Bureau of Labor Statistics, U.S. Department of Labor

EMPLOYMENT IN NEW YORK, SEPTEMBER AND OCTOBER, 1915Source: Monthly Review of the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, Vol. 1, No. 6 (DECEMBER,1915), pp. 54-56Published by: Bureau of Labor Statistics, U.S. Department of LaborStable URL: http://www.jstor.org/stable/41822883 .

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EMPLOYMENT IN NEW YORK, SEPTEMBER AND OCTO- BER, 1915.

A bulletin from the bureau of statistics and information of the State industrial commission reviews conditions in the labor market in the State for September as follows:

The improvement in business which has been manifest all summer continued throughout September, the number of factory employees in that month being 5 per cent greater than in August and the amount paid in wages being 4 per cent greater. Although in manufacturing September is a more active month than August, the improvement in September of 1915 over August was more marked than the improvement during the same period in 1914. Further, whereas the general trend of manufacturing activity from June to September of 1914 was downward, the general trend in the same period of 1915 was upward. In Sep- tember the State's manufacturing establishments employed 5 per cent more hands and paid out 9 per cent more in wages than a year ago. Excluding the clothing industry, the tobacco industry, paper making, and the industries de- pendent on building and construction operations, the improvement was still more marked.

The greatest improvement was shown during the month by the metal-working industry, particularly by concerns manufacturing firearms and automobiles. The only branch of the metal industry not operating at least as actively as in 1914 was that branch fabricating architectural and structural iron. Next in importance to the metal- working industry as to its activity during the month was the fur and leather-working industry. The boot and shoe industry employed 11 per cent more hands and paid out 20 per cent more wages in Sep- tember than a year ago. Other industries showing improvement, bnt to a less degree, were the stone, clay, and glass industries, woodwork- ing, chemical industry, printing and paper making, and textiles. The clothing industry showed a seasonal increase in activity in Septem- ber, the industry as a whole being below 1914 in volume of business. Xo changes were reported in August or September in the food, bev- erages, or tobacco group.

The percentage of idleness of organized workmen in factory trades was less in September than in either 1913 or 1914, but not so low as in 1911 and 1912. In the building trades the percentage of unemploy- ment was 6.8 points lower in September of this year as compared with last year, but nevertheless considerably above that for any other re- cent year. Returns from 50 representative trade-unions in transpor- tation showed a slightly improved demand for labor in the transporta- tion industry in 1915 as compared with 1914; but the September

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MONTHLY REVIEW OF THE BUREAU OF LABOR STATISTICS. 55

percentage of unemployment this year was still substantially above that for 1910, 1912, and 1913, though not above that for 1911.

The first table which follows shows the percentage of workmen em- ployed and wages paid in each month compared with June (June equals 100) for July, August, and September of 1914 and 1915 for 11 important manufacturing industries. The second table shows the per cent of unemployment in representative trade-unions for four groups of trades during each of the months June to September, 1914 and 1915, and at the end of September, 1912, 1913 :

COMPARISON OF EMPLOYEES AND TOTAL WAGES IN 1914 AND 1915 IN REPRESENTA TIVE MANUFACTURING FIRMS.

Percentage of employees and wages in each month compared with Juno-

1914 1915 Industry group.1

Employees. Wages. Employees. Wages.

July. Aug. Sept. July. Aug. Sept. July. Aug. Sept. July. Aug. Sept.

Stone, clay, and glass prod- ucts (30) 82 87 89 83 85 89 79 90 93 83 91 95 Metals, machinery, and conveyances (46) 97 92 93 95 90 91 101 101 107 102 101 10C

Wood manufactures (26)... 95 96 99 95 96 101 94 100 103 94 99 106 Furs, leather, and rubber goods (34) 96 98 97 93 91 94 99 101 103 101 102 104

Chemicals, oils, paints, etc. (44).. .. 98 97 94 97 95 92 100 102 100 101 102 98

Paper (42) 94 93 94 98 96 99 108 113 107 116 117 1U8 Printing and paper goods (35). 97 98 99 97 97 100 98 99 102 99 99 103 Textiles (49) 97 85 95 96 81 88 100 98 102 102 104 105 Clothing, millinery, laun- dering, etc. (16) 94 81 99 92 85 101 94 84 102 92 89 102

Food, liquors, and tobacco (30)......... 102 102 103 101 99 102 104 103 104 102 102 102

Water, light, and power (22)....?... 94 95 99 97 97 95 97 102 106 98 105 107 Total (33) 97 92 96 95 91 95 99 98 104 100 100 104

1 Figures in parentheses indicate for each industry group the percentage of total factory employees in that group, which is included in these returns.

IDLENESS IN REPRESENTATIVE TRADE-UNIONS.

Per cent of members reported idle. Unions report-

At end of T . . tember, 1915. 1915 1914 Septem- T Industry . . group. ber-

Num- Mem- June July Aug. Sept. June July Aug. Sept. 1Q1, iyiá 1Q19 Ayi/ ber. bers. 30. 15. 15. 15. 30. 31. 31. 30. 1Q1, iyiá 1Q19 Ayi/

Manufacturing 101 68,601 26.5 28.2 16.8 11.6 27.0 42.8 36.9 24.9 18.6 4.6 Building 59 31,051 38.2 35.3 33.6 28.9 30.5 30.5 32.8 35. 7 20.3 10.2 Transportation 53 22,321 11.2 12.0 11.4 10.1 12.7 11.4 14.4 14.2 6.9 4.7 Miscellaneous 25 10,029 11.4 14.4 9.3 5.2 11.7 10.1 11.5 7.5 3.2 1.2

Total 238 132,602 25.5 26.0 19.3 14.9 25.5 32.5 30.3 24.3 16.2: 5.9

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56 MONTHLY BEVIEW OF THE BUREAU OF LABOB STATISTICS.

The public employment bureau of the State reports that during October there has been an increase in the demand for workmen, particularly the highly skilled workmen and day laborers. The total number of registrations for the five offices numbered 4,663, the number of requests for help 4,907, the number referred to posi- tions 5,444, and the number placed 3,103. It is noticeable, as unusual, that the number of requests for help, 4,907, exceeded the number of registrations at the five offices. These offices are located in Brook- lyn, Syracuse, Rochester, Buffalo, and Albany.

During the eight months in which the five branch offices in the State have been in operation calls have been received for 27,751 employees and the offices have referred to positions 32,085 workmen. It is estimated that approximately 20,000 of these have secured posi- tions during the eight months.

EMPLOYMENT IN VARIOUS FOREIGN COUNTRIES.

AUSTRIA, DECEMBER, 1914, TO MARCH, 1915.

According to Sociale Rundschau (vol. 16, No. 5, pt. 3, pp. 164-180), published by the Austrian labor office, 29 trade-union federations, with a membership of 131,055, reported 8.5 per cent of their member- ship as unemployed during December, 1914, as compared with 10 per cent for the month last preceding. These data have been ab- stracted from the Reichs- Arbeitsblatt of the German Imperial Statis- tical Office, issue of August, 1915, page 662, as no copy of Sociale Rundschau has been received by this bureau since July, 1914.

For January, 1915, the same rate of unemployment (10 per cent) as for December, 1914, was reported from 20 federations, with a membership of 113,521. Of the unemployed members reported at the close of the month, 6,371, or 65.8 per cent, had been unemployed during the whole month, as compared with 80.8 per cent for Decem- ber. For February, 21 federations, having 111,621 members, reported 6.8 per cent as unemployed ; in March, 17 federations, having 106,474 members, reported 5.2 per cent unemployed, and during both Febru- ary and March a trifle over three-fifths of those unemployed (61.2 per cent and 61.1 per cent, respectively) were reported unemployed during the whole of each month under review.

The rate of unemployment would be considerably lower during the months under consideration if regard were had only to the male members of trade-unions, indicating that women are more largely the sufferers from unemployment than the men. Thus, taking 16 federations which reported uniformly for each of the three months, January, February, and March, 1915, the relative amount of unem-

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