U. S. DEPARTMENT OF LABOR JAMES J. DAVIS, Secretary BUREAU OF LABOR STATISTICS ETHELBERT STEWART, Commissioner BULLETIN OF THE UNITED STATES) V 4A O BUREAy OF LABOR STATISTICS > * * * LABOR LAWS OF THE UNITED STATES SERIES LAWS RELATING TO PAYMENT OF WAGES BY LINDLEY D. CLARK and STANLEY J. TRACY Of the United States Bureau of Labor Statistics JUNE, 1926 WASHINGTON GOVERNMENT PRINTING OFFICE 1926 Digitized for FRASER http://fraser.stlouisfed.org/ Federal Reserve Bank of St. Louis ADDITIONAL COPIES OF THIS PUBLICATION MAY BE PROCURED FROM THE SUPERINTENDENT OF DOCUMENTS GOVERNMENT PRINTING OFflCE WASHINGTON, D. C. AT 25 CENTS PER COPY Digitized for FRASER http://fraser.stlouisfed.org/ Federal Reserve Bank of St. Louis CONTENTS Page Introduction---------------------------------------- ------------------------------------------------------- 1,2 Part I.— Construction of statutes the text of which is omitted____________ 3-15 Rates of wages of employees on public works________________ _______ 3-6 Minimum wage_______________________________________________________ 6-10 Payment for coal mined______________________________________________ 10-12 Repayment of employers’ advances__________________________________ 13,14 Earnings of married women__________________________________________ 14 Earnings of minors___________________________________________________ 14,15 Part II.— Construction of statutes the text of which is presented________ 16-41 Frequency of payment_________________________________________________16-19 Payment on termination of employment_________________________ _____ 19-23 Scrip— company stores_____________________________________________ — 24-27 Deductions and discounts_____________________________________________ 27,28 Priority of wage claims______________________________________________ 29-31 Assignments_________ _________________________________________________31-33 Exemptions________________________ ____________________________________ 33-36 Suits for wages_______________________________________________________ 36-38 Railroads______________________________________________________________ 38-40 Seamen_______________________________________________________________ 40,41 Part I I I — Text and abridgment of laws— .____________________________ 42-148 Alabama------------------------------------------------------------------------------ 1_________ 42 Alaska________________________________________________________________ 43,44 Arizona_______________________________________________________________ 44-46 Arkansas______________________________________________________________ 46-48 California_____________________________________________________________ 48-53 Colorado---------------- ------------------------------------------------------------------------------53-55 Connecticut____________________________________________________________ 55-57 Delaware______________________*------------------------------------------------------------- 57 District of Columbia__________________________________________________ 58 Florida------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 58,59 Georgia_______________________________________________________________ 59-61 Hawaii---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------61,62 Idaho__________________________________________________________________62, 63 Illinois________________________________________________________________ 63-65 Indiana ______________________________________________________________65-68 Iowa__________________________________________________________________68-70 Kansas_______________________________________________________________ 70, 71 Kentucky------------------ ---------------------------------------------------------------------------71-73 Louisiana_____________________________________________________________ 73-76 Maine--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 76,77 Maryland----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------77,78 Massachusetts---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------79-82 Michigan______________________________________________________________ 82-84 Minnesota____________________________________________________________ 85-88 Mississippi___— ______________________________________________________88,89 Missouri______________________________________________________________ 90-92 Montana______________:------------------------------------------------------------------------- 92-94 Nebraska________________________________ _____________________________ 94,95 Nevada_______________________________________________________________ 95-99 New Hampshire_____________________________________________________ 99,100 New Jersey_________________________________________________________100-104 New Mexico_____________________________________________ ___________104-106 New York___________________________________________________________106-108 North Carolina_______________________________________________________ 108 North Dakota________________________________________________________ 109 in Digitized for FRASER http://fraser.stlouisfed.org/ Federal Reserve Bank of St. Louis IV CONTENTS Part III— Continued. Pa«« Ohio_________________________________________________________________ 109-111 Oklahoma---------------------------------------- -------------------------------------------------- 111-113 Oregon------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------ 118-116 Pennsylvania--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------117-120 Philippine Islands----------------------------------------------------------- ------------------ 120,121 Porto Rico__________________________________________________________121-123 Rhode Island________________________________________________________ 123,124 South Carolina----------------------------------------------------------------------------------124-126 South Dakota----------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 126,127 Tennessee------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 127-129 Texas------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 130-132 Utah________________________________________________________ ;________132-134 Vermont_____________________________________________________________134,135 Virginia________________ _____________________________________________136,137 Washington____________________________________________________ - ____137-140 West Virginia_______________________________________________________ 140-142 Wisconsin___________________________________________________________ 142-144 Wyoming____________________________________________________________ 144-146 United States________________________________________________________ 147,148 Digitized for FRASER http://fraser.stlouisfed.org/ Federal Reserve Bank of St. Louis BULLETIN OF THE U. S. BUREAU OF LABOR STATISTICS n o. 408 _________ WASHINGTON_______________ June, 1926 LAWS RELATING TO THE PAYMENT OF WAGES INTRODUCTION It is proposed in this bulletin to present the legislation of the various States and of the United States that bears upon the pay­ ment of wages, such as laws fixing time, mode, and place of payment and the regulation of deductions, assignments, suits, exemptions, preference of wuge claims, etc., but omitting those relating to me­ chanics’ liens, contractors’ bonds, and similar provisions for secur­ ing the payment of wages. As distinguished from an earlier study in this field,1 the present bulletin is concerned with a presentation, in either full or abridged form, of the statutes relating to the payment of wages, with some account of the decisions construing them, rather than with the his­ torical and social aspects discussed in the former volume. Legislation of this class is clearly an interference with the free­ dom of contract, with the evident purpose of protecting the weaker party to the bargain against the disadvantage of his inferior posi­ tion, such regulation being regarded as a matter of the public wel­ fare. How far it is possible for the State to go in establishing such regulations is not a fully settled problem. Various laws have been enacted bearing on the subject which have been declared unconsti­ tutional, while the construction placed on others has established doctrines previously rejected. Many laws are directed to the full and exact recovery by the workman of the entire sum contracted for, providing for payment at intervals convenient with regard to his welfare and in a form permitting his free use of his earnings as an instrument of purchase. A definite barrier seems to exist at the present time against any determination as to the amount of the wages to be paid, though in almost every other aspect the law may exercise control. An exception with regard to rate making exists as to railroads and in the field of public employment, the State be­ ing held to have the right to fix a rate which it will pay and which contractors in its service must meet if they wish to do business with it; while railroads, because affected with a public interest, are also subject to State regulation. A briefer treatment is here given to certain classes of laws, the text of which has not been reproduced, but whose nature and scope