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WORKING WOMEN’S

BUDGETS
IN

TWELVE

STATES

WOMEN’S BUREAU BULLETIN NUMBER 226
UNITED

STATES

DEPARTMENT

LABOR

UNITED STATES DEPARTMENT OF LABOR
L. B. SCHWELLENBACH, SECRETARY

WOMEN’S BUREAU
ERIEDA S. MILLER, DIRECTOR

Working Women’s Budgets
m

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

Bulletin of the Women’s Bureau No. 226

U. S. GOVERNMENT PRINTING OFFICE
WASHINGTON : 1948

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, June 4, 1948.
Sir: I have the honor of transmitting a compilation of cost-ofliving budgets for employed women without dependents. This com
pilation includes the most recent official budgets for eleven minimumwage jurisdictions and one other budget developed by the Heller
Committee for Research in Social Economics, University of California.
Publication of this specialized material is made in order to meet a
general growing interest in the subject, occasioned by the increase in
prices especially since 1946. In order that the data may be more use
ful, there has been included, along with the money amounts for the
different categories of each budget, a tabular presentation of the com
modity and service allowances for each. Authorization has been
obtained from the States and the Heller Committee for the printing
of these data. An introduction to the compilation gives a brief
description of the basic concept and development of this type of
cost-of-living budget.
The report, including the assembling of the tabular data, was pre
pared by Hazel Kefauver, Economic Analyst of the Bureau’s Division
on Women’s Labor Law and Civil and Political Status, under the
direction of Margaret L. Plunkett, Chief of the Division.
Respectfully submitted.
Frieda S. Miller, Director.

Hon, L. B.

SCHWELLENBACH,

Secretary of Labor.
ii

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 to the
cost of living. Although, since 1939, four 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. Many
of the States, therefore, have over a period of time developed lists of
goods and services that reflect the living needs of a woman worker
and have translated these needs into a dollar-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.
In 1942 the Women’s Bureau issued a compilation of budgets
reflecting prices in different States in the period 1937-1942. The
present compilation is the first that the Bureau has issued since that
time. It includes 12 budgets representing the needs, in terms of
1946-1948 prices, of a working woman, as arrived at by 11 States
and by the Heller Committee for Research in Social Economics.
University of California:
Arizona
New Jersey
Colorado
New York
Connecticut
Pennsylvania
District of Columbia
Utah
Kentucky
Washington
Massachusetts 1
Heller Committee
The figures reported by six of these budgets represent actual prices
as of the date of the budget; those for the other six are revised esti
mates of budgets priced at an earlier date.12
1 The Massachusetts budget is for a working “person” and covers the needs of a man as well as of a woman.
2 Actual prices as of the date of the budget are represented in the budgets prepared by Connecticut, Ken
tucky, Massachusetts, New York, Washington, and the Heller Committee. Revised estimates are shown
for the six budgets originally prepared by Arizona, Colorado, District of Columbia, New Jersey, Pennsyl
vania, and Utah. Two were revised by the States—New Jersey and Utah. The other four were revised
by the Bureau of Labor Statistics and the Women’s Bureau of the U. S. Department of Labor.

FOREWORD

In addition to showing the money amounts for the various budgets,
this compilation, for the first time, includes a tabulation of the com
modity and service allowances in the following categories:
Recreation, including vacation
Clothing
Education
and reading material
Clothing upkeep
Transportation
Personal care
Medical, dental, and optical care Miscellaneous expense
This addition permits a comparison of the basic elements that are
represented in the money totals of each budget.
A word of warning about the use of the cost-of-living data herein
presented is given to offset possible erroneous conclusions. The dates
of the budgets vary from March 1946 to April 1948. The total cost
of each budget represents the cost of the goods and services, plus
money needed for insurance, savings, and taxes as of the date to which
the budget figure relates. These expressed costs will not, however,
represent current costs because prices have meanwhile increased.
The consumers’ price index 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 large cities,
showed an increase of 30.0 percent from March 1946, the date of the
earliest of the budgets in this collection, to April 15, 1948, the date of
the latest budget. Since the budgets represent the minimum neces
sary to maintain a woman in health, it is important, in evaluating the
money amount of each budget, to keep in mind the date of the budget
and price increases that have since occurred.

CONTENTS
Page

Letter of transmittal__________________________
Foreword ___________________________________________ m
Significance of cost of living in minimum-wage administration. __ 1
Cost-of-living budget defined___________________ ____ '____
i
What is meant by a minimum-adequate standard of living____
2
Development of cost-of-living budgets for minimum-wage pur
poses ______________________________________________
3
Recent developments
5
Pertinent facts about the budgets included in the compilation__
6
Tables showing the cost of each budget:
Arizona__________________________________________
g
Colorado
9
Connecticut ____________________________________
IQ
District of Columbia
u
Kentucky _
12
Massachusetts
jg
New Jersey
14
New York
15
Pennsylvania
jq
Utah _
_
j—
Washington
lg
Heller Committee (San Francisco, Calif.)
19
1 ables showing the commodity and service allowances in each
budget for the following categories:
Clothing-------------------------------------------------------------- 20,21
Clothing upkeep__ 22
27
Personal care 22
28
Medical care 23
30
Recreation_____________________________ 24
32
Education and reading material 25,
32
Transportation 25
33
Miscellaneous expense26,
33

Working Women’s Budgets
IN TWELVE STATES
Significance of Cost of Living in Minimum-Wage
Administration
1 wenty-six States and the District of Columbia1 have minimumwage laws to protect women and girls from oppressively low wages;
19 jurisdictions include male minors; four include men. Only three
of these laws fix wage rates in the statute. The other 23 and, in
addition, one of the fixed-rate laws, provide machinery, usually wage
boards, whereby rates may be established for various covered occu
pations or industries under appropriate circumstances.
Cost of living is a principal basis for State minimum-wage legis
lation and is specifically mentioned in all hut one of the laws.2 In all
of the wage board laws, cost of Jiving is a basic factor to which the
legislatures directed consideration. From the days of the first
minimum-wage legislation in 1912 to the present time, therefore,
administrators of these laws have been concerned with the amount of
money that would be needed to maintain a self-supporting woman in
health. The use of a cost-of-living budget was employed as early as
191o as a means of pointing up the minimum requirements of a woman
employee covered by minimum-wage legislation.

Cost-of-Living Budget Defined
The cost-of-living budget is an attempt to estimate the annual
income needed to defray the generally-acceptable expenditures of
persons or family groups at a given level of living. It differs, there
fore, from another widely-held concept of a budget—one that appor
tions given amounts from a fixed sum of money to various items of
expenditure. The cost-of-living budget is the type used in connection
with minimum-wage administration. It has two principal compon
ents:
1. A list of goods and services, the content of the list being con
tingent on—
a. the kind of person to whom the budget is to apply.
b. the standard of living provided for.
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. '
While a cost-of-living budget may cover any defined person or
group and the level of living provided for may run all the way from
no’tTSdelun thoprewStmalysi.?8^’an<1 Puert° R'C°’ aIs° haTC mininmm-waSe laws-

these are

* South Dakota, which sets a statutory rate, does not state the basis on which the legislature acted.

WORKING WOMEN’S BUDGETS

bare subsistence to luxury, budgets used in connection with minimumwage administration have in common certain clear characteristics:
1. Theyaredesignedforaself-supportingwomanwithoutdependents.3
2. They represent a minimum-adequate standard of living.
It is no mere accident that minimum-wage budgets are built upon
the concept of a minimum-adequate standard of living. Minimumwage legislation was a part of the social legislation that characterized
the early part of the 20th 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.
With some variation in wording, the expressed purpose of these mini
mum-wage laws was to prevent employers from paying wages so
low that women workers could not support themselves in health.
What Is Meant by a Minimum-Adequate Standard of Living
To evaluate properly the cost-of-living budgets in this compilation
requires a clear understanding of what the concepts “standard of
living” and “minimum-adequate standard” involve. It is not easy
to define “standard of living.” It is closely allied to the cultural
and economic development of a country, and, as far as the individual
is concerned, it is strongly influenced by the customs of the particular
group to which he belongs and the area in which he lives.
There is a growing body of evidence to show that as a general rule
people tend toward conformity with group-approved habits or
behavior patterns, which to the individual serve as a measure of
decency and order. By conforming with the pattern of his group,
an individual can show himself and others that he “belongs,” that
he is as “good” as his associates, and that he has a “right” to be
accepted on equal terms with his fellow men. These patterns for any
given group are basically associated with its “standard of living.”
A minimum-adequate standard is one w'hich enables a person to
have the minimum of those things that will permit conformity with
the set of values of the group to which he attaches. Any appreciable
deduction from the allowance of a person living on a minimum-ade
quate standard would require him to sacrifice some essential in order
to keep up the appearance of meeting group standards.
The standard of living of a group and of a society changes over a
period of time. The more highly industrialized the society, the more
quickly the standard of living changes. An acceptable standard as
reflected in a cost-of-living budget of 40 years ago would not be
considered acceptable today. To translate a worker’s current living
standards into a list of specifically-defined goods and services is the
job of the budget maker. Because of the individual’s tendency to
conform to a group pattern, this pattern can be depended upon to
indicate the basic things that should go into such a list.
3 The Massachusetts budget is for a working “person” and covers the needs of a man as well as of a woman.

WORKING WOMEN’S BUDGETS

Development of Cost-of-Living Budgets for
Minimum-Wage Purposes
A brief history of the development since 1913 of women’s cost-ofliving budgets is useful background on which to base an appraisal of
the budgets in this compilation. 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 Women’s Bureau in 1926 and reported in its Bulletin
No. 61.4
In general, the budgets used in the early days of minimum-wage
administration comprised the total of amounts estimated to be neces
sary for a room, for board, and for clothing. Later an estimate for
sundry items was added. However, there was still a great deal not
provided for in the budgets, and that which was provided for was
subject to dispute. In order to show more clearly what was actually
needed, the lump-sum estimates for clothing and sundries were later
replaced by an amount built up from lists of articles in these two
categories and the annual requirements of each. In spite of the ad
dition of this detailed information, the budget makers often found it
difficult to justify satisfactorily the inclusion of this or that article
in a list.
Their next step, therefore, 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 organiza
tions, candy, cigarettes, stationery, and postage. Although indi
vidually some of these things may seem trivial, collectively they are
important in that they are a recognized part of the normal person’s
demands. Study and consideration of expenditure data to discover
the actual consumption pattern of women workers represented a great
step forward in the concept relating to the construction of a cost-ofliving budget. _ Subsequent refinements in the use of expenditure
data have eliminated many of the limitations which are introduced
by an uncritical acceptance of such data. Another important de
velopment prior to 1923 was the addition of allowances for private
insurance and savings as necessarv items in a minimum-adequate
budget.
Another development in this early period was the attempt to de
termine 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 pur
chase them. In some States each wage board that met to establish
BilTettaNa1l"pp.?^rmge ^ “ the United StateS’ 1912 t0 1927’ Women’s Bureau

792278—48-----2

WORKING WOMEN’S BUDGETS

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 dollar-and-cents valuations ranging from $539
to $699 for an identical commodity-quantity list.5 Thus it appears
obvious that such modifications of the cost of the budgets were based
on subjective judgment, and it is no wonder that the early cost-ofliving budgets, so clearly the result of compromise, failed to give
objective evidence of the minimum amount necessary to support a
woman in health.
Constant criticism of the validity of the budgets stimulated efforts
to increase their reliability. As the result of trial and error, budget
building techniques were improving with experience, and budgets
gradually were becoming more realistic in content and objective in
method. To the early budget makers goes the credit for setting the
right course. Their explorations, while giving limited results at the
time, were certainly fertile and worth pursuing.
_ _
Efforts to find the best method of arriving at a sound minimumwage-budget figure were temporarily set back when, in 1923, the
United States Supreme Court in the Adkins case declared the District
of Columbia minimum-wage law unconstitutional. However, during
the depression after 1929 public support of minimum-wage legis
lation increased, and, notwithstanding the adverse court decision of
1923, seven State minimum-wage laws were enacted in 1933, bringing
the total number of such laws to 16. In the next few years additional
laws were enacted. On March 29, 1937, the United States Supreme
Court in the Parrish case upheld the constitutionality of the Washing
ton State law, expressly reversing its former position.
_
_ _
Because low wages persisted as an aftermath of depression, mini
mum-wage administrators were anxious to alleviate the situation for
workers coming within the purview of their laws. To assist them,
three Federal agencies, the Women’s Bureau and the Bureau of Labor
Statistics of the United States Department of Labor and the Family
Economics Division of the Bureau of Home Economics of the United
States Department of Agriculture, collaborated in drawing up the
first systematic presentation of procedures to be used in constructing
a cost-of-living budget for minimum-wage purposes, with instructions
on how to carry them out. Among the recommendations were:
the goods and services to be included in the budget; scientific nutri
tional food standards, including diet plans; and specifications to be
followed in defining the different goods and services allowed in the
budget, such as clothing and housing. Also outlined in considerable
detail were statistical techniques to be followed in pricing the goods
and services and in processing the data to arrive at the final cost
figure. These recommendations, including a bibliography, were
issued in 1938 as United States Department of Agriculture Bulletin
No. 324, entitled, “Factors to be Considered in Preparing MinimumWage Budgets for Women.” A similar but abridged version, “U. S.
Department of Agriculture Miscellaneous Publication No. 549,”
was issued in 1944 and is still the standard general reference for
cost-of-living budget studies.
» “Commodity-quantity list” is a term used to describe the complete itemized list of goods and services
In the budget, together with the amounts of each needed for the year.

WORKING WOMEN’S BUDGETS

From the early days of its existence through the years immediately
following the renewed activity in minimum-wage legislation and
administration resulting from the 1937 Supreme Court decision, the
Women’s Bureau, by special request, directly assisted in setting up
State budgets. In the later years 1937-39, the Bureau made sub
stantial contributions to the whole process of budget construction and
pricing in a number of States. This activity developed additional
knowledge and improvement in techniques. Possibly the greatest
contribution to the authenticity of the cost-of-living budgets con
structed after 1936 was the new statistical approach used in getting
the retail prices for the goods and services enumerated in the com
modity-quantity list. Briefly, the new technique involves describing
in detail each article to be priced and using a trained pricing staff to
insure pricing uniform articles throughout the State; gathering all
prices as of a given date in appropriate retail outlets located in com
munities that are selected as representative of all cities and towns
where women are employed throughout the State; and, finally, from
the prices that have been collected, deriving a weighted State average
cost for each article. This technique greatly strengthened the over-all
findings, because it furnished persuasive evidence of the validity of
the prices reported.
Recent Developments
During the years of World War II there was less than the usual
activity in revising minimum-wage rates, and only two agencies
periodically priced cost-of-living budgets—New York State and the
Heller Committee. Owing to a basic continuing interest in budgets,
during the war period the Women’s Bureau with the technical assist
ance of the United States Bureau of Labor Statistics devised a way of
keeping the original money figures of the previously priced budgets
up to date by use of the consumers’ price index and has thus kept them
useful for current situations.0
The Women’s Bureau has continued to maintain contact with those
agencies which have made regular or recent cost-of-living surveys
and has been able to observe, evaluate, and integrate the work they
have done. Cost-qf-living budgets constructed on the basis of the
technical information existing today rest on an increasingly more
* The following method was used by the Bureau of Labor Statistics and the Women’s Bureau of the U. S.
Department of Labor to keep previously priced budgets up to date. Revisions of the original money figures
were made by applying to the original amounts the percentage changes in prices of the most applicable
items included in the Bureau of Labor Statistics' consumers’ price index. This index is designed to measure
over-all tune-to-time changes in prices paid for goods and services bought by moderate-income families in
large cities. 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 m 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 em
ployed women s budgets is based in whole or in part on the price of food eaten in restaurants. Since the
cost of a furnished room may have increased at a different rate than the cost of a rented dwelling, and since
the cost of meals eaten in restaurants or boarding houses may have increased at a different rate than costs
of food sold for preparation at home, the Bureau of Labor Statistics has pointed out that the budget esti
mates may not reflect the exact price changes that have taken place in these two categories of the working
woman s budget since the date of the original pricing. The estimates, where possible, were based on the
most recent prices collected in the State for which the revision was made. Where prices have been col
lected in more than one city in the State, weighted indexes were used. In the absence of price information
for a particular State, indexes showing the average price changes in 34 large cities in the United States were
used. These restrictive factors in the application of the family index to the woman’s budget are reported
as a matter of information. The Women’s Bureau 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.

WORKING WOMEN’S BUDGETS

exact knowledge of the situations they purport to represent and, there
fore, arc a more effective tool in minimum-wage administration than
were the earlier budgets.
With the continuous increase in prices since 1946, interest in cost of
living has become widespread and persistent. This has accentuated
the growing awareness among minimum-wage administrators of the
need for still more objective procedures in developing a cost-of-living
budget that will represent the essential needs of employed women.
To this end budget technicians are working on further refinements of
methods. The Women’s Bureau is at the present time in the process
of developing a more objective commodity-quantity list for an em
ployed woman.
Pertinent Facts About the Budgets Included in the Compilation
Of the 12 cost-of-living budgets in the present compilation, 11 have
been constructed to show the minimum-adequate needs of a self
supporting woman without dependents. One budget, that for Massa
chusetts, considers also the needs of a self-supporting man without
dependents. Ten of these budgets were originally prepared by State
minimum-wage jurisdictions: Arizona, Colorado, Connecticut, Ken
tucky, Massachusetts, New Jersey, New York, Pennsylvania, Utah,
and Washington. The commodity and service allowances of the
budget for the District of Columbia were compiled and priced with
the assistance of outside agencies, but the final determination of the
cost of the budget was made by a conference called by the District
of Columbia Minimum Wage Board. The 12th budget was developed
by the Heller Committee for Research in Social Economics, University
of California, and is widely used.
Each of these 12 budgets is based on the concept of minimumadequacy, rather than on a subsistence or a luxury standard. Also,
each is based on the principle of self-support and therefore attempts to
provide sufficiently for the minimum needs of an employed woman
(or, in one State, a person) so that subsidies from the family, from or
ganized charity, or from other sources are not necessary. Neverthe
less, the budgets do vary somewhat as to the commodity-quantity
content; the food and lodging categories of the budgets are built
around different living arrangements, each of which involves a separate
set of cost factors; the savings, private insurance, and tax allowances
differ; and, finally, their money totals reflect price levels for different
dates.
.
Since the concept of a “standard of living” involves so much that is
subjective and since each of the available budgets represents the think
ing of the particular group of people who made it up, the variations in
the commodity-quantity allowances that cannot be explained by
variations in known factors, such as climate, can be regarded as due
to the honest differences of opinion among the groups which constructed
the budgets. In spite of their variations, however, the data do lend
themselves to many interesting and useful analyses on cost of living
of a working woman.
None of the commodity-quantity lists is meant to prescribe the way
in which each woman worker should spend her money. Their purpose

WORKING WOMEN’S BUDGETS

is to provide the things that will assure minimum adequacy insofar as an
individual’s standard of living is concerned. A particular woman may
choose to buy two $30 dresses instead of four $15 dresses which might
be provided for. She may not buy the cosmetics that are used by the
majority of working women but, instead, may prefer to buy books or
phonograph records. This in no way depreciates the value of the
commodity-quantity list as set up by the budget makers. It has
served its purpose if it provides an adequate pattern which, when
priced, allows sufficient money for a working woman without depend
ents to live in health and in general conformity with the mores of her
group.

THE COST OF EACH BUDGET

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
Item of expenditure

Estimated average
annual cost 1

Housing (furnished room)
$249.68
Food (3 restaurant meals a day)------------------------------Clothing---------------------- -------------------------------------Other living essentials-------------------------------------------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
Occupational expense 23. 00
Miscellaneous expense--------------------------41. 10
Total commodities and services
Federal income tax 2---------------------State income tax 2________________
State sales tax___________________
Social security tax________________
Savings and private insurance---------Total cost of budget

713. 89
294. 67
425.67

1, 683. 91
194. 00
7. 00
(3)

19. 53
48. 83
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, footnote 6.)
2 Federal and State income taxes were not provided for in the 1937-38 budget.
However, as the increased incidence of these taxes has made them significant in
any cost-of-living figure, they have been incorporated in the 1948 estimate.
3 An amount covering the Arizona sales tax of 2 percent is not shown separately.
However, an allowance for this tax is included in the April 1948 costs for food,
clothing, personal care, and recreation. The estimated total of this tax is $22.
8

Colorado
Estimated annual cost of a budget for an employed woman living in a furnished room
and eating meals in restaurants in Colorado, March 1947
Estimated average
annual cost1

Item of expenditure

Housing (furnished room)_
Food (3 restaurant meals a day)
Clothing ________________________________________
Other living essentials
393. 00
Clothing upkeep $31.
00
Personal care
55.
00
Medical, dental, and optical care_________
47. 00
Recreation, including vacation___________
80. 00
Education and reading material__________
34. 00
Transportation
61.
00
Miscellaneous expense
85.
00
Total commodities and services 1, 444. 00
Federal income tax 12
State income tax2
Social security tax;________________________ _______
Savings and private insurance.._____________________
Total cost of budget

$201.00
589. 00
261. 00

194. 00
6. 75
16. 92
30. 29

1, 691. 96

Source: Industrial Commission of Colorado, Minimum Wage Division. Un
published data, 1937.
1 The original budget was based on prices prevailing in Denver and in 12 other
Colorado cities in October 1937. The March 1947 figures are revised estimates
made by the U. S. Department of Labor, Bureau of Labor Statistics. (For ex
planation of method used, see p. 5, footnote 6.)
2 Federal and State income taxes were not provided for in the 1937 budget.
However, as the increased incidence of these taxes has made them significant in
any cost-of-living figure, they have been incorporated in the 1947 estimate.

Connecticut
Annual cost of a minimum budgetfor a single working woman living in afurnished room
and eating meals in restaurants in cities and towns in Connecticut, March 1946
Item of expenditure

Average annual cost

Housing (furnished room)
$252. 76
Food (3 restaurant meals a day) _ __________________
Clothing _______________________________________
Other living essentials
Clothing upkeep $28.
34
Personal care 35.
03
Medical, dental, and optical care_________
40. 23
Recreation, including vacation___________
69. 00
Education and reading material__________
11. 32
Transportation
25.
50
Miscellaneous expense-'
35.
80

593. 02
167.55
245. 22

Total commodities and services 1, 258. 55
Federal income tax
188.00
State income tax 2
Social security tax
14. 61
Savings and private insurance 3
Total cost of budget

1, 461. 16

Source: Connecticut Department of Labor, the Bureau of Statistics and the
Minimum Wage Division. An Annual Minimum Budget for Working Women
in Connecticut, March 1946. Mimeo.
1 Based on prices obtained by the State of Connecticut in 11 cities and towns
during February and March 1946.
2 The State of Connecticut does not levy an income tax.
3 The Connecticut budget does not make an allowance for this item.

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, February 1948
Estimated average
annual cost 1

Item of expenditure

Housing and Food: (furnished room in boarding
house where 2 meals a day are served; lunches
bought in restaurants)____________________ -------Clothing______________________________
-------Other living essentials______________________ _____
Clothing upkeep
$44. 84
Personal care
44. 27
Medical, dental, and optical care
37. 11
Recreation, including vacation
45. 23
Transportation
78. 00
Miscellaneous expense
31. 97
Total commodities and services 1 421. 11
Federal income tax 2
District of Columbia income tax 2___________________
Social security tax 2
_
Savings and private insurance 3_____________________
Total cost of budget

$862. 51
277. 18
281. 42

’ ^57 qo
7. 80
17 93
179. 32

j 793 jq

Source: District of Columbia Miuimum Wage and Industrial Safety Board. Washington, D. C.

* 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 Columbia
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 m the District. The February 1948 revision was made by the U. S.
Department of Labor, Bureau of Labor Statistics. (For explanation of method
used, see p. 5, footnote 6.)
2 Federal and District of Columbia income taxes and the social security tax were
not provided for in the 1937 budget. However, as the increased incidence of
income taxes has made them significant in any cost-of-living figure, they (and the
S°31§J.security tax) have been incorporated in later estimates.
., j ® 1937 budget did not provide for this item. Later estimates have pro
vided tor a combination savings and private insurance item amounting to 10 per
cent of the total budget.

792278—48------ 3

Kentucky
Annual cost of livingfor a self-supporting woman living alone in Kentucky,
March-April 1946
Average annual cost 1
Item of expenditure

Housing------------------------------------Food___________________________
Clothing----------- -----------------------Other living essentials------------------Clothing upkeep 2------------------Personal care------------------------ $81.90
50. 00
Medical, dental, and optical carc_
52. 00
Recreation
6. 00
Education and reading material.
39. 52
Tr ansportationOrganizational dues and contri
13. 00
butions
26. 00
Incidentals-------------------------Total commodities and serv
ices____________________
Federal income tax3--------------------State income tax3----------------------Social security tax3--------------------Savings and private insurance-------Total cost of budget

All meals
eaten in
boarding
house

$274. 79
473. 46
237. 20
268. 42

All meals
eaten in
restau
rants

$274.79
560.56
237.20
268.42

1, 253. 87 1, 340. 97
155. 00
172. 00
9.10
11.24
14. 55
15. 62
22. 39
22. 39
1,454.91

1,562.22

Source: Kentucky Department of Industrial Relations. Evidence and Infor
mation Pertaining 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 sections of the budget are
based on prices obtained throughout the State. In determining costs for the other
sections of the budget, the State used as a guide the median retail prices oi selected
services in 34 large cities, as reported by the U. S. Department of Labor, Bureau
of Labor Statistics, for March 1946.
, ,,
* Allowance for laundry and dry cleaning not included in budget although the
State report indicates that the average cost for this service would be from SL5U
to $4 per week.
.
,,
3 Federal and State income taxes and social security tax are not included m the
official State budget. However, they have been computed by the Women s
Bureau and, with the State’s permission, have been incorporated m this pres
entation.

Massachusetts
Annual cost of minimum budgetfor certain employed persons living in a furnished room
and eating meals in restaurants in Massachusetts, September and October 1946
.

ltem of expenditure

Average annual cost1
(men and women)

Housing (furnished room)
$233.48
Food (3 restaurant meals a day)
617, 07
Clothing________________________________________
Other living essentials______ ______ ________________
Clothing upkeep---------------------------------- $39. 50
Personal care
39,
79
Medical and dental care
43.
98
Recreation, including vacation___________
88. 65
Education and reading material__________
14. 31
Transportation
30.
60
Miscellaneous expense
60.
10
Total cost of commodities and services__________
Taxes, savings, and private insurance 12

Igg 99

316* 84

l, 336, 38

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, September—
October 1946. Mimeo.
1 Based on prices obtained by the State of Massachusetts in 20 cities and towns
dunng September and October 1946. In September 1946, the Massachusetts
Minimum Wage Law was made applicable to adult male persons. This budget is
the first to incorporate prices for men’s items. The money amounts apply to
persons of either sex.
J
2 1 he Massachusetts cost-of-living figures are set up to show only the minimum
expenditure for commodities and services. Taxes, savings, and private insurance
are not, included in the official figure. On the basis of the amount allowed for com
modities and services, Federal income and social security taxes would amount to
about $180. The Massachusetts State income tax is "not applicable to single
persons with earned incomes of less than $2,000.

14
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, December 1946
Estimated average
annual cost,
Item of expenditure
December 19J6 1

Total cost of commodities and services 2--------------------- $1, 746. 99
Federal income tax 3---------------------------------------------275. 00
State income tax 4--------------------------------- .--------------Social security tax, including unemployment insurance3—
43. 24
Savings and private insurance---------------------------------97. 30
Total cost of budget

2, 162. 53

1 Estimate prepared by New Jersey Department of Labor and based on
November 1942 budget shown below.
_
2 Money totals for separate categories not available.
,
3 Federal income tax and social security tax are not included m the official
State budget. However, they have been computed by the Women’s Bureau and,
with the State’s permission, have been incorporated in the 1946 estimate.
4 The State of New Jersey does not levy an income tax.

Official New Jersey Budget for 1942 on Which Above Estimate Is Based
Item of expenditure

Housing (furnished room)-------------Food (3 restaurant meals a day)-----Clothing---------------------------------Other living essentials------------------Clothing upkeep------------------Personal care------------- _--------Medical, dental, and optical care
Recreation, including vacation-.
Education and reading materialTransportation--------------------Miscellaneous expense-----------Total commodities and services
Savings and private insurance---------Total cost of budget

Average annual cost,
November 194%

_
$232. 61
.. 516.25
_____ 240.38
_____ 403.05
$23. 76
47. 64
53. 71
113. 51
18. 86
55. 82
89. 75

1,392. 29
77. 77
1, 470. 06

Source: Revision of Cost-of-Living Survey made in June 1938, based on current
costs in November 1942, issued by the New Jersey State Department of Labor.
(The 1942 revision consists of actual pricing for some items and estimates tor
others.)

New York State
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 1947
Item of expenditure

Average
annual cost1

Housing 12-----------------------------------------------------------------Other household expenses 3
4
Food*----- ---------------------------------------------------------------I
Clothing
333
Other living essentials
403
Clothing upkeep_________ _________
$26
Personal care 53
Medical, dental, and optical care 80
Recreation, including vacation, educational and cul
tural pursuits 138
Transportation 58
Miscellaneous expense_________________
48
Total commodities and services 1; 486
Federal income tax ’ 245
State income tax_______________________ _____
Social security tax.____________________________________
Savings
199
Private insurance________________________ ____________

$185

199
361

9
20
31

Total cost of budget 1,990

Source: New York Department of Labor, Division of Industrial Relations,
women in Industry and Minimum Wage. Cost of Living for Women Workers;
New York State, 1947. Summary. Mimeo.
1 Based on prices obtained by the State of New York in 11 cities and towns as
of September 1947.
2 Includes woman’s share of family expenses for rent; also for fuel for light
ing, 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 services in con
nection with marketing and preparation of meals.
4 Includes woman’s share of family’s cost of breakfasts and dinners at home
and the cost of her lunches in restaurants.

Pennsylvania
Estimated annual cost of a budget for an employed woman living in a furnished room
and eating meals in restaurants in Pennsylvania, December 194b
Estimated average
annual cost 1

Item of expenditure

Housing (furnished room)
$198. 39
Food (3 restaurant meals a day)
729. 26
Clothing
276. 00
Other living essentials_______________ ______________
Clothing upkeep $30.
59
Personal care
55.
99
Medical care
56.
10
Recreation, including vacation___________ 104. 87
Education and reading material__________
19. 46
Transportation
53.
95
Occupational expense, including union dues_
18. 55
Miscellaneous expense
67.
67
Total commodities and services 1, 610. 83
Federal income tax 2
State income tax 3_________________ ___________
Philadelphia income tax 4
Social secui'ity tax
Savings
Private insurance______________________________
Total cost of budget

407. 18

241. 00
11. 49
19. 64
44. 82
36.67

1, 964. 45

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 wa,s based
on prices prevailing in 12 Pennsylvania cities in March 1938. The December
1946 figures are revised estimates made by the U. S. Department of Labor,
Bureau of Labor Statistics. (For explanation of method used, sec p. 5, footnote
6.)
2 Federal income tax was not provided for in the 1938 budget. However, as
the increased incidence of this tax has made it significant in any cost-of-living
figure, it ha's been incorporated in the 1946 estimate.
3 The State of Pennsylvania does not levy an income tax.
4 Included in the original budget was an allowance for a sales tax levied by the
city of Philadelphia. While this sales tax was repealed in 1939, an income
tax is now levied by the city of Philadelphia.

Utah
Estimated annual cost of a budget for an employed woman living in a boarding house
in Utah, September 1947
Item of expenditure

Estimated average
annual cost 1

Housing and Food (furnished room in boarding house
where all meals are served)
$755. 82
Clothing ---------------------------------------------------------Other living essentials___ ___________ _____________
Clothing upkeep $22. 78
Personal care
96. 73
Medical, dental, and optical care________ 110. 39
Recreation, including vacation __
130.87
Education and reading material_________
19. 34
Transportation
66. 00
Miscellaneous expense
33. 00

277! 97
479. n

Total commodities and services_______________
1,
Federal income tax
State income tax________________
Social security tax
Savings.-------------------------------------------------------- 203^00
Private insurance________________
Total cost of budget____________ _____ _____

512. 90

254. 80
14 75
20. 32

25. 88

2, 031. 65

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 was based on prices obtained by the State of Utah in
various cities and towns in 1939. The 1947 figures are revised estimates made by
the Industrial Relations Council of Utah.

State of Washington
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 1947
Item of expenditure

Average annual cost 1

Housing (furnished room)
$321. 36
Food (3 restaurant meals a day)
681. 87
Clothing._______________________________
Other living essentials..
473. 85
Clothing upkeep $32.53
Personal care
55.
21
Medical, dental, and optical care_________
75. 06
Recreation, including vacation___________
91. 00
Education and reading material__________
37. 60
Transportation
81.
60
Occupational expense
24.
00
Miscellaneous expense
76.
85

244.56

Total commodities and services----------------------Federal income tax..
206.00
State income tax 2_______________________________
State sales tax
Social security tax
Savings 3
Private insurance

1, 721. 64

Total cost of budget________________ ________

2, 048. 49

53. 14
17.71
50. 00

Source: Washington State Department of Labor and Industries, Industrial
Statistician, Division of Industrial Relations. Minimum Budget for a Single
Employed Woman in Washington. Prices week of May 5 through May 10, 1947.
Multilith.
1 Based on prices obtained by the State of Washington in 16 cities during the
week May 5-10, 1947.
2 The State of Washington does not levy an income tax.
3 The Washington State budget does not make a separate allowance for
savings as such. Private insurance is considered a form of savings.

San Francisco, Calif.
Annual cost of budgetfor a single working woman living in a boarding house and buying
some of her meals in restaurants in San Francisco, Calif., September 1947
[Not an official State of California budget]
Item of expenditure

Average annual cost 1

Housing and Food$1, 040. 15
Boarding house rate for room with breakfast
and dinner 6 days a week and Sunday
breakfast$777. 50
Sunday dinners in restaurants, including
allowance for 15ji tips
66.
Lunches in restaurants 196.
Clothing
226. 35
Other living essentials
469. 49
Clothing upkeep $30.
Personal care
65.
Medical, dental, and optical care_________
Recreation, including vacation 117.
Transportation
68.
Union and club dues
21.
Miscellaneous expense
82.

30
35
65
73
82. 78
26
17
94
96

Total commodities and services 1, 735. 99
Federal income tax
275. 00
State income tax 2
Social security tax, including unemployment compensation
and disability benefits
43. 30
State sales tax____________________________ _______
25. 55
Savings
85. 00
Private insurance 3_________________________________________
Total cost of budget

2, 164. 84

Source: The Heller Committee for Research in Social Economics, University
of California. Quantity and Cost Budget for a Single Working Woman. Prices
for San Francisco, September 1947. Berkeley, Calif., University of California
Press, 1948. Mimeo. Price 350. Reprinted with permission of the Heller
Committee. Copies of complete budget may be purchased from the University
of California Press.
1 Based on prices obtained in San Francisco in September 1947.
2 California State income tax not applicable to persons with incomes of less
than $3,000.
s This budget does not make a separate allowance for this item.

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
Arizona
Quantity
on which
revised
estimate
is based

Article of clothing

Coat, heavy................................................Coat, light
Hat

X
X

y2
X

Skirt

Sweater, wool or mixture .

Colorado Connec
ticut
Quantity
on which Quantity
revised
priced
estimate in
194G
is based

1
1

Dress, rayon, street__ ...

3
4
2

X
i

Slip, everyday_______ ____ ___________

Nightgown or pajamas, cotton
1

X
X

34
34

2
2

(2)

y2
IX
X

ix
y
l
l

1
3
0

l
X

X
y2

X
X

H
3

1
1

3
1
1
2
3

2
4

3
2
3

24
2
2

6
6
6
4
2

12
6
4
1
1

5
7 34
234
2

(2)
1
1

(2)

iy2
\y2

34
y2

A
X
3 $11. 21

l
l
2

3
12
1

X
Belt________________________________
Compact ___ __________

(2)

A
X

X
X

4
1

X
X

3
2
■2
3

(2)

3 $4. 00

X
X

x
1H
lA

See footnotes on p. 21.

3
IX

Quantity
Quantity
on which Quantity priced
revised
priced
in 1046
estimate in 1946 (woman
is based
only)

3
4

Massa
chusetts

2
3

Ken
tucky

X
1

Girdle ______
____ _ ___
Brassiere __________ _____ -................

Slippers, bedroom

X
X

___

X
(2)

1
1

Shoes, walking_ _____________

l
A
X

Pantie, cotton, rayon

X
X

Blouse, cotton, rayon

Housecoat, cotton, rayon _____________

X
H

District of
Columbia

2
2

1
1
34

1
4
1
9

(2)

l
l

(2)

l
4
1
X

1
1
1

WORKING WOMEN’S BUDGETS

Items included in selected categories1 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
New
York

New
Jersey 4
Article of clothing

Pennsylvahia

Quantity
Quantity
on which Quantity on which
priced
revised
revised
estimate in 1947 estimate
is based
is based

Coat, heavy.................................. ...............
Coat, light..................................................
Hat___ _____________________________

/2
X

X
X

• 1

H
M

y
y2
2

Sweater, wool or mixture
Blouse, cotton, rayon._______ _________

Housecoat, cotton, rayon

2
2
4
2
1

Dress, rayon, street
Dress, cotton, street. .............. ........ ...........

(2)
(2)

3
2
1
X
Yz

X
H

Slip, everyday.................... .......................

Pantie, cotton, rayon ________________

3
1
1
1
1
4

Girdle....... ........... ............. ........ ............. .
Brassiere__ __________ ______________

2
4

Hose, nylon, silk..........................................

Shoes, walking____ __________________
Shoes, dress...................................................

3
1
1

Nightgown or pajamas, cotton
Nightgown or pajamas, rayon ...

Slippers, bedroom ____________ ______
Galoshes........................................................
Gloves, fabric___ ___________________
Bathing suit
Bathing cap...... ....................... ........ ...........
Handbag, winter.

y
«
(2)

1
1
12
X

X
«

1
2

(»)

y
X

1
2
iy
ix
1

1
1
lp2
iX
X
2

y
X

X
X

y
X

2
3
1

ix
ix

1
1
1
4

2
6

2
4

2
3

3
2

18
3
1

10
4
2
1
1

y
y
X

y2
l
X

1
2
2

X
X

y
X

12
(2)
2
1
1

12
1
Belt...... .........................................................

X
X

2
4

X
X

3
1
1
1

X
X

3
1
1
1
1
6

1
1
1
4
1

2
2

Quantity
on which Quantity Quantity
revised
priced
priced
estimate in 1947
in 1947
is based

1
1
1
1
1
3
1
4
1

Heller
Committee
San Fran
cisco, Calif.

Wash
ington

Utah

X
M

iy
i
y

iy
2
1

a $3.00

3 $1. 50

X
«

y
y

2
1

y
y
y
X

1
1
X

iy
2
X
X
1
12
2
X

Other accessories______ . ___________
3 $8. 50
___ 2>
3 $5.00
1 Housing and food omitted because they do not readily lend themselves to tabular presentation.
2 Provided for in “Recreation” or as lump-sum allowance.
3 Original money allowance not adjusted for increase in prices subsequent to date of survey.
4 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 December 1946 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 1946.
6 Provided for in “Personal Care.”
® 5 percent of miscellaneous items, i. e., gloves, umbrella, raincoat, i andbags, and handkerchiefs.

' Items included in selected categories1 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

Colorado

Quantity on which revised
estimate is based

Connecticut

District of Columbia

Kentucky

Massachusetts

Quantity priced in 1946

Quantity on which revised
estimate is based

Quantity priced in 1946

Quantity priced in 1946
(woman only)

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

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,
Bureau of Labor Statistics.

Annual money allowance
based on a selected list of
articles and services needed
by an employed woman
who has to meet certain
necessary standards in per
sonal appearance in order
to carry out her social obli
gations and retain her job.
A lump-sum allowance pro
vides for the following
toilet articles and prepa
rations:
Toothbrushes.
Toothpaste.
Mouth wash.
Combs, bobby pins, etc.

CLOTHING UPKEEP
Annual over-all lump-sum
allowance for dry clean
ing supplies, shoe repairs,
and sewing supplies.

Annual money allowance
based on prices for:
(a) dry cleaning—
1 heavy coat
1 light coat
7 wool dresses
6 rayon dresses
2 wool suits
2 skirts
(b) shoe repairs—
4 half soles
8 heel lifts,
plus a lump sum for shoe
polish, shoe trees, clothes
brush, clothes hangers,
sewing supplies, etc.

Annual lump sum allow
ance for dry cleaning,
shoe repair, laundry,
and sewing supplies.

PERSONAL CARE
Annual money allowance
provides for supplies for
the care of the teeth, hair,
and skin, and supplies
and services needed for
sanitary or grooming pur
poses.

Annual money allowance
specifically provides for
tooth brush, tooth paste,
cosmetics, sanitary sup
plies, soap, hair cuts,
and permanent waves.

Annual money allowance
based on prices for selected
items representing mini
mum standards of ade
quacy, based on needs of
a single workmg woman as
dictated by custom. In
setting up the list of items
the State considered cer
tain standards for personal
appearance which must
be met if the woman is to
have social contacts and
in many cases if she is to
have a job.
The items provided for are:
Toothbrush.

Annual lump-sum allow
ance for cosmetics and
hygiene supplies.

WORKING WOMEN ’S BUDGETS

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

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.

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

Recommendations of the
American Medical Asso
ciation given considera
tion by the State in arriv
ing at the annual over-all
lump-sum allowance for
this section of the budget.

Hospital insurance$10.80 Annual over-all lump-sum
Physician—
allowance covers medi
Home, office, and
cal, dental, and optical
clinic calls____
10.00
care, including medi
Health examina
cines and supplies.
tions, including
immunizations
and optical care... 3.00
Dental diagnosis and
prophylaxis_______ 4.00
Fillings_________
3.00
Extractions________
2.00
X-rays___________
4.00
Medicines and sup
plies --------------- 1.43
Prescriptions_____
2.00

Annual over-all lump-sum Medical care:
allowance covers hos
Hospital insurance. $10.20
pitalization, medical,
Physician—
dental, and optical care.
Home and office
In arriving at the money
calls...........
13.00
allowance the median fees
Health examina
for a physician’s office
tions........................ 3.00
visit and for an amalgam Dental care:
filling for a one-surface
Diagnosis and pro
simple cavity were con
phylaxis..........
4.00
sidered, along with the
Fillings___________
3.00
median for the retail price
Extractions_____
2.00
of glasses in 34 large cities
X-rays________
4.00
in March 1946, as reported Medicines:
by the United States
Medicine chest sup
Department of Labor,
plies..... ............
1.78
Bureau of Labor Statis
Prescriptions_____
3.00
tics.

Note.—This is the most di: ficult section of the budget to appraise in terms of needs: (1) because of the extremely wide
variation in the requirements of individuals for medical, d ental, and optical care in a gi\ en period of time, and (2) because group-health insurance rates are not only not avail ible in every community but when they are available they
differ greatly as to coverage, The best way in which to pi esent the scope of the medical care allowance for most of the
budgets seemed to be to show the break-down of the mone y allowance where possible. IN o corrections have been made
for changes in the value of the dollar since the date the bu Igets were priced.
See footnotes on p. 21.

WORKING WOMEN ’S BUDGETS

Toothpaste.
Mouthwash.
Comb, brush, hairpins,
bobby pins.
Shampoo.
Toilet soap.
Hand lotion.
Cold c^eam.
Facial tissue.
Manicure supplies.
Face powder.
Talcum powder.
Rouge and lipstick.
Sanitary napkins.
Sanitary belt.
1 permanent wave.
5 haircuts and wave sets.

Items included in selected categories1 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

Colorado

Quantity on which revised
estimate is based

Connecticut

District ol Columbia

Quantity priced in 1946

Quantity on which revised
estimate is based

Kentucky

Massachusetts

Quantity priced in 1946

Quantity priced in 1946
(woman only)

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.

Annual lump-sum allowance
provides for 51 movies, 10
bowling strings, club dues,
recreational clothing, in
cluding a bathing suit, and
for 1 week’s vacation at
camp or equivalent, with
transportation to and from
camp, and camp clothing.

RECREATION

See footnotes on p. 21.

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

Annual money allowance
provides for 51 movies,
10 bowling strings, social
clubs dues, a bathing suit
and bathing cap, or other
preferable recreational
equipment; and for 1
week’s vacation at a girls’
summer camp or equiva
lent, including bus fare
to and from camp and
special camp clothing.

Annual lump-sum allow
ance for each of the
following:
Recreation.
Vacation.

WORKING WOMEN'S BUDGETS

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

Items included in selected categories 1 oj 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

Colorado

Quantity on which revised
estimate is based

Connecticut

District of Columbia

Quantity priced in 1946

Quantity on which revised
estimate is based

Kentucky

Massachusetts

Quantity priced in 1946

Quantity priced in 1946
(man and woman)

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

Annual money allowance
covers cost of daily and
Sunday newspaper.

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

Annual lump-sum allow
ance for this section of
the budget.

TRANSPORTATION
Annual lump-sum allow
ance for this section of the
budget represents the low
est possible cost. It was
assumed that in those
localities where transporta
tion costs are higher,
women workers would
plan for group transporta
tion to reduce the cost.

Annual money allowance
covers two fares per week
day, plus four extra fares
per week.

Annual lump-sum allow
ance designed to repre
sent minimum annual ex
penditures in connection
with business, pleasure,
and other transportation
needs. In arriving at the
State average, it was as
sumed that in large cities
the fares paid by working
women to get to and from
work would also take care
of recreation and social
needs, because much of the
latter would be near the
place of business. In
smaller communities
where most women walk
to work, the transporta
tion allowance was deemed
needed to take care of
travel in connection with
recreational and social life
and other transportation
needs. The lump-sum al
lowance is based on 6 fares
a week for 51 weeks.

Annual money allowance
covers cost of weekly
street car pass for 52
weeks.

Annual lump-sum allow
ance based on informa
tion furnished by bus com
panies operated in 9 Ken
tucky cities.

Annual’^money allowance
based on arbitrary average
of 10 cents for 6 fares per
week for 51 weeks.

WORKING WOMEN ’S BUDGETS

Annual lump-sum allow Annual lump-sum allow
ance provides for a daily
ance provides for a daily
paper and some other read
paper, one magazine sub
ing and educational matscription, and tuition.
rial, at a minimum cost,
such as some form of adult
education for which either
a small fee or transporta
tion costs are paid.

See footnotes on p. 21.

Items included in selected categories1 of minimum-wage budgets for self-supporting, employed women—clothing, clothing upkeep, personal care, kg
medical care, recreation, education and reading, transportation, and miscellaneous expense—Continued
^
Arizona

Colorado

Connecticut

District of Columbia

Kentucky

Quantity on which revised
estimate is based

Quantity priced in 1946

Quantity on which revised
estimate is based

Quantity priced in 1946

Massachusetts
Quantity priced in 1946
(man and woman)

MISCELLANEC US EXPENSE

See footnotes on p. 21.

Annual lump-sum allow
ances for each of the
following:
Stamps and stationery,
telephone calls.
Contributions to church
and charitable organiza
tions and gifts.
Occupational expense.
Incidentals.

Annual lump-sum allow
ances for each of the
following:
Telephone calls, station
ery and postage, candy,
cigarettes, sodas, etc.
Contributions to church,
community chest, Red
Cross, etc.

Annual lump-sum allow
ance for this section of
the budget.

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

Annual lump-sum allow
ances for each of the fol
lowing:
Telephone calls, stationery,
and postage.
Candy, cigarettes, sodas,
etc.
Contributions to church,
community chest, and
other charitable organi
zations.

WORKING WOMEN ’S BUDGETS

Annual lump-sum allow
ances for each of the fol
lowing:
Stationery and postage neces
sary to take care of the
limited amount of corre
spondence necessary to
keep in touch with rela
tives and friends.
Contributions to church and
charitable organizations.
Gifts.
Union dues or other occu
pational expense, such as
placement cost and ben
efit charges.

Items included in selected categories1 oj minimum-wage budgets for self-supporting employed women—clothing, clothing upkeep, personal care,
medical care, recreation, education and reading, transportation, and miscellaneous expense—Continued
New Jersey *
Quantity on which revised
estimate is based

New York

Pennsylvania

Utah

Washington

Quantity on which revised
estimate is based

Heller Committee
San Francisco, Calif.

Quantity priced in 1947

Quantity on which revised
estimate is based

Quantity priced in 1947

Annual money allowance
based on prices for:
(a) dry cleaning—
1 winter coat (un
furred) .
2 spring coats (un
furred) .
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.

Annual money allowance
based on prices for:
(a) cleaning and pressing—
1 fur trimmed coat
1 plain coat
1 suit
12 dresses
(b) shoe repairs—
7 heels
7 toe tips

CLOTHING UPKEEP
Annual money allowance Annual lump-sum allowance
based on prices for:
for dry cleaning and laun
(a) cleaning and pressing—
dry, laundry supplies, and
2 wdnter coats
other supplies, plus shoe
1 spring coat
repair allowance which is
2 suits
based on prices for 3 pairs
8 rayon dresses
each of half soles and heels,
2 wool dresses
toe tips, and heel lifts.
2 wool skirts
(b) shoe repairs—
3 half soles
9 heel lifts
3 toe tips,
plus a lump sum for mis
cellaneous items such as
shoo polish, shoe trees,
clothes brush, clothes
hangers, sewing supplies,
safety pins.
Prices for services are based
on minimum-adequacy
standard—not on luxury
services which cost more,
such as calling for and
delivering garments and
overnight service.
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.

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

WORKING WOMEN ’S BUDGETS

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

See footnotes on p. 21.

Items included in selected categories 1 of minimum-wage budgets for self-supporting, employed women—clothing, clothing upkeep, personal care, to
medical care, recreation, education and reading, transportation, and miscellaneous expense—Continued
00
New Jersey <
Quantity on which revised
estimate is based

New York

Pennsylvania

Utah

Quantity priced in 1947

Quantity on which revised
estimate is based

Washington
Quantity priced in 1947

Heller Committee
San Francisco, Calif.
Quantity priced in 1947

PERSON.4.L CARE

Annual money allowance
based on prices for a se
lected list of toilet articles
and beauty services. In
making up the list the
State considered consumer
habit to be of primary im
portance. 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)4
Toothpaste (2-4 oz.)„- 8
Mouthwash (14-16oz.)_ 2
Liquid shampoo (3-6
oz.)4
Comb, brush, pins,
curlers, wave lo-

Annual lump-sum money Annual money allowance
based on prices for the
allowance for each of the
following articles:
following to provide
services in accordance
Toothbrush3
with working woman’s
Toothpaste6
minimum obligations in
Toilet soap.......... __.24
Mouth wash2
maintaining her appear
Comb1
ance:
Hand lotion............. 3
(a) cosmetics (supplies for
care of face and
Rouge2
hands, soap, powders,
Lipstick3
Compact.....................1
creams, etc., and sani
Hairbrush H
tary supplies).
(b) beauty parlor services
Deodorant2
Hairpins and curlers
2 permanents
Lump sum
12 haircuts
12 shampoos and
nairnets6
Tissue cream (8 oz.)- 1
wave sets.
Cleansing cream (1
lb)1
Cleansing tissues
(boxes)2
Face powder.............2

Annual money allowance
based on prices for the
following articles:
Toothbrush................. 2
_____ 3
....... . 2
Brush________ --------a
Hair or bobby pins
_____ 10
Comb________ _____ 4
_____ 6
_____ 12
Cold cream (large size) l
Facial tissues (large
size)---------- ._____ 3
Hand lotion (medium
size)___ _____.......... 2
Face powder (medium
size)... ------ _____ 2
Body powder (medium
size)------------ _____ 1
_____ 1
Lipstick______ _____ 2

Annual money allowance
based on prices for a selected
list of articles and beauty
services which reflect the
minimum needed by a
woman in a low-income
group to conform to gener
ally accepted standards of
adequacy.
The list specifically provides
for:
Toilet soap____ _____ 12
Soap flakes 6
Toothbrush (medium
quality)_____ ______ 4
Toothpaste__________ 3
Cleansing tissue (large
box).......... .................. 7
Cleaning fluid (pint).__ 2
Miscellaneous bathroom
Face powder (medium
quality)................... 2

WORKING WOMEN'S BUDGETS

Annual lump-sum money
allowance for each of a
selected list of articles and
services, derived as an
average of the recommen
dations submitted by
subcommittees appointed
to study the working
woman’s requirements for
this particular section of
the budget.
The list specifically provides
for:
Toothbrush
Dentifrice
Comb, brush, hairpins
Soap
Face powder
Talcum powder
Manicure supplies
Rouge, compact, powder
puff.
Sanitary supplies

Beauty shop services suffi
cient to allow for perma
nent and sets.

Nail polish.............. 6
Nail polish remover. 6
Scissors or nippers.— 1
Emery boards12
Nail white1
Cuticle oil1
Orange wood sticks-. 2
Nail file1
Permanent wave__ 2
Shampoo, haircut,
and wave set........36

Powder puff...................4
Compact..... ...................1
Cologne.......................... 1
Deodorant3
Manicure supplies..
Lump sum
Sanitary napkins
(box).___ ________ 12
Sanitary belt1
Permanent wave2
Haircut........... ........... 2
Combination shampoo
and wave4

Cleansing cream (medi
um quality)___ ____ 2
Rouge (medium qual
ity)........-...............— 2
Lipstick (medium qual
ity)......................
3
Hand lotion (medium
size)..............
3
Nail polish (medium
size) 6
Polish remover.............. 6
Excise tax___ Lump sum
Permanent wave (medi
um price).................... 2
Shampoo and set..........22

WORKING WOMEN ’S BUDGETS

See footnotes on p. 21.

tion...........Lump sum
Toilet soap................24
Cream (3-4 oz)...........- 3
Tissues (250 pkg)........ 3
Hand lotion (4—6 oz).._ 1
Nail brush, manicure
supplies--- Lump sum
Face and talcum pow
der, rouge, lipstick,
compact, powder
puffs____ Lump sum
Sanitary napkins
(box)..............
10
Sanitary belt- Lumpsum
Miscellaneous (depila
tory, deodorant,
etc.)_____Lumpsum
Permanent wave1
Hair cuts4
Combination shampoo,
wave set, and mani
cure____ ____
6

to
CO

Items included in selected categories1 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
New Jersey *
Quantity on which revised
estimate is based

New York

Pennsylvania

Utah

Washington

Quantity on which revised
estimate is based

Heller Committee
San Francisco, Calif.

Quantity priced in 1947

Quantity on which revised
estimate is based

Quantity priced in 1947

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

Medical and hospital
care through grouppractice
clinics,
with allowance for
noncovered
serv
ices at private fee
rates-----------$52.77
Dental care at private
fee rates—
Cleaning, 1_____
4.96
Fillings________ 10.69
Extractions, H. „ 2.43
Bridges, Ho____
7.43
X-rays................
2.84
Optical care—
Eye glasses, tf........ [ 1.66
(Refractioncovered in
group practice plan)

MEDICA L CARE

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 woman, as de
termined by a committee
appointed to study this
section of the budget.
The money allowance for
the year represents 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 payment of
bills for past services or
as a reserve for future
medical care.
The medical care units pro
vided for are:
General medical care—
PreventionPeriodic exam
inations____ 0.45
Immunizations- . 06
Diagnosis and
treatment—
Home visits___ 2.96
Office visits___ 3.35
Trained nurse.. . 34
Practical nurse. . 44
Hospital insur
ance, fee........ 1.0

Annual lump-sum allow
ance for:
Medical and dental
care (based on pre
war fees for serv
ices, rather than
on the cost of group
health insurance). $40.00
Medicines (based on
per capita average
expenditures for
drugs and medi
cines) and
Supplies (based on
actual prices)......... 5.00

Medical care:
Periodic examination---------Medicines and
miscellaneous
supplies.........
Hospital, medical, and surgical insurance-.
Dental care:
Periodic examination and prophylaxis
Optical care:
Eye examination
and analysis..
Eye glasses, ineluding laboratory fees
Orthoptics

$5.00
10.00
25.00
15.00
10.00
10.00
15.00

WORKING WOMEN ’S BUDGETS

Annual lump-sum allow
ance for each of the follow
ing:
(a) Medical, den
tal, and optical
service$37.05
(b) Supplies
for
medicine cabinet- 5.19

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 the> are available they differ
greatly as to coverage. The best way in which to present the scope of the medical care allowance for most of the budgets
seemed to be to show the break-down of the money allowance where possible. No corrections have been made for changes
in the value of the dollar since the date the budgets were priced.

WORKING WOMEN ’S BUDGETS

Dental care—
Diagnosis and
prophylaxis___ 2.0
Fillings, simple. _ 1.0
Fillings, complex. . 3
Extractions, sim
ple_______
2
Extractions, op
erative..................... 4
X-rays, full_____ 1.0
X-rays, partial... 1.2
Eye care—
Refractions_____ .25
Glasses________
. 26
Medicines an'd
supplies—
Prescriptions___ 2.0
Cough mixture... 1.0
Aspirin________ 1.0
Nose drops_____ 1.0
Milk of magnesia. 1.0
Iodine......... ........ 1.0
Other, Lump sum, 50r.
See footnotes on p. 21.

Items included in selected categories1 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

to
New Jersey <
Quantity on which revised
estimate is based

New York

Pennsylvania

Utah

Washington

Quantity priced in 1947

Quantity on which revised
estimate is based

Heller Committee
San Francisco, Calif.

Quantity priced in 1947

Annual lump-sum allow
ance for:
51 paid admissions to
movies; 51 paid admis
sions to spectator
sports, bowling,
dances, etc.; 1 week’s
vacation, including
food and transporta
tion.

Annual money allowance
provides specifically for 51
movies, 3 paid admissions
to theaters or concerts,
participation in a sport
activity, such as gymnasi
um classes, etc., and 1
■week’s vacation at a camp,
including transportation.
The allowance also in
cludes lump sums for both
reading material and
“other” recreational ex
penditures.

Annual money allowance
provides for daily and
Sunday newspaper, mag
azines or books, and for
adult education.

Annual lump-sum allowance
for magazines, newspapers,
and lending library fees
included with “Recrea
tion.”

RECREATION
Annual money allowances
for:
51 movies.
51 paid admissions to
other types of enter
tainment.
6 trips to a beach or
swimming pool, in
cluding transporta
tion and locker fees
6 bowling strings.
1 week’s vacation at a
summer camp, includ
ing transportation to
and from camp,
plus a lump sum for recre
ational equipment, in
cluding sport clothing
as follows:
slacks..................
H
shorts_____
Yz
blouse-----------------1
socks..._________3 Yz
bathing suit........... Yz
play shoes................ Yz

Annual lump-sum allow Annual money allowance
ances for:
provides for paid admis
52 admissions to neigh
sions to movies or thea
borhood movies, admis
ters, concerts, lectures,
sions to other forms of
swimming, dancing
paid entertainment, 1
classes; for attending
week’s vacation, and
dances now and then,
recreational equipment.
and for occasional trips
to parks or beaches, as
well as for one week’s
vacation, including
transportation and
recreational equipment.

EDUCATION AND READING MATERIAL
Over-all lump-sum allowance
made for this section of the
budget.

Annual money allowance
provides for daily and
Sunday newspaper; for
magazines, and books.
(No allowances for tuition
for adult education classes,
although report mentions
the possibility of the
woman attending such
classes free.)

Annual money allowance
specifically provides for
daily and Sunday news
paper and makes a lump
sum grant for magazines
and library rental fees.

Annual money allowance
provides for Simday
newspaper, magazines,
and books; also for paid
lessons or tuition for
adult education classes,
and materials.

WORKING WOMEN ’S BUDGETS

Annual lump-sum allow
ances for each of the follow
ing:
Movies.
Dances, theaters, con
certs. lebtures.
Sport classes.
Club dues.
Outings.
Vacation.
Recreational equipment.

TRANSPORTATION

Annual lump-sum allowance
provides for fares to work,
for shopping trips, and for
transportation connected
with recreation.

Annual money allowance
provides for 6 round-trip
fares in connection with
work; 4 round-trip fares
per week in New York
City and 3 round-trip
fares per week outside of
New York City for shop
ping, for transportation
needed for recreational
activities, etc.

Annual money allowance Annual lump-sum allow
ance for this section of
provides for 14 fares per
week for 51 weeks to take
the budget based on a
care of trips to and from
fixed amount per week
to cover transportation
work, trips connected with
to and from work and
recreation and other pur
to a limited extent for
poses.
other purposes.

Annual money allowance
provides for 16 trips per
week:
12 for business.
2 for pleasure.
2 for other purposes,
such as church, etc.

Annual money allowance
provides for car fare for 1
round trip for 358 days for
work and 1 additional
round trip each week for
51 weeks for shopping.

Annual lump-sum allowances
for each of the following:
Candy, sodas, cigarettes,
incidentals.
Contributions to church
and charity and gifts.

See footnotes on p. 21.

Annual lump-sum allow
ances for each of the fol
lowing:
Candy, sodas, and ciga
rettes.
Incidentals.
Contributions to church
and charity and gifts.

Annual lumD-suin allow
ances for each of the fol
lowing:
Trunks, bags, station
ery, stamps, telephone
and telegrams, ciga
rettes, plants and
flowers, interest, etc.
Contributions to church
and other recipients of
charitable donations.
Occupational expense
such as union dues
and
occupational
equipment.

Annual lump-sum allow
ance for contributions,
laundry supplies, and
personal expenses.

Annual lump-sum allow Annual lump-sum allow
ances for each of the follow
ances. for each of the fol
ing:
lowing:
Candy, cigarettes, sta
Stationery, postage, tele
phone calls.
tionery and postage,
telephone calls, sew
Candy, sodas, gum.
ing materials, and hair
Cigarettes (12 cartons)
Home laundry supplies.
pins.
Contributions to church
Contributions to church,
and charitable organ
charitable organiza
izations and gifts.
tions, and for gifts and
Union and social club
other.
Union dues.
dues.

WORKING WOMEN ’S BUDGETS

MISCELLANEOUS EXPENSE

CO
CO

CURRENT PUBLICATIONS OF THE WOMEN’S BUREAU

For complete list of publications, write the Women’s Bureau.
Single copies of publications or a small supply for special purposes
may be secured free from the Women’s Bureau, as well as publications
not priced. Bulletins can be purchased direct from the Superinten
dent of Documents, Washington 25, D. C., at prices listed with
discount of 25 percent on orders of 100 or more.
FACTS ON WOMEN WORKERS—issued monthly.
4 pages.
Multilith.
(Latest statistics on employment of women; earnings; labor laws affecting
women; news items of interest to women workers; women in the international
scene.)
HANDBOOK OF FACTS ON WOMEN WORKERS. Bull. 225. (In press.)
EMPLOYMENT OUTLOOK FOR WOMEN:
The Outlook for Women in Occupations in the Medical and Other Health Services.
Bull. 203:
1. Physical Therapists. 14 pp. 1945. 100.
2. Occupational Therapists. 15 pp. 1945. 100.
3. Professional Nurses. 66 pp. 1946. 150.
4. Medical Laboratory Technicians. 10 pp. 1945. 100.
5. Practical Nurses and Hospital Attendants. 20 pp. 1945. 10)4.
6. Medical Record Librarians. 9 pp. 1945. 100.
7. Women Physicians. 28 pp. 1945. 100.
8. X-Ray Technicians. 14 pp. 1945. 10)4.
9. Women Dentists. 21 pp. 1945. 10)4.
10. Dental Hygienists. 17 pp. 1945. 10(4.
11. Physicians’ and Dentists’ Assistants. 15 pp. 1945. 10)4.
12. Trends and Their Effect Upon the Demand for Women Workers. 55 pp.
1946. 15(4.
The Outlook for Women in Science. Bull. 223:
1. Science. [General introduction to the series.] (In press.)
2. Chemistry. 65 pp. 1948. 20)4.
3. Biological Sciences. 87 pp. 1948. 25)4.
4. Mathematics and Statistics. 21 pp. 1948. 10)4.
5. Architecture and Engineering. (In press.)
6. Physics and Astronomy. 32 pp. 1948. 15(4.
7. Geology, Geography, and Meteorology. (In press.)
8. Occupations related to Science. 33 pp. 1948. 150.
Your Job Future After College. Leaflet. 1947. (Rev. 1948.)
LABOR LAWS:
Summary of State Labor Laws for Women. 7 pp. 1947. Mimeo.
Minimum Wage:
State Minimum-Wage Laws and Orders, 1942: An Analysis. Bull. 191.
52 pp. 1942. 200. (Supplements through 1947. Mimeo.)
State Minimum-Wage laws. Leaflet 1. 1948.
Model Bill for State minimum-wage law for women. Mimeo.
Map showing States having minimum-wage laws. (Desk size; wall
size.)
Equal Pay:
Equal Pay for Women. Leaflet 2. 1947. (Rev. 1948.)
Chart analyzing State equal-pay laws and Model Bill. Mimeo.
Texts of State laws (separates). Mimeo.
Model Bill for State equal-pay law. Mimeo.
Selected References on Equal Pay for Women. 9 pp. 1947. Mimeo.
34

WORKING WOMEN’S BUDGETS

Hours of Work and Other Labor Laws:
State Labor Laws for Women, with Wartime Modifications, Dec. 15,
1944. Bull. 202:
I. Analysis of Hour Laws. 110 pp. 1945. 150.
II. Analysis of Plant Facilities Laws. 43 pp. 1945. 100.
III. Analysis of Regulatory Laws, Prohibitory Laws, Maternity
Laws. 12 pp. 1945. 50.
IV. Analysis of Industrial Home-Work Laws. 26 pp. 1945. 100.
V. Explanation and Appraisal. 66 pp. 1946. 150.
Supplements through 1947. Mimeo.
Unemployment Compensation—How it Works for Working Women.
Leaflet. 1945. (Rev. 1948, in preparation.)
Map of United States showing State hour laws. (Desk size; wall size.)
LEGAL STATUS OF WOMEN:
International Documents on the Status of Women. Bull. 217. 116 pp. 1947.
250.
Legal Status of Women in the United States of America:
United States Summary, January 1938. Bull. 157. 89 pp. 1941. 150.
Cumulative Supplement 1938-45. Bull. 157-A. 31 pp. 1946. 100.
Reports for States and District of Columbia (separates). Bulls. 157-1
through 157-49. 50 ea.
Women’s Eligibility for Jury Duty. Leaflet. 1947.
INDUSTRY:
Women Workers in Power Laundries. Bull. 215. 71 pp. 1947. 200.
The Woman Telephone Worker [1944], Bull. 207. 28 pp. 1946. 100.
Typical Women’s Jobs in the Telephone Industry [1944], Bull 207-A. 52 pp.
1947. 150.
Women in Radio. Bull. 222. 30 pp. 1948. 150.
EARNINGS:
Earnings of Women in Selected Manufacturing Industries, 1946. Bull. 219. 14
pp. 1948. 100.
COST-OF-LIVING BUDGETS:
Working Women’s Budgets in Twelve States. Bull. 226. (Instant publication.)
EMPLOYMENT:
Employment of Women in the Early Postwar Period, with Background of Prewar
and War Data. Bull. 211. 14 pp. 1946. 100.
Women’s Occupations Through Seven Decades. Bull. 218. (In press.)
Women Workers After VJ-Day in One Community—Bridgeport, Conn. Bull. 216.
37 pp. 1947. 150.
Baltimore Women War Workers in the Postwar Period. (In preparation.)
Charts:
Proportion of All Workers Who Are Women, 1870-1948.
Occupations of Women Workers, 1940.
A Social-Economic Grouping of Women Workers, 1910-40.
The Leading 10 Occupations of Women Workers, 1870-1940.
Women in Selected Clerical Occupations, 1870-1940.
Women in Selected Operative and Laborer Occupations, 1870-1940.
Women in Selected Service Occupations, 1870-1940.
Women in Selected Professional Occupations, 1870-1940.
Married Women in Population and in Labor Force, 1910-47.
Marital Status of Women in the Labor Force, 1910-47.
HOUSEHOLD EMPLOYMENT:
Old-Age Insurance for Household Workers. Bull. 220, 20 pp. 1947. 100.
Community Household Employment Programs. Bull. 221. 70 pp. 1948. 200.
REPORTS ON WOMEN IN WARTIME:
Sixteen reports on women’s employment in wartime industries; part-time employ
ment; equal pay; community services, recreation, and housing for women war
workers; and the following:
Changes in Women’s Employment During the War. Sp. Bull. 20. 29 pp. 1944.

WORKING WOMEN’S BUDGETS

Women’s Wartime Hours of Work—The Effect on Their Factory Performance
and Home Life. Bull. 208. 187 pp. 1947. 350.
Women Workers in Ten War Production Areas and Their Postwar Employment
Plans. Bull. 209. 56 pp. 1946. 150
Negro Women War Workers. Bull. 205. 23 pp. 1945. 100.
Employment Opportunities in Characteristic Industrial Occupations of Women.
Bull. 201. 50 pp. 1944. 100.
Employment and Housing Problems of Migratory Workers in New York and
New Jersey Canning Industries, 1943. Bull. 198. 35 pp. 1944. 100
Successful Practices in the Employment of Nonfarm Women on Farms in the
Northeastern States. Bull. 199. 44 pp. 1944. 100
Women’s Emergency Farm Service on the Pacific Coast in 1943. Bull. 204.
36 pp. 1945. 100
Industrial Injuries to Women [1945], Bull. 212. 20 pp. 1947. 100
Posters (7) showing women in wartime jobs.
RECOMMENDED STANDARDS for women’s working conditions, safety, and
health.
Standards of Employment for Women. Leaflet 1. 1946. 5(4 ea. (Rev. 1948 )
When You Hire Women. Sp. Bull. 14. 16 pp. 1944. 100
The Industrial Nurse and the Woman Worker. Sp. Bull. 19. 47 pp. 1944. 100
Women’s Effective War Work Requires Good Posture. Sp. Bull. 10. 6 on
1943. 50
1*
Washing and Toilet Facilities for Women in Industry. Sp. Bull. 4. 11 no
1942. 50
Lifting and Carrying Weights by Women in Industry. Sp. Bull. 2. (Rev. 1946.)
12 pp. 50
Safety Clothing for Women in Industry. Sp. Bull. 3. 11 pp. 1941. 100
Supplements: Safety Caps; Safety Shoes. 4 pp. ea. 1944. 5)4 ea.
Night Work: Bibliography. 39 pp. 1946. Multilith.
WOMEN UNDER UNION CONTRACTS:
Maternity-Benefits Under Union-Contract Health Insurance Plans. Bull. 214.
19 pp. 1947. 100
TRAINING:
See “Outlook for Women in Occupations in the Medical and Other Health Serv
ices,” Bull. 203; and “Outlook for Women in Science,” Bull. 223, for training
required in these professional fields.
See “Community Household Employment Programs,” Bull. 221, for training
recommendations.
Training for Jobs—for Women and Girls. [Under public funds available for
vocational training purposes.] Leaflet 1. 1947.
WOMEN IN LATIN AMERICA:
Women Workers in Argentina, Chile, and Uruguay. Bull. 195. 15 pp. 1942.
50
Women Workers in Brazil. Bull. 206. 42 pp. 1946. 100
Women Workers in Paraguay. Bull. 210. 16 pp. 1946. 100
Women Workers in Peru. Bull. 213. 41 pp. 1947. 10)4
Social and Labor Problems of Peru and Uruguay. 1944. Mimeo.
Women in Latin America: Legal Rights and Restrictions. (Address before the
National Association of Women Lawyers.)
REPORTS ON WOMEN WORKERS IN PREWAR YEARS: Women at work
(a century of industrial change); women’s economic status as compared to
men’s; women workers in their family environment (Cleveland and Utah);
women’s employment in certain industries (clothing, canneries, laundries,
offices, government service); State-wide survey of women’s employment in
various States; economic status of university women.
THE WOMEN’S BUREAU—Its Purpose and Functions. Leaflet. 1946.
Women’s Bureau Conference, 1948. Bull. 224. 210 pp. 1948.

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

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