REPORT ON MERCANTILE INSPECTION.

Hon. JAMES M. LYNCH, Commissioner of Labor:

SIR: I submit herewith report of the Division of Mercantile Inspection for the year ending September 30, 1913, to which is appended tables showing with some detail the work of the Division.

Work of Deputy Mercantile Inspectors.

The Mercantile Division has completed its fifth year's work with the closing of the fiscal year 1913. The work this year shows a large increase in the number of inspections over the previous year, resulting in a corresponding increase in the number of orders issued relative to violations of the law. This was accomplished with practically the same force of inspectors as last year, one inspector only having been added to the Division. The inspectors have performed their duties in a very creditable manner considering the many difficulties with which they have to contend. They are compelled to do much hard and disagreeable work in order to enforce the law relative to the hours of labor. Although the Legislature of 1913 provided for an increase in the force of inspectors, they also imposed upon the Division the enforcement of the law in second class cities, and because of this added responsibility we will be in the same position we were before the increase was provided, namely, having an inadequate force of inspectors. The district allotted an inspector is too large and the amount of work to be accomplished is so vast that the work is really harder than it would be were there a sufficient number of inspectors.

In the five years' existence of the Division, we have made 52,742 inspections, as follows:

The number of offices inspected is small, when comparison is made with the number of mercantile establishments inspected. The following table shows the ratio for the past five years:

We have inspected many of the larger offices, but our work was confined principally to the telegraph offices and others engaged in the transmission of merchandise, articles, or messages. Under the law at present, our powers are limited to the regulation of the employment of children in offices. In the modern business concern the office has been developed to a very important branch of the business. This class of workers has been steadily increasing in numbers until to-day they are a very large factor in our industrial life. Owing to the inability of the Division to cover all offices, it is impossible to accurately estimate the number of persons employed in offices in the cities of the first and second class, but it is a conservative statement to say they will equal the number working in mercantile establishments. Of this vast number more than half are females and they have no protection under the Labor Law as has the factory or mercantile employee. The impression may prevail that office help work under ideal conditions; but our investigations have shown that this is not always the case. In many offices the toilet accommodations are inadequate. In some large offices they have regular recess periods and no employee can leave his work except at stated periods. When such rules are in force a larger ratio of waterclosets is necessary than under ordinary circumstances. We have inspected enough offices to learn that many thousands of office employees are working under conditions that have all the injurious elements and disadvantages to be found in factories, namely, long hours, overcrowding, poor light, inadequate air space, insufficient ventilation, improper toilet accommodations and very little, if any, provision for protection of life in case of fire. I would recommend that the law be amended so that the protection of all its sections be extended to include offices and office workers, in order to ameliorate all of the above mentioned conditions.

Complaints.

There were 253 complaints received during the year 1913 in comparison to 235 for the previous year. There were 97 anonymous complaints and 156 signed by the person making the complaint. Where the person making the complaint gave his name and address he was communicated with and informed of the result of our investigation. The investigation of complaints showed there were 145 sustained and 108 not sustained. It will be seen from an examination of the appended table of complaints that 221 of the total of 253 were in relation to the illegal employment of children and the illegal hours of employment of children and females under 21 years of age. The various subjects of the complaints are shown in the appended table.

Washrooms and Waterclosets.

There were issued during the year 4,621 orders regarding waterclosets and 4,467 compliances were secured. This is an increase of 1,927 orders relative to waterclosets over last year. Although this large number of orders was issued and a relatively large number of compliances secured, in only six instances were we compelled to prosecute for failure to comply with the orders. Four were for failure to provide waterclosets; one for failure to clean watercloset, and one for failure to ventilate watercloset.

It becomes necessary to again call attention to the inadequacy of the provisions of section 168 to properly remedy the unclean conditions existing in many mercantile establishments. During the year we issued 1,793 orders to clean waterclosets. This proves that many mercantile establishments are not kept in a clean or sanitary condition. Under the provisions of section 168 our power does not extend to any part of the premises other than the watercloset enclosure. Although we find many of the premises adjoining or in connection with mercantile establishments in a filthy condition, we are powerless to remedy the same. In such instances we would have to notify the board of health in order to remedy the evil. Again I renew my recommendation that provisions be made in Article XII making it mandatory that the premises be kept clean and sanitary. In addition to the foregoing provisions, section 168 should be amended to the same stand

ard as sections 88 and 88-a of Article VI. Section 168 does not provide for the lighting of toilet enclosures or the removing of obscene writing. This section compels us to prosecute the owner of the building for all violations as to waterclosets not complied with. In many instances it is impossible to learn who owns the property, and in such cases we cannot proceed against the agent or lessee of the property. This difficulty would be overcome were the Mercantile Law as strong as the Factory Law.

Ventilation.

All I have said regarding this subject in my former reports I here reiterate and wish to renew my recommendations that the law be amended to define a standard of air conditions, giving power to the Commissioner of Labor to order proper means of ventilation in mercantile establishments and offices when found necessary, after proper air tests had determined such premises were below the standard set by law and, therefore, injurious to the persons employed.

Seats.

During the year we received five complaints relative to seats for females. On investigation each complaint was sustained. We issued 54 orders to provide seats for females, and secured 47 compliances. In only one instance was it necessary to prosecute for failure to provide seats, resulting in a conviction and a fine of $50 being imposed. The enforcement of this section of the law for the past five years has changed the attitude of some employers, relative to permitting employees to use the seats after they have been provided. The up-to-date manager realizes the necessity of allowing the females to use the seats at such times as their duties will permit. Again I desire to suggest that the law provide for a seat of standard requirements, eighteen inches from the floor, and when seats are necessary at a greater height that a proper foot-rise be provided eighteen inches below the seat; that the minimum size of the seat shall be twelve inches in diameter; when seats with backs can be used, that the back be at a proper angle. Such requirements will do away with many of the poor substitutes for seats in use at present. Seats of this standard and the use thereof permitted, the employees would be in better physical condition to perform their duties.

Child Labor.

Our experience during the past five years demonstrates that the child labor problem, as it relates to the places enumerated in section 161, is a difficult one. If it were possible to have a force of inspectors that could cover all places the number of children who would be found illegally employed would be amazing. Following is a table showing the figures for each of the past five years. A comparison of these figures will show that we have not as yet made much headway in reducing the percentage, considering the class of violators with whom we have to deal. We will not make much progress until we have enough inspectors to cover the territory properly, and the courts do their part by imposing fines for violations instead of permitting violators to get off with suspended sentences.

There were found during the year 4,034 children under 16 years of age legally employed. There were 940 illegally employed under 14 years of age and 1,820 between 14 and 16 years of age without employment certificates. This total of 2,760 children is 40.6 per cent of all children found employed. Since the first year we have reduced the percentage from 51.4 to 40.6, a reduction of approximately 11 per cent. Still the percentage is very high and it is doubtful if it can be greatly reduced until we have at the command of the Division a sufficient force of inspectors to cover annually, at least, all places coming under the law, which is impossible at present. It is time for those interested in the physical and moral welfare of children to consider the advisability of prohibitng children from some employments to which section 161 relates. This year we had 198 prosecutions for the illegal em