NAB reports (Mar-Dec 1933)

President shall afford opportunity for employers and em¬ ployees to establish, by mutual agreement, equitable stand¬ ards for maximum hours, minimum wage rates, and other working conditions; such standards, if approved by the President, shall have the effect of a code of fair com¬ petition. In any industry where no mutual agreement has been approved, the President may investigate labor practices and policies and, after hearings, the President may prescribe a limited code of fair competition fixing maximum hours, minimum wage rates, and other working conditions. In establishing standards the President may fix differentials based upon experience and skill of the employees affected, and upon geographical considerations, provided that no classifications may be used which would tend to set a maximum as well as a minimum wage. The term “person” is construed to mean any individual, part¬ nership, association, trust, or corporation. As a condition of approval, the President may impose re¬ quirements for submittal of reports, keeping of accounts, and for the protection of consumers, competitors, em¬ ployees, and others, and in the public interest. The President may also establish exceptions to and exemp¬ tions from the code. b. Upon approval by President the code shall constitute the stand c. ards of fair competition for the industry. Any violation of such standards “in any transaction in or affecting interstate commerce shall be deemed an unfair method of competition” as construed in the Federal Trade Commission Acts. Violation of any provision of code shall be a misdemeanor punishable by a fine of not more than $500 for each offense. c. United States district courts are given jurisdiction to prevent and restrain violations of code; federal district attorneys d. empowered to institute proceedings. d. When no code has been approved by the President, he may upon his own motion or upon complaint prescribe and approve a code of fair competition for an industry, such code to be binding upon the industry. Section TV — Agreements and Licenses a. The President is authorized to enter into agreements with, and to approve voluntary agreements between and among per¬ sons engaged in an industry, labor organizations, and trade organizations, or groups, if, in his judgment, such agree¬ ments will aid in effectuating the policy of the Act and are not inconsistent with previously approved codes of fair competition. b. If essential to make effective codes or agreements, the Presi¬ dent may, after notice and hearing, establish a date after which no person can conduct a specified line of business, in or affecting interstate commerce, without a license issued under regulations prescribed by the President. The President may suspend or revoke any license after notice and hearing. Persons conducting any business for which a license is re¬ quired, without such a license or in violation of any condition thereof, shall, upon conviction, be fined not more than $500, or imprisonment not more than six months, or both. Section V — Applicability of Anti-Trust Laws While Title I is in effect and for sixty days thereafter, all codes, agreements, and licenses approved or promulgated by the President, and any action complying with the provisions thereof taken during such period, shall be exempt from the federal anti-trust laws. Section VI — Limitations Upon Application of Title I a. No trade organization or group shall be eligible to participate in activities prescribed in previous sections until it files with the President a statement containing such informa¬ tion relating to its activities as the President shall prescribe. b. The President is authorized to prescribe regulations to assure the representative nature of any organization availing itself of the benefits of Title I; any organization violating such regulations shall cease to be entitled to the benefits of the title. c. The Federal Trade Commission, at request of the President, shall be emnowered to make such investigations as he deems necessary to effectuate the provisions of this title. Section VII — Employment Provisions a. Every code, agreement, and license, approved or promulgated, shall contain the following provisions: 1. That employees shall have the right to organize and bar¬ gain with representatives of their own choosing and that they shall be free from interference or coercion of their employers in the designation of their representa¬ tives, or in other concerted activities relating to collec¬ tive bargaining. 2. That no employee or applicant for employment shall be required to join or refrain from joining any “company union” or labor organization. 3. That employers shall comply with maximum hours of labor, minimum rates of pay, and other working con¬ ditions prescribed by the President. b. In any industry in which requirements relating to right to organize and to collective bargaining are observed, the • Page VIII — Application of Agricultural Adjustment Act This title shall not be construed to repeal or modify any of the provisions of the Agricultural Adjustment Act approved May 12, 1933. Section IX — Rules and Regulations a. The President is authorized to prescribe necessary regulations, and to fix fees for licenses and for filing of codes of fair competition. Violation of any rule or regulation shall be punishable by fine of not to exceed $500, or imprisonment for not to exceed six months, or both. b. The President may cancel or modify any order, license or regulation issued under this title, and each agreement, code or license shall contain an express provision to that effect. MICHIGAN LIQUOR ADS VETOED On May 25th the Governor of Michigan vetoed the Doyle Bill (S. 101), which would have repealed section 9203 providing for a prohibition of advertising intoxicating liquor. FLORIDA WOULD LEASE WRUF The Florida House on May 27 passed the Brown Bill which would permit the state to lease Station WRUF, now licensed to the state university at Gainesville, Fla. The bill now goes to the Senate. TEN LEGISLATURES IN SESSION Of the 45 state legislatures in session last January, only 10 now remain in session. Since the first of the year 62,500 bills were intro¬ duced in the various legislatures, of which 8,000 have been enacted into law. Of the 8,000, about 1,200 relate to taxation, many of which contain extensive regulatory features vitally affecting industry. CONGRESS MAY SOON ADJOURN Leaders of both the Senate and House have stated that Congress will be ready to adjourn during the present month. Every effort will be made to conclude President Roosevelt’s emergency legislation program before adjournment. PENNSYLVANIA ACT BECOMES LAW On May 24th Governor Pinchot signed the Coyne Bill, which by its terms becomes effective immediately, prohibiting advertising by radio (or otherwise) of insurance companies not authorized to do business in the Commonwealth, and requiring that insurance adver¬ tising by broadcast include a statement that the station holds a certificate statins: that the advertiser is authorized by the Insurance Department to do business in Pennsylvania. GEORGE H. HILL TO BE EXAMINER AoDointment of George H. Hill, who has been a member of the legal staff of the Federal Radio Commission since November, 1931, as an examiner, was announced June 2. Mr. Hill will assume his new duties on June 15. He succeeds Elmer W. Pratt, who was one of the original attorneys for the Commission and also one of its first examiners. Mr. Pratt’s resignation became effective on June 1. Mr. Hill, the new examiner, is a Democrat and came to the Com¬ mission from Mississippi. 60 •