into effect on
July 16, 1950.
4 Taxes were not provided for in the original budget. They have been computed
by the Women’s Bureau at rates applicable as of November 1950 and are shown
with the District’s permission.
6 District of Columbia income tax not paid at this level of income.
5 An item for savings and insurance was shown in the original budget. Since
1946, revised estimated budgets have allowed a larger proportion, namely 10 per
cent of the total budget.

WORKING WOMEN’S BUDGETS

Kentucky
Estimated annual cost of adequate maintenance and protection of health for a single
working woman in Kentucky, February 1949
Estimated average
annual cost 1
All meals
All meals
eaten in
eaten in
boarding
Item of expenditure
reslauhouse
rants

Housing_____________________ _____
Food_____________________________
Clothing__________________________
Other living essentials_______________
Clothing upkeep 2______________
Personal care
Medical, dental, and optical care...
Recreation
Education and reading material___
Transportation 3_
Miscellaneous expense 4
Total commodities and services..
Federal income tax 5________________
State income tax 5__________________
Social security tax 6_________________
Louisville occupational tax 9__________
Savings and private insurance 7_______
Total cost of budget

1, 839

$304
675
302
326

$304
799
302
326

1, 607
175
13
18

1, 731
197
16
20

$100

61
64
7
49
45

1, 992

Source: Kentucky Department of Industrial Relations. Evidence and Infor
mation Pertaining to Wages of Women and Minors in the Hotel and Restaurant
Industry, February 1949. Mimeo. See also Evidence and Information Pertain
ing to Wages of Women and Minors in Laundry and Dry Cleaning, Hotel and
Restaurant, and Other Industries, July 1946. Mimeo.
1 The food, housing, clothing, and transportation costs of 1946 budget were
based on prices obtained throughout the State. Costs for other categories were
derived in part from price data published by the U. S. Bureau of Labor Statistics
for March 1946. The February 1949 figures are estimates made by the U. S.
Department of Labor, Women’s Bureau. (For explanation of method used, see
p. 5.)
_
2 No allowance for laundry and dry cleaning was included in budget, although
the 1946 State report indicated that as of March-April 1946 the average cost for
this service was from $1.50 to $4 per week.
,
3 Revised estimate based on the State’s recent mail survey of transportation
costs in the Kentucky cities included in the original survey.
_
4 Includes $13 for organizational dues and contributions and $32 for incidentals.
The latter is a revised estimate, but the former is the same money allowance as
shown in the 1946 budget.
8 Federal and State income taxes and social security taxes were not provided for
in the 1946 budget. They have been computed by the Women’s Bureau on the
basis of 1949 tax rates and are shown with the State’s permission.
* This tax of 1 percent, weighted in accordance with the percent that Louisville’s
population bears to the population for the State as a whole (1940 Census), amounts
to less than $2.55 per year. Since this is less than 0.5 percent of the total cost of
either budget it has not been included in the revised estimate.
7 Computed at same percentages of total for commodities and services plus
savings as in the original budget.

WORKING WOMEN’S BUDGETS

Maine
Estimated annual cost of a minimum budget for single employed persons living in a
furnished room and eating meals in restaurants in Maine, December 1950
Estimated average
annual cost1
(men and women)

Item of expenditure

Housing (furnished room) $356
Food (3 restaurant meals a day)
758
Clothing
201
Other living essentials
381
Clothing upkeep $48
Personal care 49
Medical, dental, and optical care 50
Recreation, including vacation---------------------------- 102
Education and reading material 24
Transportation 40
Miscellaneous expense 68
Total commodities and services 1, 696
Federal income tax 2:

282
State income tax 3
Social security tax 2----------------------------------------------------34
Savings and insurance 4
224
Total cost of budget2, 236
Source: Department of Labor and Industry, State of Maine. Cost of Living
Survey for June 1948. Mimeo.
1 The original budget, adopted by Maine in 1948 to meet the minimum require
ments for either a man or a woman, was based on prices obtained by Maine in 7
representative communities in June 1948. The December 1950 figures are esti
mates made by the U. S. Department of Labor, Women’s Bureau. (For explana
tion of method used, see p. 5.)
_
2 Federal and State income taxes and social security taxes were not provided
for in the 1948 budget. They have been computed by the Women’s Bureau at
rates applicable as of December 1950 and are shown with the State’s permission.
3 The State of Maine does not levy an income tax.
4 Savings and insurance are calculated at the rate of 10 percent of the total
budget. No allowance was made for these items in the 1948 budget.

WORKING WOMEN'S BUDGETS

Massachusetts
Estimated annual cost of a minimum budget for certain employed persons living in a
furnished room and eating meals in restuarants in Massachusetts, August 1950

Item of expenditure

Estimated average
annual cost 1
(men and women)

Housing (furnished room) $251
Food (3 restaurant meals a day)
721
Clothing------------------------------------------------------------------Other living essentials
356
Clothing upkeep$44
Personal care 45
Medical and dental care 49
Recreation, including vacation 100
Education and reading material 16
Transportation 34
Miscellaneous expense 68

199

Total commodities and services 1, 527
Taxes, savings, and private insurance2
Source: Massachusetts Department of Labor and Industries, the Division of
the Necessaries of Life and the Minimum Wage Division. Annual and Weekly
Minimum Budget for Certain Employed Persons in Massachusetts, SeptemberOctober 1946. Mimeo.
1 The original budget, which represents the amount necessary to maintain a
self-supporting person of either sex, was based on prices obtained by the State of
Massachusetts in 20 cities and towns during September-October 1946. The
August 1950 estimate was prepared by the State by means of the State’s retail
price index.
2 The Massachusetts budget is set up to show only the minimum expenditure
for current consumption. Taxes, insurance, and savings are not included in the
official figure. On the basis of the amount allowed for commodities and services,
Federal income and social security taxes would amount to $181 computed at rates
applicable as of August 1950. The Massachusetts State income tax is not appli
cable to single persons with incomes under $2,000.

WORKING WOMEN’S BUDGETS

New Jersey
Estimated annual cost of adequate maintenance and protection of health for a woman
worker living in a furnished room and eating meals in restaurants in New Jersey,
October 1950
Estimated average
Item of expenditure
annual cost1

Housing (furnished room) $263
Food (3 restaurant meals a day)
803
Clothing
360
Other living essentials
564
Clothing upkeep $36
Personal care 65
Medical, dental, and optical care 2
74
Recreation, including vacation 157
Education and reading material 26
Transportation 82
Miscellaneous expense 124
Total commodities and services 1, 990
Federal income tax 3
State income tax 4
Social security tax, including old age, unemployment and dis
ability insurance 3
Savings and private insurance 5
Total cost of budget2, 492

329
62
111

Source: Revision of Cost of Living Survey made in June 1938, based on costs
in November 1942, issued by the New Jersey State Department of Labor.
1 The 1942 revision consisted of actual pricing for some items and estimates for
others. The October 1950 figures are revised estimates made by the U. S. De
partment of Labor, Women’s Bureau. The estimate for total commodities and
services ($1,990) was derived from data furnished by the New Jersey Department
of Labor which represent the application of the New Jersey Department of Agri
culture Index Numbers for All Goods and Services for October 1950 to the total
cost of commodities and services as shown in the 1942 priced budget of the New
Jersey Department of Labor. (Note.—The New Jersey data are intended to
provide an indication of the over-all trend of living costs rather than any repre
sentation of the actual cost of living in New Jersey.) Since, however, the New
Jersey index does not have components applicable to the individual categories of
the commodity and services total, it cannot be used to compute changes in cate
gories where the prices of goods have changed at varying rates. Therefore,
independent estimates of the amount for each category, except transportation,
were made by applying to the amounts shown for the separate categories in the
1942 budget the changes in the retail prices from November 1942 to October 1950
as measured by the percent changes in the suitable components of the Consumers’
Price Index for large cities combined (U. S. Department of Labor, Bureau of
Labor Statistics). The transportation estimate is based on the percent change
in the BLS United States average index for street car and bus fares combined
from November 1942 to September 1950, the latest date for which this index was
available at the time the estimate was prepared. The total of the estimates of
the separate categories thus obtained ($2,040) was then compared with the com
modities and services total as obtained by the New Jersey figures ($1,990), and
the difference of $50 absorbed by proportionately decreasing the appropriate
category estimates.
2 In addition, an allowance of 0.75 percent of the total budget is included under
social security tax as cost to worker of the program which provides cash benefits
for unemployment due to illness.
* Taxes were not provided for in the 1942 budget. They have been computed
by the Women’s Bureau at rates applicable as of October 1950 and are shown
with the State’s permission.
* New Jersey does not levy an income tax.
6 Calculated as 5.6 percent of the total commodities and services; this is the
same proportion shown in the 1942 revision.

WORKING WOMEN’S BUDGETS

New York State
[A 1951 revision of the New York State budget, approved after this bulletin went
to press, has been added on page 41]
Annual cost of adequate maintenance and protection of health for an employed woman
living as a member of a family group in New York State, September 1950
Item of expenditure

Average
annual cost

Housing 2------------------------------------------------------------------ $198
Other household expenses 3
211
Food4-------------------------------------------------------------------------5
391
Clothing--------------------------------------------------------------------340
Other living essentials______________________________ ____
479
Clothing upkeep$25
Personal care 54
Medical, dental, and optical care 6
90
Recreation, including vacation 139
Education and reading material 25
Transportation 93
Miscellaneous expense_____ ____________________ 53
Total commodities and services 1, 619
Federal income tax ’ 234
State income tax
17
Social security tax, including old age and unemployment insur
43
ance disability benefits tax
Savings.------------------------------------------------------------------Private insurance
27

216

Total cost of budget2, 156
Source: New York Department of Labor, Division of Research and Statistics.
Cost of Living for Women Workers, New York State, September 1950. Mimeo.
1 Based on prices obtained by the New York State Department of Labor in 8
cities and towns as of September 1950.
2 Includes woman’s share of family expenses for rent; also for fuel for lighting,
heating, cooking, and refrigeration,
3 Includes woman’s share of family expenses connected with replacement of
household equipment, laundry, other household operations, and for services of
mother or other member of the family who markets and prepares meals, and takes
care of the home.
4 Includes woman’s share of family’s cost of breakfasts and dinners at home
($225) and the cost of her lunches in restaurants ($166).
5 In addition, an allowance of 0.5 percent of the total budget is included under
social security tax as cost to worker of the program which provides cash benefits
for unemployment due to illness.

WORKING WOMEN’S BUDGETS

Pennsylvania
Estimated annual cost of a budget for a single employed woman living in a furnished
room and eating meals in restaurants in Pennsylvania, November 1949
Item of expenditure

Housing (furnished room)_________
Food (3 restaurant meals a day)____
Clothing_______________________
Other living essentials_____________
Clothing upkeep_____________
Personal care________________
Medical and dental care_______
Recreation, including vacation. _
Education and reading material.
Transportation_______________
Miscellaneous expense 12_______

Estimated average
annual cost1

______ $223
______
792
_______
296
_______
466
... $33
... 63
... 63
... 118
...

...
...

72
96

Total commodities and services 1, 777
Federal income tax 3
216
State income tax 4
5
Philadelphia income tax 6
12
Social security tax
21
Savings 6_________________________________________
52
Private insurance 6
43
Total cost of budget2, 121
Source: Pennsylvania Department of Labor and Industry, Bureau of Research
and Information. A Minimum Wage Budget for Employed Women in Pennsyl
vania. October 1938. Mimeo.
1 The original budget adopted by the State of Pennsylvania in 1938 was based
on prices prevailing in 12 Pennsylvania cities in March 1938. The November
1949 figures are revised estimates made by the U. S. Department of Labor,
Women’s Bureau. (For explanation of method used, see p. 5.)
a The allowances for occupational expense and contributions were calculated as
the same percentages of total cost of commodities and services as in original
budget.
8 Federal income tax was not provided for in the 1938 budget. It has been com
puted by the Women’s Bureau at the rate applicable as of November 1949 and is
shown with the State’s permission.
4 The State of Pennsylvania does not levy an income tax.
5 The original State budget included an item for a sales tax levied by Philadel
phia. This tax was repealed in 1939 and has been replaced by the Philadelphia
income tax which is withheld from wages and salaries. The latter, properly
weighted, has replaced the former in the 1949 figures.
6 Calculated as the same percentage of total cost of commodities and services
as in original budget.

WORKING WOMEN’S BUDGETS

Utah
Estimated annual cost of a budget for an employed woman living in a boarding house
in Utah, October 1950
Estimated average
Item of expenditure
annual cost1

Housing and food (furnished room in boarding house where
all meals are served)2 $790
Clothing
287
Other living essentials
565
Clothing upkeep 3$30
Personal care 110
Medical, dental, and optical care 125
Recreation, including vacation 148
Education and reading material 22
Transportation 93
Miscellaneous expense 37
Total commodities and services 1, 642
Federal income tax
282
State income tax
17
Social security tax
33
Savings 4_______________________________
Private insurance 5_>___________________________________

223
33

Total cost of budget2, 230
Source: The Industrial Commission of Utah. Report of the Minimum
Wage Division on the Cost of Living Survey and Wage Studies, 1939. Mimeo.
1 The original budget adopted by the Industrial Commission of Utah in 1939
was based on prices obtained in various cities and towns in Utah. In 1945 and
1947 revised estimates were made by the Industrial Relations Council of Utah.
The October 1950 figures are revised estimates made by the Industrial Relations
Council of Utah, in cooperation with the U. S. Department of Labor, Women’s
Bureau. (For explanation of method used, see p. 5.)
2 Approximately 74 percent of this total, or $582, represents food and 26 per
cent, or $208, represents room.
3 An additional allowance is included in miscellaneous expense for laundry
supplies.
4 Calculated as 10 percent of the total budget.
5 Calculated as 1.5 percent of the total budget.

WORKING WOMEN’S BUDGETS

Washington State
Estimated annual cost of a minimum budget for a single employed woman living in a
furnished room and eating meals in restaurants in the State of Washington, May
1949
Estimated average
Item of expenditure
annual cost1

Housing (furnished room) $352
Food (3 restaurant meals a day)
736
Clothing
262
Other living essentials
531
Clothing upkeep 2 $35
Personal care 61
Medical, dental, and optical care 83
Recreation, including vacation 100
Education and reading material 42
Transportation 101
Miscellaneous expense 3 109
Total commodities and services 1, 881
Federal income tax
235
State income tax 4
5
State sales tax 6
43
Social security tax
22
Savings 6
Private insurance 7_______
50
Total cost of budget2, 231
Source: Washington State Department of Labor and Industries, Division of
Industrial Relations. Minimum Budget for a Single Employed Woman in
Washington. Prices week of May 5 through May 10, 1947. Multilith.
1 The 1947 budget was based on prices obtained by the State of Washington
in 16 cities during the week of May 5 through 10, 1947. The May 1949 figures
are estimates, made by the U. S. Department of Labor, Women’s Bureau. (For
explanation of method used, see p. 5.)
2 An additional amount is included in miscellaneous expense for home laundry
supplies.
3 Includes $24 for occupation expense and $85 for the other items. The latter
amount is a revised estimate but the former is the same money allowance as
shown in the 1947 budget.
4 The State of Washington does not levy an income tax.
5 Calculated as 3 percent of the total allowed for housing, food, clothing,
clothing upkeep, and personal care.
6 The Washington State budget does not make a separate allowance for
savings as such. Private insurance is considered a form of savings.
7 Same allowance as shown in the 1947 budget.

WORKING WOMEN’S BUDGETS

Tables Showing the Commodity and Service Allowances
Items included in selected categories 1 of minimum-wage budgets for self-supporting,
employed women—clothing, clothing upkeep, personal care, medical care, recreation,
education and reading, transportation, and miscellaneous expense
CLOTHING—ANNUAL QUANTITY ALLOWANCE
Califor
nia

Arizona

Article of clothing

Colorado Connec
ticut

x
2

Skirt..

Sweater, wool or mixture

Dress, rayon, street

3
4
2

Housecoat, cotton, rayon

1
1

1
4

2
3

14
2
2

3
4
22
5

X
H

2
3
12
*3
2
1

5
6

2
2

2
4
24

2
4

2
3
12

6
6
6

2
2

4
2

1
1

4
1
1

x
A.

4 $11. 21

X
1

X
1
12
1

X
w
«

$6.00

(*)
(3)

1
1

2
X
l

(3)
(*)

1
1
1

2
3

4 $4.00

1
3

Vest
Girdle___ ____ _____________
Brassiere.._________________

■

2
2

Pantie, cotton, rayon.................

Slippers, bedroom......................

3
2
2
3

1
1

X
X

(8)

2
1
2M
1

Shoes, walking

■H

2
X

3
A

X
X

A
X

A
2
2
X

5
4

Nightgown or pajamas, cotton. Nightgown or pajamas, rayon. _
Nightgown or pajamas, flannel-

A
X

X
X

Slip, everyday______ ______ _

Quantity
on which
estimate
is based
(women
only)

Blouse, cotton, rayon

Maine2

Ken
tucky

Quantity
Quantity Quantity
on which Quantity on which priced Quantity Quantity
in 1949 on which on which
revised
revised
priced
revised estimate
estimate in 1950 estimate
estimate is based
is based
is based
is based

Coat, heavy________ _______
Coat, light......... ............... ..........
Hat______ ________________

See footnotes on p. 27.

District
of
Columbia

4
1

12
1

2
2

9
1

X
1
X

«
(8)

4
1
x
1
1

WORKING WOMEN’S BUDGETS
CLOTHING—ANNUAL QUANTITY ALLOWANCE-Continued
Massa
Pennsyl
New
chusetts 12 Jersey
New
vania
9
York
Quantity Quantity
Quantity
on which on which Quantity on which
estimate revised
priced
revised
is based estimate in Sept. estimate
(women is based
1950
is
based
only)

Article of clothing

Coat, heavy--------------- ------- --------------Coat, light___________________ ______ Hat..._____ ________________________
Raincoat

Sweater, wool or mixture--------------------Blouso, cotton, rayon-------------- ----------Dress, wool, street-----------------------------Dress, rayon, street,. ------------------------Dress, cotton, street--------------------------

(3)5 *
X
m
X
1
1

X
3

X
y2

Slip, everyday

Nightgown or pajamas, cotton. ____ ...
Nightgown or pajamas, rayon ........... .
Nightgown or pajamas, flannelette
Pantie, cotton, rayon---- ----------------------

1
1

Vest 1_______________________ _____
Girdle
Brassiere______ . - ------- ---- --------Hose nylon, silk-------- -------------------

Shoes, walking----------------------------------Shoes, dress___ ____ _________ _____ _

Slippers, bedroom......................—...............
Galoshes______
...

Handbag, winter-------------------------------Handkerchief.----------------- -----------------Umbrella______ ____ ________________
Belt................................................................

3
1
1
1

1
1
X
1
4
1
X
1
1

i
i

2
3
1

1
x
1

X
Yz

2
4

2
3

12
(3)
2
1
1

3
1

10
4
2
1
1

X
y
X

y
X
X

i
X
y
IX
1
X

1
X
y

ix
2

2ix
X

‘ $3.00

« $1.50

12
X
(')

(°

i
2
IX

2
6

i
2
m
(3)
1
1
12

<<)

2
2

2
4

X
y

y.
y

12
1

(!>

1
1
1
4

X
X
Vi

2
2

X
X

3
1
1
1

1
1
1
4
1

3
1
1
1
1
6

i
i

3
1
4
1

2
2
1

Quantity
•on which
estimate
is based

X
w
3

(>)
(3)

2
4

X
y

Wash
ington

3
2
3
12
6
4
1
1

(3)
(3)*

3
1
1
1
1
4

(3)

Gloves, leather
Gloves, fabric------ ----------- ------------Bathing suit--------------------------------------

K
2
X
2
2
4
2
1

X
X

Housecoat, cotton, rayon

X
X

Utah
Quantity
on which
revised
estimate
is based

X
X
X

1
12
2
X
m

• $5. 00

1 Housing and food omitted because they do not readily lend themselves to tabular presentation.
2 Although the official budget is for both men and women, separate budgets were also prepared. The
quantities of items shown in these pages are those from the women’s budgets unless otherwise noted.
3 Provided for in “Recreation” or as lump-sum allowance.
* Provided for in “Personal care.”
5 Original money allowance not adjusted for increase in prices subsequent to date of survey.
.9 The commodity list for New Jersey is from its 1938 survey. No list is currently available for the resur
vey made in 1942 on which the October 1950 estimate is based. In giving permission to reprint the data,
the New Jersey Department of Labor points out that this list should not be interpreted as necessarily repre
senting the State’s idea of what should be included in a list of items required by a woman worker in 1950.
f 5 percent of money allowance for gloves, umbrella, raincoat, handbags, and handkerchiefs.

Items included in selected categories 1 of minimum-wage budgets for self-supporting employed women—clothing, clothing upkeep, personal care,
medical care, recreation, education and reading, transportation, and miscellaneous expense
Arizona
Quantity on which revised
estimate is based

California

Colorado

Quantity priced in 1950

Quantity on which re
vised estimate is
based

Connecticut

District of Columbia

Kentucky

Quantity priced in 1949

Quantity on which re
vised estimate is
based

Quantity on which esti
mate is based

Annual lump sum al
lowance for dry
cleaning, shoe repair,
laundry, and sewing
supplies.

No provision made for
laundry and dry cleaning
in budget. The accom
panying report incorpo
rates an estimate of from
$1.50 to $4 per week for
these services.

Annual lump-sum al-

Annual over-all lump-sum
allowance based in part
on the median retail price
of a shampoo and wave
set in 34 large cities in
March 1946 as reported
by the United States De
partment of Labor, Bu
reau of Labor Statistics.

CLOTHING UPKEEP
Annual money allowance based on
prices for;
(a) dry cleaning—
1 heavy coat.
2 light coats.
2 wool dresses.
6 rayon dresses.
2 wool suits.
1 skirt.
(b) shoe repairs—
1 resole.
8 heel lifts.
2 toe tips.
2 shoe polish.
(c) other—
2 pints dry cleaning
fluid.
6 boxes detergents.
2 boxes soap chips,
and a lump sum for sewing
supplies, hosiery mending,
garters, shields, etc.

Annual over-all lump Annual money allowance based on
sum allowance for
prices for:
dry cleaning sup
(a) dry cleaning—
plies, shoe repairs,
1 heavy coat.
and sewing supplies.
1 light coat.
7 wool dresses.
6 rayon dresses.
2 wool suits.
2 skirts.
(b) shoe repairs—
4 half soles and lifts.
3 toe tips and 8 heel lifts
plus a lump sum for shoe pol
ish, shoe trees, clothes brush,
clothes hangers, and sewing
accessories. Lump sum of
$2.60 for home laundry sup
plies included under “Miscel
laneous expense."

PERSONAL CARE
Annual money allowance Annual money allowance based on
provides for supplies for the
prices for:
care of the teeth, hair, and
Toothbrush, 2.
skin, and supplies and servToothpaste, 3 tubes of approxices needed for sanitary or
imately 3J4 oz.
Soap, 18 hand size.
grooming purposes.
Hand lotion, 1 large bottle.
Cold cream, 1 pound
Facial tissues, 9 boxes of 200
double sheets.

Annual money allowa n c e specifically
provides for tooth
brush, tooth paste,
cosmetics, sanitary
supplies, soap, haircuts, and permanent waves.

Annual money allowance based on
prices for:
Toothbrush__ ____ ____ 4
Toothpaste_______ ____ 3
Toothpowder_____ ____ 2
Mouthwash_______ ____ 2
Comb-. ____ ___ ____ 1
Brush- ________ ____ H
Hairpins_________ ____ l
Bobby pins______ ____ 3

plies.

WORKING WOMEN ’S BUDGETS

Annual lump-sum allowance
for each of the following
items:
Dry cleaning.
Laundry supplies.
Shoe repairs.
Sewing supplies.

Deodorant, 2 jars of cream
type.
Face powder, 3 boxes of ap
proximately 2% ounces.
Rouge, 1 medium-cake.
Lipstick, 3 medium-large.
Powder puff, 2.
Permanent waves and haircuts,
4 haircuts and either 2 pro
fessional permanents or sup
plies for 4 home permanents.
Liquid cream for 35 shampoos.
Hair brush.
Sanitary napkins, 12 boxes of

See footnotes on p. 27.

6
24
3

1
1
1
3
10
6
2
1
1
6

WORKING WOMEN ’S BUDGETS

12.

Sanitary belt, 1.
Manicure supplies, lump sum.
Miscellaneous personal care,
lump sum.

Shampoo____ __________
Toilet soap..........................
Cold cream 2
Facial tissue________
Hand lotion 1
Manicure supplies (nail pol
ish, polish remover, em
ery board, cuticle remov
er, orange stick, profes
sional nail file, nippers).
Face powder 2
Talcum powder_________
Rouge..----------Lipstick__ ____
Sanitary napkins-----------Sanitary belt 1
Hairnet....... ........................
Deodorant-------------------Compact 1
Cosmetic bag---------------Permanent wave________
Haircut 4
Shampoo and set................

California

Quantity on which revised
estimate is based

Quantity priced in 1950

Annual money allowance
based on minimum cost of
services of physicians, ocu
lists, and dentists, as well
as hospitalization and nurs
ing care, required to treat
the average annual expec
tancy of illness as reported
for the country as a whole,
consideration being given
to the fact that average ex
penditures for medical care
for women are higher than
those for men.

Annual lump sum allowance of 6
percent of total cost of commodi
ties and services plus savings
and insurance (i. e. 6 percent of
$1,744.46 or $104.67) provides for
medical, dental and eye care, and
medical supplies.
Note.—See allowance of 1 percent
of total budget which is included
under “social security tax” as the
cost to the worker of the program
which provides cash benefits for
unemployment due to illness.

Colorado
Quantity on which re
vised estimate is
based

Connecticut
Quantity priced in 1949

District of Columbia
Quantity on which re
vised estimate is
based

Kentucky
Quantity on which estivised estimate is

MEDICAL CARE
Annual money allowance based on Annual over-all lump- Annual over-all lump-sum
prices for:
sum allowance
allowance covers hospi
Medical services—
covers medical, dentalization, medical, den
Group Hospital Insurance fee
tal, and optical care,
tal, and optical care. In
($16.80)
including medicines
arriving at the money
Group medical-service surgical
and supplies.
allowance the median
services fee ($9)
fees for a physician’s office
Physician services—
visit and for an amalgam
Office visit................. . 2
filling for a one-surface
Home visit_1
simple cavity were con
Health examination in
sidered, along with the
cluding immunization. 1
median for the retail
Dental services—
price of glasses in 34 large
Dental diagnosis and clean
cities in March 1946, as
ing------------- -----------1
reported by the United
Filling, simple1
States Department of
Filling, complex................. 3-6
Labor, Bureau of Labor
Extraction, simple
Statistics.
Extraction, operative____ Vi
X-Ray, full 34
X-ray, partial 34
Optical services—
Refraction_________
34
Glasses, including frames... 34
Medicine and drug supplies—
1 unit of each of the following:
Prescription for indigestion,
sedative prescription, cough
mixture, nose drops, aspirin
tablets, quinine,cold remedy,
iodine, castor oil, milk of
magnesia, laxative, liver ex
tract, cod liver oil, gauze,
bandaids, zinc ointment,
vaseline,
Note.—This is the most difficult section of the budget to appraise in terms of needs: (1)
because of the extremely wide variation in the requirements of individuals for medical,
dental, and optical care in a given period of time, and (2) because group-health insurance
rates are not only not available in every community but when they are available they
differ greatly as to coverage. The best way in which to present the scope of the medical
care allowance for many of the budgets seemed to be to show the break-down of the money
allowance where possible although units of medical service are shown where available. No
corrections have been made for changes in the value of the dollar since the date the budgets
were priced.______________

WORKING WOMEN ’S BUDGETS

See footnotes on p. 27.

Recommendations of
the American Medi
cal Association given
consideration by the
State in arriving at
the annual over-all
lump-sum allowance
for this section of the
budget.

RECREATION

Annual money allowance
provides for those activities
which require either paid
admissions or dues, such as
movies or concerts; and for
vacation, outings, and
equipment for sports and
hobbies.

Annual money allow
ance provides for 1
movie a week for 51
weeks; for concerts
and lectures; and for
a vacation.

Annual money allowance based on Annual lump-sum al
prices for: 51 movies; 10 bowling
lowance for each of
strings; 6 visits to outdoor swim
the following:
ming at pool or beach; 6 visits to
Recreation
roller or ice skating; recreation
Vacation.
al equipment including annual
allowance of:
Bathing suit___________ H
Bathing cap 1
Play shoes....................
Yi
Tennis shoes M
Shorts or pedal pushers.
lA
Wool anklets 1
Jersey sweater__________ 1
and for a week’s vacation at a
camp, including room and board
and transportation.

Annual lump-sum allow
ance based in part on the
median cost of motion
picture admissions for an
adult on week nights in
34 large cities in March
1946, as reported by the
United States Depart
ment of Labor, Bureau
of Labor Statistics.

EDUCATION AND READING MATERIAL
Annual lump-sum allowance
provides for a daily paper
and some other reading and
educational material, at a
minimum cost, such as
some form of adult educa
tion for which either a small
fee or transportation costs
are paid.
See footnotes on p. 27.

Annual lump-sum allowance for a
Sunday paper plus a moderate
allowance for library or other
educational fees.

Annual lump-sum al
lowance provides for
a daily paper, one
magazine subscrip
tion, and tuition.

Annual money allowance covers
cost of daily and Sunday news
paper. (No money allowed for
tuition for classes designed to aid
employed women in becoming
better equipped for their work,
inasmuch as it was assumed that
these services could be obtained
free.)

Annual lump-sum al
lowance for this sec
tion of the budget.

Annual lump-sum allow
ance based in part on the
median price of daily and
Sunday newspaper in 34
large cities m March
1946, as reported by the
United States Depart
ment of Labor, Bureau
of Labor Statistics.

WORKING WOMEN ’S BUDGETS

Annual money allowance provides
for:
Entertainment, lump sum for
51 weeks;
Vacation, 7 days at a municipal
camp or an inexpensive pri
vate resort, plus transporta
tion, plus lumpsum for recre
ation while there.
(NB—The California budget
includes education and reading
material in this category, but they
are shown separately in this Bulle
tin under “Education and reading
material”.)

Items included in selected categories 1 of minimum-wage budgets for self-supporting employed women—clothing, clothing upkeep, personal care,
medical care, recreation, education and reading, transportation, and miscellaneous expense—Continued
Arizona
Quantity on which revised
estimate is based

California

Colorado

Quantity priced in 1950

Quantity on which re
vised estimate is
based

Connecticut

District of Columbia

Kentucky

Quantity priced in 1949

Quantity on which re
vised estimate is
based

Quantity on which esti
mate is based

Annual money allow
ance covers cost of
weekly streetcar
pass for 52 weeks.

Annual lump-sum allow
ance based on informa
tion furnished by bus
companies operated in 9
Kentucky cities.

TRANSPORTATION

Annual money allowance based on
prices for 8 local round-trips a
week for 51 weeks, and one
round-trip a month, outside the
local area, of approximately 25
miles each way.

Annual money allow
ance covers two
fares per weekday,
plus four extra fares
per week.

Annual lump-sum allowance de
signed to represent minimum
annual expenditures in connec
tion with business, pleasure,
and other transportation needs.
In arriving at the State average,
it was assumed that in large
cities the fares paid by working
women to get to and from work
would also take care of recrea
tion and social needs, because
much of the latter would be near
the place of business. In small
er communities where most
women walk to work, the trans
portation allowance was deemed
needed to take care of travel in
connection with recreational
and social life and other trans
portation needs. The lump
sum allowance is based on 10
fares a week for 51 weeks.

WORKING WOMEN ’S BUDGETS

Annual lump-sum allowance
for this section of the budg
et represents the lowest
possible cost. It was as
sumed that in those local
ities where transportation
costs are higher, women
workers would plan for
group transportation to
reduce the cost.

MISCELLANEOUS EXPENSE

See footnotes on p. 27.

Annual lump-sum allowances for
each of the following:
Candy, gum, fruit, soft drinks.
Gifts.
Stationery and postage.
Church.
Charity.
Telephone calls.

Annual lump-sum al- Annual money and/or lump-sum
Iowan ces for each of
allowances for each of the followthe following:
ing:
Contributions to church, comStamps and stationery,
telemunity chest, Red Cross,
phone calls.
etc.
Occupational expenses: union
Contributions to
church and char
dues.
Incidentals: telephone calls,
itable organiza
tions and gifts.
stationery and postage,
Occupational ex
candy, cigarettes, soda, etc.;
home laundry supplies (soap
pense.
Incidentals.
chips, starch, blueing, etc.).

Annual lump-sum allowance for this section of the budget.
Includes: Contributions to church and
charity
organizations and incidentals.

Annual lump-sum allowances for each of the following:
Incidentals.
Organizational dues
and contributions.

WORKING WOMEN ’S BUDGETS

Annual lump-sum allowances for each of the followtag:
Stationery and postage
necessary to take care
f of the limited amount
of correspondence nec£ essary to keep in touch
with relatives and
friends.
Contributions to church
and charitable organi
zations.
Gifts.
Union dues or other oc
cupational
expense,
such as placement cost,
benefit charges, and
benevolent fund dues.

CO
CO

Massachusetts

New Jersey 8

New York

Pennsylvania

Utah

Washington

Quantity on which
estimate is based
(woman only)

Quantity on which
revised estimate
is based

Quantity priced in
September 1950

Quantity on which
revised estimate
is based

Quantity on which
estimate is based

Annual lump-sum allowance for dry
cleaning and laundry. laundry supplies, and other supplies, plus shoe repair allowance
which is based on
prices for 3 pairs
each of half soles and
heels, toe tips, and
heel lifts.

Annual money allowance based on prices
for:
(a) dry cleaning—
1 heavy coat.
2 light coats.
6 wool, rayon, or
silk dresses.
1 hat.
1 bathrobe.
(b) shoe repairs—
3 half soles and
heels.
3 heels.
3 toe tips.
(See also allow
ance for laundry
supplies included
under “Miscellan
eous expenses.”)

Annual money allow
ance for:
(a) dry cleaning—
1 winter coat
(unfurred).
2 spring coats
(unfurred).
3 wool dresses.
3 rayon dresses.
2 wool two-piece
suits.
2 skirts.
(b) shoe repairs—
4 resoles.
12 heel lifts, plus
a lump sum for
shoe polish, shoe
trees,
hangers,
cleaning fluid,
needles, thread.
(See also allow
ance for home laun
dry supplies in
cluded
under
“Miscellaneous ex
pense.”)

Annual lump-sum Annual money allow
money allowance
ance based on prices
for each of the fol
for the following
lowing to provide
articles:
services in accord
Toothbrush.
3
ance with working!
Toothpaste__ 6

Annual money allow
ance based on prices
for the following arti
cles:
Toothbrush. __ 2
Toothpaste__
3

CLOTHING UPKEEP
Annual money allowance for woman’s
clothing upkeep
covers prices for:
(a) dry cleaning—
1 winter coat.
1 spring coat.
7 wool dresses.
6 rayon dresses.
2 wool suits.
2 skirts.
(b) shoe repairs—
4 half soles and

Annual lump-sum allowance for each of
the following items:
Dry cleaning and
laundering.
Shoe repairs.
Laundry supplies.
Miscellaneous.

8 heel lifts, plus
a lump sum for
incidentals such
as shoe polish,
brushes, sewing
accessories,
clothes brush.

Annual money allowance based
on prices for:
(a) cleaning and pressing—
2 winter coats.
1 spring coat.
2 suits.
8 rayon dresses.
2 wool dresses.
2 wool skirts.
1 flannel robe.
(b) shoe repairs—
2 half soles.
6 heel lifts.
3 toe tips, plus a lump
sum for miscellaneous
items such as shoe polish,
shoe trees, clothes brush,
clothes hangers, sewing sup
plies, safety pins.
No allowance made for laundry
in this section of the budget as
it is assumed that working
woman’s laundry will be
included as part of family
laundry. Provision for this is
made in the woman’s propor
tionate share of expenses for
household operations.
PERSONAL CARE

Annual money allow
ance based on a se
lected list of articles
and services needed
by an employed
woman.

Annual lump-sum
money
allowance
for each of a selected
list of articles and
services, derived as
an average of the

Annual money allowance based
on prices for a selected list of
toilet articles and beauty serv
ices. In making up the list the
State considered consumer
habit to be of primary impor-

WORKING WOMEN ’S BUDGETS

Annual money allow
ance for woman’s
clothing upkeep
covers prices for:
(a) dry cleaning—
1 winter coat.
1 spring coat.
7 wool dresses.
6 rayon dresses.
2 wool suits.
2 skirts.
(b) shoe repairs—
4 half soles and
heels.
8 heel lifts, plus
a lump sum for
incidentals such
as shoe polish,
brushes, sewing
accessories,
clothes brush.

Lump sums are provided for each of the
following articles:
Tooth brushes.
Toothpaste, etc.
Mouth wash.
Combs, bobby
pins.
Toilet soap.
Cold cream.
Facial tissues.
Hand lotion.
Manicure
supplies.
Face powder.
Talcum powder.
Rouge and lipstick.
Sanitary napkins.
Sanitary belt.
Annual money allowance for beauty parlor services based on
prices for:
1 permanent wave.
8 haircuts and
wave sets.

See footnotes on p. 27.

recommendations
submitted by subcommittees appointed to study the
working woman’s
requirements for
this particular section of the budget.
The list specifically
provides for:
Tooth brush.
Dentrifice.
Comb,
brush,
hairpins.
Soap.
Face powder.
Talcum powder.
Manicure
supplies.
Rouge, compact,
powder puff.
Sanitary supplies.
Beauty shop, serv
ices sufficient to
allow for per
manent and sets.

woman’s minimum
obligations in maintabling her appearance:
(a) cosmetics
(supplies for
care of face and
hands, soap,
powders,
creams, etc.,
and
sanitary
supplies).
(b) beauty parlor
services—
2 permanents.
12 haircuts.
12 shampoos
and wave sets.

tance. The allowance for
beauty parlor service was designed to provide for reasonable beauty care for the average woman in view of current
styles.
The list specifically provides for:
Tooth brushes (medium
quality)........................ 2
Tooth paste (2-4 oz.)----- 8
Mouth wash (14-16 oz.)._ 2
Liquid shampoo (3-6 oz). 4
Comb, brush, pins, curlers,
wave lotion... Lump sum
Cream (3-4 oz.)________ 3
Tissues (250 pkg.)........... 3
Hand lotion (4-6 oz.)___ 1
Nail brush, manicure
supplies....... Lump sum
Talcum powder (3-5
oz. can)............ ........ 1
Face powder.. Lump sum
Rouge, lipstick, com
pact, powder puffs,
etc................ Lump sum
Sanitary napkins (box).. 10
Sanitary belt... Lumpsum
Miscellaneous (depila
tory, deodorant etc.)
Lump sum
Permanent wave............. 1H
Haircuts___ _________ 4
Combination shampoo,
wave set, and mani
cure_____________

Toilet soap__ 24
Mouthwash.. 2
Comb_______ 1
Hand lotion... 3
Rouge.............. 2
Lipstick-------- 3
Compact------- 1
Hairbrush___ H
Deodorant---- 2
Hairpins and
curlers.
Lump sum
Hairnets......... 6
Tissue cream
Cleansing cream
alb.),
i
Cleansing tissues
(boxes).. ... 2
Face powder.
2
Nail polish__ 6
Nail polish remover__ __ 6
Scissors
or
nippers___
1
Emery boards. 12
Nail white___ 1
Cuticle oil . . 1
Orange wood
sticks_____ 2
Nail file_____ 1
Permanent.
wave______ 2
Shampoo, hair
cut,
and
wave set____ 36

Mouth wash.. 2
Brush__ ____ H
Hair or bobby
pins (pkg.).-_ 10
Comb
4
Shampoo__ .. 6
Toilet soap__ 12
Cold cream
(large size)... 1
Facial tissues
(large size)... 3
Hand lotion
(medium size) 2
Face powder
(medium size) 2
Body powder
(medium size) 1
Rouge_____ .. 1
2
Lipstick
Powder puff__ 4
Compact
1
Cologne___ _ 1
Deodorant.......... 3
Manicure sup
plies.. Lump sum
Sanitary nap
kins (box)___12
Sanitary belt... 1
Permanent
wave________ 2
Haircut.............. 2
Combination
shampoo and
wave................ 4

WORKING WOMEN ’S BUDGETS

Lump sums are provided for each of the
following articles:
Tooth brushes.
Toothpaste, etc.
Combs,
bobby
pins.
Toilet soap.
Cold cream.
Facial tissues.
Hand lotion.
Manicure
supplies.
Face powder.
Talcum powder.
Rouge and lipstick.
Sanitary napkins.
Sanitary belt.
Also lump sums for:
Permanent wave.
Haircuts, and wave
sets.

Massachusetts

New Jersey •

Quantity on which
estimate is based
(woman only)

Quantity on which
revised estimate
is based

New York

Pennsylvania

Utah

Washington

Quantity priced in
September 1950

Quantity on which
revised estimate
is based

Quantity on which
estimate is based

Annual lump-sum al
lowance for:
Medical and
dental care
(based on
prewar fees
for services,
rather than
on the cost
of
group
health in
surance)__ $40
Medicines
(based on
per capita
average ex
penditures
for
drugs
and medi
cines) and
Supplies
(based on

Medical care:
Periodic exam
ination____ $5
Medicines and
miscellane
ous supplies. 10
Hospital, med
ical, and sur
gical insur
ance........ . 25
Dental care:
Periodic exam
ination and
prophylaxis. 15
Optical care:
Eye examina
tion and
analysis10
Eye glasses,
including
laboratory
fees10
Orthoptics___15

03
03

MEDICAL CARE

Physi
cian —

Home
and of
fice calls. 13.50
Health examination___
3.00
Dental care:
Diagnosis
and pro
phylaxis. 3.00
Fillings. __ 3.74
Extrac
tion___
2.50
X-ray___
4.00
Medicines:
Medicine

chest
supplies.
Prescrip
tions___

2.00
2.75

Medical care:
Hospital
insur
ance___ $10.20
Physi
cianHome
and of
fice calls. 13.00
Health examination___ 3.00
Dental care:
Diagnosis
and prophylaxis. 4.00
Fillings... 3.00
Extractions. _. 2.00
X-rays___ 4.00
Medicines:
Medicine
chest
supplies. 1.78
Prescriptions___ 3.00

Annual lump-sum al
lowance for each of
the following:
(a) Medic
al, den
tal, and
optical
service.. $37.05
(b) Sup
plies for
medicine
cabinet. 5.19
Note.—See allow
ance of 75 percent of to
tal budget which is in
cluded under “Social
Security tax” as cost
to worker of the pro
gram which provides
cash benefits for un
employment due to
illness.

To a great extent the annual
money allowance reflects the
costs of specified units of
health care necessary for the
protection of the health of a
self-supporting employed wo
man. These were based large
ly on the recommendations of
the Committee on the Costs of
Medical Care on the basis of
the incidence of illness among
young women. The money
allowance for the year repre
sents the average annual need
over a period of years. A large
part of the allowance for any
one year should, therefore, be
considered either as a pay
ment of bills for past serv
ices or as a reserve for future
medical care.
The medical care units provided
for are:
General medical care—
Prevention—
Periodic
examina
tions, visits____ 0.45
Immunizations, vis
its . 06
Diagnosis and treat
ment—
Physician care—
Home visits (in
cluding hospital
calls), visits2.96
Office visits, visits. 3.35
Nursing care-trained
nurse, days........... .34

actual
prices)____

Annual lump-sum al
lowance for:
Medical
care......... $48.00
Dental care. 15.00
Optical care. 5.00
Medicine
chest supplies
(bandaids
or gauze
and adhesive tape,
aspirin,
laxative.
cotton, antiseptic__ 7.06

WORKING WOMEN ’S BUDGETS

Medical care:
Hospital
insur
ance___ $12. 60

See footnotes on p. 27.

WORKING WOMEN'S BUDGETS

Full-time attendant
care—practical
nurse, days______ . 44
Hospital insurance,
fee.......... ............... 1.0
Dental care:
Diagnosis and prophy
laxis. ........................
2.0
Fillings, simple........ . 1.0
Fillings, complex............. 3
Extractions, simple. _. .2
Extractions, operative. . 4
X-rays, full...................1.0
X-rays, partial.............1.2
Eye care:
Refractions....................... 25
Glasses ........................ 26
Medicines and supplies
for medicine chest:
Prescriptions.................2.0
Cough mixture--------- 1.0
Supplies for medicine
chest—
Aspirin (box of 12
five-grain tablets). 1.0
Nose drops (1 oz.
bottle)........... .......... 1.0
Milk of Magnesia
(12-16 oz. bottle)__ 1.0
Iodine (^oz. bottle). 1.0
Other first aid sup
plies...........Lump sum
Note—See allowance of 0.5
percent of total budget which is
included under “Social security
tax” as the cost to the worker of
the program which provides
cash benefits for unemployment
due to illness.
Note.—This is the most difficult section of the budget to appraise in terms of
needs: (1) because of the extremely wide variation in the requirements of individ
uals for medical, dental, and optical care in a given period of time, and (2) because
group-health insurance rates are not only not available in every community but
when they are available they differ greatly as to coverage. The best way in which
to present the scope of the medical care allowance for many of the budgets seemed
to be to show the break-down of the money allowance where possible, although
units of medical service are shown where available. No corrections have been
made for changes in the value of the dollar since the date the budgets were priced.

Items included in selected categories 1 of mintmum-wage budgets for self-supporting employed women—clothing, clothing upkeep, personal care,
medical care, recreation, education and reading, transportation, and miscellaneous expense—Continued
Maine

Massachusetts

New Jersey «

Quantity on which
estimate is based
(woman only)

Quantity on which
revised estimate
is based

New York

Pennsylvania

Utah

Washington

Quantity priced in
September 1950

Quantity on which
revised estimate
is based

Quantity on which
estimate is based

Annual lump-sum al
lowances for 52 ad
missions to neighbor
hood movies, admis
sions to other forms
of paid entertain
ment, 1 week’s vaca
tion, and recreational
equipment.

Annual money allow
ance provides for
paid admissions to
movies or theaters,
concerts, lectures,
swimming, dancing
classes; for attending
dances now and
then, and for occas
ional trips to parks
or beaches, as well
as for one week’s va
cation,
including
transportation and
recreational equip
ment.

Annual lump-sum al
lowance for 51 paid
admissions to spec
tator sports, bowling
dances, etc.; 1 week’s
vacation, including
food and transporta
tion.

Annual money allow
ance provides for
Sunday newspaper,
magazines, and
books; also for paid
lessons or tuition for
adult education
classes, and materi
als.

Annual money allow
ance provides for
daily and Sunday
newspaper,
maga
zines or books, and
for adult education.

RECREATION
Annual lump-sum al
lowance provides for
51 movies, 10 bowl
ing strings, club
dues, recreational
equipment, includ
ing a bathing suit,
and a bathing cap,
and for 1 week’s va
cation at camp or
equivalent,
with
transportation
to
and from camp, and
camp clothing.

Annual lump-sum al
lowances for each of
the following:
Movies.
Dances, theaters,
concerts,
lec
tures.
Sport classes.
Club dues.
Outings.
Vacation.
Recreational
equipment.

Annual money allowances for:
52 movies.
18 bowling strings (3 games,
6 times a year).
6 trips to a beach or outdoor
swimming pool, includ
ing transportation and
locker fee.
1 week’s vacation at a sum
mer camp, including
transportation.
plus weekly lump sum for
51 weeks for other paid rec
reation.
plus lump sum for recreation
al equipment, such as ice
skates, including cost of
sharpening, bathing cap.
Sports clothing:
slacksH
shortsY
blouse____________ 1
socks, cotton3
socks, woolY
bathing suitY
play shoes---------------- Y

EDUCATION AND READING MATERIAL
Annual money allow
ance covers cost of
daily and Sunday
newspaper.

Annual money allow
ance covers cost of
daily and Sunday
newspaper.

Over-all lump-sum al
lowance made for
this section of the
budget.

Annual money allowance pro
vides for daily and Sunday
newspaper and weekly lump
sum for 52 weeks for maga
zines and books. (No allow
ances for tuition for adult ed
ucation classes, although re
port mentions the possibility
of the woman attending such
classes free.)

Annual money allow
ance specifically
provides for daily
and Sunday news
paper and makes a
lump-sum grant for
magazines and li
brary rental fees.

WORKING WOMEN ’S BUDGETS

Annual lump-sum al
lowance provides
for 51 movies, 10
bowling
strings,
club dues, recrea
tional equipment,
including a bathing
suit, a bathing cap,
and for vacation ex
penses.

TRANSPORTATION

Inasmuch as a certain
proportion of the
workers are in a po
sition to walk to and
from work, an aver
age of 6 fares per
week for 51 weeks is
used as the basis for
the annual money
allowance.

Inasmuch as a certain
proportion of the
workers are in a po
sition to walk to and
from work, an arbi
trary average of 6
fares per week for 51
weeks is used as the
basis for the annual
money allowance.

Annual lump-sum al
lowance provides
for fares to work, for
shopping trips, and
for transportation
connected with rec
reation.

Annual money allowance pro
vides for 6 round-trip fares per
week for 51 weeks in connec
tion with work; 4 round-trip
fares per week for 51 weeks in
New York City and 3 roundtrip fares per week outside of
New York City for transpor
tation needed for recreation,
shopping, etc.

Annual money allow
ance provides for 14
fares per week for 51
weeks to take care of
trips to and from
work, trips connect
ed with recreation
and other purposes.

Annual lump-sum al
lowance for this sec
tion of the budget
based on a fixed
amount per week to
cover
transporta
tion to and from
work and to a limit
ed extent for other
purposes.

Annual money allow
ance provides for 16
trips per week:
12 for business.
2 for pleasure.
2 for other pur
poses, such as
church, etc.

Annual lump-sum al Annual lump-sum al Annual lump-sum al Annual lump-sum allowances
lowances for each
lowances for each of
lowances for each of
for each of the following:
of the following:
the following:
Candy, sodas, and cigarettes
the following:
Contributions:
Contributions: Sep
Candy, sodas, cig
Incidentals.
Separate sums
Church contributions.
arate sums for
arettes, inciden
for church and
church and for
Charity and personal gifts.
tals.
for other char
other charities.
Contributions to Note.—Allowance for charity
ities.
church and char
Incidentals: Tele
and personal gifts is an over
Incidentals: Tele
phone calls, sta
all annual lump sum while the
ity and gifts.
phone calls, sta
tionery, postage,
other three are based on week
tionery, post
candy, cigarettes,
ly lump sums for 52 weeks.
age, candy, cig
soda, etc.
arettes,
soda, Note.—Men are giv
etc.
en a larger allow
Note .—Men are giv
ance under “inci
en a larger allow
dentals” because of
ance under “inci
added consumption
dentals” because of
of tobacco and the
added consump
additional expenses
tion of tobacco and
on the other items
the additional ex
which a man on the
penses on the other
average has to meet
items which a man
to maintain social
on the average has
standards.
to meet to maintain
social standards.

Annual lump-sum al
lowances for each of
the following:
Trunks, bags, sta
tionery, stamps,
telephone and
telegrams, ciga
rettes, plants and
flowers, interest,
etc.
Contributions to
church and other
recipients of char
itable donations.
Occupational ex
pense such as
union dues and
occupational
equipment.

Annual lump-sum al Annual lump-sum al
lowances for each of
lowance for contri
the following:
butions, laundry
supplies, and per
Stationery, postage,
telephone calls.
sonal expenses.
Candy, sodas, gum.
Cigarettes (12 car
tons) .
Home laundry sup
plies.
Contributions
to
church, charitable
organizations, and
for gifts and other.
Union dues.

WORKING WOMEN ’S BUDGETS

MISCELLANEOUS EXPENSE

See footnotes on p. 27.

WORKING WOMEN’S BUDGETS

District of Columbia
Estimated annual cost of a budget for an employed woman living in a boarding house
and buying lunches in a restaurant in the District of Columbia, August 1951
Item of expenditure

Room and board 2
Clothing 294
Other living essentials 329
Clothing upkeep$47
Personal care 49
Medical, dental, and optical care 42
Recreation, including vacation 51
Transportation 3 104
Miscellaneous expense 36
Total commodities and services 1,606
Federal income tax 4
District of Columbia income tax 6
Social Security tax
32
Savings and private insurance 6

Estimated average
annual cost1

$983

296
215

Total cost of budget2, 149
Source: Budget recommended by the Retail Wage Conference and accepted by
District of Columbia Minimum Wage and Industrial Safety Board, November 2,
1937.
1 In 1937 a budget to cover the cost of maintenance and protection of health of
a woman worker living alone in the District of Columbia, amounting to $884
annually, was approved by members of a Wage Conference called by the District
Minimum Wage Board. This budget has since been the basis for estimating the
current cost of living for an employed woman in the District. The August 1951
revision was made by the U. S. Department of Labor, Bureau of Labor Statistics.
The commodity and service categories, except for transportation, were revised on
the basis of changes in retail prices from November 1950 (the date of the last
revision) to August 1951, as measured by percent changes in suitable components
of the Bureau of Labor Statistics Consumers’ Price Index (adjusted series) for the
District of Columbia.
3 Represents cost of single woman living in boarding house with two meals a
day furnished and eating her lunches in restaurants. Of the total room and board
estimate of $983, $699, or 71 percent, is estimated for food, and $284, or 29 percent
for rent.
3 Based on 52 weekly passes at $2 per pass, the rate in effect at the time of this
revision. On January 20, 1952, the weekly pass rate was increased to $2.10. The
transportation estimate at the new rate would be $109.20.
4 Taxes were not shown in the original budget. However, they have been com
puted by the Bureau of Labor Statistics and are shown with the District’s per
mission. The Federal income tax is calculated on the basis of the rate becoming
effective on November 1, 1951.
5 District of Columbia levies a personal income tax, but inasmuch as a $4,000
personal exemption went into effect on January 1, 1950 (the exemption was $1,000
for 1947-49), no District income tax is paid by a person at the income level of
this budget.
6 An item for savings and insurance was shown in the original budget. Since
1946, revised estimated budgets have allowed a larger proportion, namely 10
percent of the total budget.

WORKING WOMEN’S BUDGETS

New York State
Estimated annual cost of adequate maintenance and protection of health for a single
employed woman living as a member of a family group in New York State Septem
ber 1951
Item of expenditure

Housing 12________________________
Other household expenses3_________
Food4__________________________
5
Clothing________________________
Other living essentials_____________
Clothing upkeep______________
Personal care_________________
Medical, dental, and optical care 6
Recreation, including vacation___
Education and reading material. _
Transportation_______________
Miscellaneous expense_________

Estimated average
annual cost1

...
...
...
...
...
$26
59
95
143
25
96
53

$205
224
420
359
497

Total commodities and services________ _________
Federal income tax
State income tax
Social security tax, including old age and unemployment in
surance disability benefits tax_______________________
Savings----------------------------------------------------------------Private insurance

1, 705
307
20

Total cost of budget

47
234
27

2, 340

Source:. New York Department of Labor, Division of Research and Statistics.
Cost of Living for Women Workers, New York State.
1 Based on prices obtained by the New York State Department of Labor in 7
cities and towns as of September 1951.
2 Includes woman’s share of family expenses for rent; also for fuel for lighting,
heating, cooking and refrigeration.
3 Includes woman’s share of family expenses connected with replacement and
maintenance of household equipment, as well as expenses involved in laundry
and other household operations such as the cost of the mother’s service in connec
tion with marketing and preparation of meals, and taking care of the home.
4 Includes woman’s share of family’s cost of breakfasts and dinners at home
($243) and the cost of her lunches in restaurants ($177).
5 In addition, an allowance of 0.5 percent of the total budget is included under
social security tax as cost to worker of the program which provides cash benefits
for unemployment due to illness.

For further information in related fields, write to the Women’s Bureau, U. S.
Department of Labor, for:
State Minimum-Wage Laws and Orders, July 1, 1942-July 1, 1950.

Bulletin 227, Revised.
State Minimum-Wage Laws and Orders, July 1, 1950, to January 1, 1952.

Supplement to Bulletin 227, Revised. Multilith.
State Minimum-Wage Laws. Leaflet 4. 1951.
Model Bill for State Minimum-Wage Law for Women.
Map showing States having minimum-wage laws, 1950.

size.)
Recommended Standards for Employment of Women.
Why Do Women Work? Leaflet 11. 1951.

(Desk size; wall
Leaflet 3.

1950.