Unemployment in the United States

Bibliographic data

Monograph

Identifikator:: 1828236179

URN:: urn:nbn:de:zbw-retromon-226169

Document type:: Monograph

Title:: Unemployment in the United States

Place of publication:: Washington

Publisher:: United States, Government Printing Office

Year of publication:: 1930

Scope:: II, 193 Seiten

Digitisation:: 2022

Collection:: Economics Books

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Document type:: Monograph

Structure type:: Chapter

Title:: Statement of John B. Andrews, Director of the American Association for Labor Legislation

Collection:: Economics Books

UNEMPLOYMENT IN THE UNITED STATES &9 : re- onal ven ates ral ited t to e of . to “ion 50m: the «it. ven 0st "don ele- ime ers. ird- sur- the to ion wer of es, nd .all and she she ali- InN- 1di- ers nas lif ta~ wat on n= nn m-~ Cas p. Se ug he bo: re ‘ot he an in in ry ver fer rem ad ad public lands to the States on condition that they establish a college, and later donations of money from the sale of public lands were made to each State for the benefit of the colleges established under the Morrill Act (1890, 20 Stat. 417). It is probable that the court would not undertake to question the consti- tutionality of an appropriation for general welfare, and that general welfare is what Congress takes it to be unless clearly in violation of the constitutional limitation.” In United States ». Realty Co. (163 U. S. 427, 1866) the court held that “debts” in Article I, Section VIII, included a claim not legal in character but based on moral and honorary consideration and under that interpretation sustained an appropriation for a bonus to sugar companies to replace a protective tariff removed at that time and did not question its constitutionality otherwise. The court refused to say there that Congress had the power to appropriate for any purpose it might choose to say was in payment of a debt or for general welfare, but declared that its decision recognizing a claim and appropriation can rarely, if ever, be subject to judicial review. A moral obligation was recognized as a debt in United States Sugar Equilization Board ». De Ronde Co. (77 Fed. (2d) 981, citing U. S. ». Realty Co). The power of the States to curtail their general powers to the extent of enter- ing into temporary contracts is well settled (McGee ». Mather (4 Wall. (U. 8.) 143, I L. Ed. 314 (1896)): Stearns ». Minnesota (179 U. 8. 223, 45 L. Ed. 162 1900)). In summary, the constitutionality of the bill would be free from possibility of attack by any State or by an individual taxpayer and would be no invasion of the State rights to local self-government. The appropriation, under the general- welfare clause, would probably not be reviewed by the courts, and acceptance of the provisions by the States would be no unconstitutional surrender of their reserved rights and is within their power of making temporary contracts. T. FEDERAL AID TO PUBLIC EMPLOYMENT BUREAUS During the industrial depression of 1914 no fewer than six bills were introduced in Congress to establish a Federal system of employment bureaus. Several well attended committee hearings were held; but action was deferred as the result of an announcement by the United States Commission on Industrial Relations that it was proposing a measure. The commission, however, after long delay failed to come forward with a bill. Instead one of the six bills earlier introduced was finally reported by the House Labor Committee—too late for action at that session. Subsequently the Industrial Relations Commission issued a tentative plan for a Federal system. It urged the need of a bureau of employment within the Department of Labor which would cooperate with State emplovment bureaus. There was widespread discussion of this proposal. - Meanwhile, many States and cities established public employment bureaus of their own. And although Congress failed to provide the central clearing house that was needed, the Department of Labor, on its own initiative secured the cooperation of the Post Office Department and the Department of Agriculture in setting up a makeshift system for job finding on a national scale. It was handi- capped by inadequate funds and by an untrained personnel, but it was able to give some assistance to the unemployed. In 1917 the attention of Congress was again called foreibly to the need of an adequate Federal employment system by the emergency of the World War, The Robinson-Keating bill was introduced in Congress in December, 1917 with strong support, but it was not acted upon. Instead Congress merely appro- priated $250,000 to the Department of Labor for the purpose of improving the Federal service; and the President supplemented this appropriation by a grant of $2,000,000 from the President’s emergency fund. The result was the creation of emergency employment offices under Federal direction in all parts of the country. During this emergency period, the Secretary of Labor separated the employment service from the Bureau of Immigration. At one time there were between 800 and 900 offices in this Federal system, which proved itself to be invaluable to the country during the war and the subsequent demobilization. Even while this Federal activity in employment work was at its peak, there was general recognition that the employment service as then in operation was organized only as an emergency device, and that unless Congress took action to put it upon a permanent footing, the end of the war would find the United Rtates in the same position as did the beginning, lacking that proven essential to indus. fit) efficiency, an adequate, permanént, national svstem of public employment UTrealls.

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