BOSTON PUBLIC LIBRARY
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NATIONAL RECOVERY ADMINISTRATION
AKH 8 1S36 — "
DIVISION OF REVIEW
EVIDENCE STUDY
NO. 7
OF
THE CONSTRUCTION INDUSTRY
Prepared by
SOUTHGATE HAYNIE
JUNE, 1935
PRELIMINARY DRAFT
(NOT FOR RELEASE: FOR USE IN DIVISION ONLY)
THE EVIDEl^CE STUDY SERIES
The EVIDENCE STUDIES v/ere original]. y planned as a means of gathering
evidence Gearing upon various legal issues v/hich arose under the National
Industrial Recovery Act.
These studies have value quite aside from the use for which they were
originally intended. Accordingly, they are ncy made available for confidential
use within the Division of Review, and for inclusion in Code Histories.
The full list of the Evidence Studies is as follows;
1. Automobile Manufacturing Ind. S3.
2. 500 t and Shoe Mfg. Ind. 24.
3. Bottled Soft Drink Ind. 25.
4. Builders' Supplies Ind. 26,
5. Chemical Mfg. Ind. 27.
6. Cigar Mfg. Industry 28.
7. Construction Industry/ 29.
8. Cotton G-ar/ient Industry 30.
9. Dress Mfg. Ind, 31.
10. Electrical Contracting Ind. 32.
11. Electrical Mfg. Ind. 33.
12. Fab. Metal Prod, Mfg., etc. 34.
13. Fishery Industry S5.
14. Furniture Mfg. Ind. 35.
15. General Contra.ctors Ind. 37.
16. Graphic Arts Ind. 38.
17. Gray Iron Poimdry Ind. 39.
18. Hosiery Ind. 40.
19. Infant's & Children's Wear Ind. 41.
20. Iron and Steel Ind. 42.
21. Lea,ther 43.
22. Lumber & Timber Prod. Ind.
Mason Contra.ctors Industry
Men's Clothing Industry
Motion Picture Industry
Motor Bus Mfg. Industry (Dropped)
needlework Ind. of Puerto Rico
psinting 3: Faperhanging & Decorating
photo Engraving Industry
Pl-umbing Contracting Industry
Retail Pood (See No. 42)
Retail Lumber Industry
Retail Solid Fuel (Dropped)
Retail Trade Industry
■Rubber Mfg. Ind,
Rubber Tire Mfg. Ind.
Silk Textile Ind.
Structural Clay products Ind,
Throwing Industry
Trixcking Industry
Waste Materials Ind.
Ifholesale & Retail Food Ind, (See No.
Ifliolesale Prelsh Fruit & Veg. 31)
In addition to the studies broijght to completion, certain materials have
been assembled for other industries. These MATERIALS are included in the series
and are also made available for confidential use within the Division of Review
and for inclusion in Code Histories, as follows:
44. Wool Textile Industry 49.
45. Automotive Parts & Equip • Ind.. 50.
46. Baking Industry 51.
47. Canning Industry 52.
48. Coat and Suit Ind. 53.
Household Goods & Storage, etc. (Drop-'
Motor Vehicle Retailing Trade Ind, ped)
Retail Tire -5: Battery Trade Ind,
Ship & Boat 31dg. & Repairing Ind,
Wholesaling or Distributing Trade
L. C. Marshall
Director, Division of Review
c»^:i%\. \f\^^
CONIEMS
Pa;?:e
CniP[CEE I - THE IIATUBE OP TIIE IHDUSTHY 1
Hrxiter of Plants, Estalalishiients or Units 1
lliun'ber and Classification of liemliers 1
The l\riua"ber of FlantB, EstaLJ.isliraents or Unito
in Each State 4
Capital Investnent , 5
ll-uifoer of Eailures 5
Total Value of Products and Volume of Produc-
tion , ,, 5
CBLAPQSE II - LABOR STATISTICS 9
H-ui-nher of Employees 9
Total Annua,l Ifeges Paid ty the Industr;- , 9
Average Ho\irl:/ TJaee Sates 13
Average Hours Uorked liTeekly "by Bvdlding Con-
struction Workers 16
Average Weeks Worked Per Yee.r Per Employee 20
UiunDer of Emplojrees Under 15 Years Old 25
IKijnher of Employees in Each State 26
Per Cent Which Total Wages Paid in Eive States
is of Total Volume and Total Annu^d Wages
Paid in Each State 27
CHAPTER III - I'lATERIALS ; RAW AiH) SEMI-PROCESSHID 29
Principal Materials Used in Construction, the
Estimated Value of Es-ch s.nd the Per Gent
wliich Each Comprised of AJ.1 Materials Re-
ported As Used 29
Total Material Costs in the Construction In-
dustry 20
Imports hy Years, 1929 Through 1934, of Speci-
fied Prodxicts Consvxisd in YAiole or in Part in
the Construction Indu.stry 31
IT-oiiher of States Wliere Specified Semi-processed
Ifeterials and Specified Tj'pes of Machinery,
Used in Whole or in Part in Construction, Are
lirniifactured, an-d the Total Value of the
products Listed. 34
Product or G-roup of Products Wliich ire Produced
in 35 '"or Eewer States
ITeiaes of States Engaged in Mining G-ypsiua 35
Qij^jitity, Value and Per Cent of G-yps-ujn Consrixiied
liy the Construction Industry............ 36
Per Cent of Total U. S. Haaiufacturing Prod\\ction
Consumed in Cons triact ion in 1929 37
Shipments of Domestic Portland Cement from Hills
into Hon-cement and Cement-Producing States
in 1931 and 1932. 39
Amount Spent for Machiner;-- and Equipment 39
Percentage Wliich Materials Costs Are of Total
Voltuae 39
General Da.ta on production Materials Used in
Construction • • ^
8311 -i-
COIITEITTS (Cont'd)
Paisre
CH.APEBE lY - PHODUCTIOIJ MD DISTPJBIHIOII 41
YoJLue of Coiistrf.ction in Poiii' Representative
States • 41
lTat^^l■•e of Advertising Media Used, 41
Shifts in Voli-ime Tdj C-30gra.ph.ic ilreas 41
Productive Capacity of Construction Industry 42
Per Cent of Productive Capacity Utilized 42
Other Information • '^'^
CHlPoER V - TPJfflS PRACTICES • . . • '^
Unfair Trade Practices Prior to the Code and
Their Effect Upon the Industry ^
Trade Practices, Wliich, Because of Abusive Use,
jjecaxie Detrir;ient?l „
Unfair Trade Pr.actices Which Are prevalent Hoy,
Insteiices Waeve Unfair Trade Pi-actices in One
Area Have Spread to Another A^-ea or Affected
the rioT/- of Interstate Comuerce • • •
Effect of Prices Q;aoted hy Individ-oal LlemTDers
in an Area uoon the National Price Structm-e
■ "49
of the Construction Industry?-,, .,,.»..........•••.••• •••••
CHAPTER YI - THE IlIDUSTRY - C-EHERjUj IjJFORIvliffllOH. ^ ^.
Brief History of the Construction Industry..., '^^
CHiBACTSRISTIC DE'ffiLOPMEHTS lil GEIISRAL
BUILDIHG CCHSTRUCTIOH S IlIGB 1923 5*^
CHARACTERISTIC BEYELOFIvElITS III HEAYY CON-
STHUCTIOII • ^^
CHARACTERISTIC DEYELOPMSIMTS III STREET PAYING .. ,
MID EIGHUAY COHSTRUCTIOil ^^■
CHARACTERISTIC DEYEL0P1.IE1TTS JUiONG SUBCOIIIBJICT- ^ '
IHG GROUPS ' '5^
Brief History of Trade Associations and Coopera- * .
tive Activities Uithin the Construction In-
dustry and Ifejnes of National Associations '"/
in Indus tTj ,«•.... • • • • ^^
Histor-'- of RelE.tionshi-0S Bet\7een Lolior and ,•. /
Il£,na^ement •
Representative Character of Employer Associa- , l,
tions Sponsoring Code • •
La'oor Groups and Numhers of Hem'bers in Each
in the Constru.ction Industry. v-'-
The Pinaiicial Condition of the Industry in
1933 as CoLToared to Its Condition in 1929
and 1931. . .\ ^^"
Effect of Code on Construction Industry
Qjualified Memoers of the Construction Indu-stry
Uell qualified on the Indu.s trj'" ' s Prohlems ^^
Quelif ied to SpeoJ- Aliout Then.
8311 ~ii-
T1A.3LES 1/
Page
I Classification of Meabers of the Construction
Industrz' According to Codified Divisions in
Hiich Tt.eir Fiinction, with the H-iutfoer of Mern-
hers Shown fo:.; Each Division in 1929, 1933
and 1955, and a Classification of Llemljers in
the Divisions Covered hy the 1929 Census of
Constraction According to Those PLeporting
Volumes Greater Than $25,000 Each and Those
Reporting Vo3-VjneK of Less tho.n $25,000 Each 2v^
II Ifoiahers of Menfoers of the Construction Indus-
trjr in 1929 as Eeported hv the Census of
Con&tracticn hy States. 4-5
III Eanl:ruptcies Reported hy Dun and Bradstreet as
Constraction Code Insolvencies in the Four
Quarters of 1934 and the jj'irst Q,uarter of
1935 5
IV Defaults on Crovernment Contracts in 1933 and
1934 6
V Total Construction Volu'ae in the United States
in 1929, 1931 and 1933 as Reported "by T. ¥.
Dodge and Classified lay T^rpe of TTork 7
VI Privately Financed Construction Contracts as
Avrarded in 37 States 8
VII TiTage Earners in the Construction Industry as
Reported "by the 1930 Census of Occupations 9
VIII Estimated Wage Funds on Hew Construction Proj-
ects in the Construction. Industry 11-12
IX Hourly ¥age Rates in 1929, 1931, 1933, and 1934
as Reported hy Specified Agencies for Various
Tj.'pes of Construction Workers 13-14-15
X Average Hourly Earnings Per Month of Building
Workers in the United States, as Indicated
hy CoLTTatations of the U. S. B-uxeau of Lahor
Statitstics from Reports Received from ahout
10, 000 Sstahlishinents I.ionthly 15
XI Range in Average tfage Rates Reported for
Building Workers "by Different Agencies in
Mid-1933 16 •
XII Average Hours Worked Per Week per Building
Construction Worker per Month in 1934 in
25 States, as Reported "oy the U. S. Bureau
of Lahor Statistics • • • 18-19
8311 -iii-
■MBLSS (Cont'd)
XIII Skilled Wage Kates, and Average Annual
Earnings and Ho\irs of SnolojTnent for
Graitsinen in Areas Covered 'hj Regional
Agreements Under the Construction Code 21-23—23-24^25
XIY Ktmber of Employees in the Construction
Industry Bet'.7eea the Ages of 10 and 17
Years as Reported "by the 1930 Census of
Occiipations 26
XV SuEiher of Employees in the Construction
Indiistry in Five States as Reported "by
the 1930 Census of Occupations 26-27
XYI Per Cent Hfxiich Total Wages Paid in Five
Representative States Was of Total Con-
struction Volume Reported in Each. 58
XVII Total Wage Payrients in Five Re-oresentative
States " 28
2VIII Valu.e of Construction Materials hy Kinds
and Per Cent TThich Each Comprised- of
Total Materials Used, as Reported in
the 1929 Census of Construction 29-30
XIX Total Estimated Cost of Materials Used in
Construction, 31
XX Imports of Portland Cement, Iron and Steel
and LuLioer Used in Constriiction , 32-33
XXI ll-ujnher of States Wliere Specified Semi-Proc-
essed Materials and Specified I^^ies of
Machinery, Used in Wliole or in Part in thst
Construction Industry, are Manufactured, ,, •
and the Total Value of the Products Listed 34-35
XXII Humher of States Engaged in Mining Gjn^sijri 35-36
'■C)'-*'0
XXIII Quantity, Value and Per Cent of Giposum Con-
siimed hy the Construction Industry in the
United States in 1931, 1932 and 1933 36-37
XXIV Per Cent of Total U. S. Manufacturing Produc-
tion Consumed in Construction in 1929 37
XZvV Destination of Building Lime Shipments from
Plants in Ohio in 1931, 1932 and 19S3 38
XXVI Shipments of Domestic Portland Cement from
Hills into Non-Cement and Cement-Producing
States in 1931 and 1932 39
8311 -iv-
TABLES (Cont'd)
Pai°;e
yjLYll Ei.ipl07ees, Payroll and Value of Prodixction of
Certain Industries Vfcor.e Prodacts are Con-
Gvraed in V/liole or IJearly So '[rj the Construc-
tion Industry in the United States 40
SXVIII Total Construction Volu-ie in Pour P.epresenta-
tivo States 41
]CSIX Trade Practice Comolaints, Cons trijict ion In-
dustry and Supplcnents 48
XSX Volume of Construction oy Contractors Outside
of Kome Cities and States, as Ileported ^oj
the 1929 Census of Construction 49
X]lKI national Exolo-^'er Associations; Constraction
Industry/. 58-59-60
]iXXII Disputes in the Suilding Trades 64 ■'
XXXIII Contractor Associations Sponsoring; Construe- C""
tion Code Entitled to Seat on Code Authority 55-56-67
XXXIV Professional Associations S:ponsorin3 Constriac-
tion Code Entitled to Seat on Code Axithority.. 68 ■
XXXV Associations S"oonsorin3 Other Supplemen-
tary Codes S9
XXXVI Summary Data - Associations Sponsoring Approved
Codes, April 12, 1935 '. 70
XXXVII Status APL Unions P^mctionins in Cons trv.ct ion
Industry 72-73
XXXVIII Unions i!liose Meinhers in Snail Nvjifoers or Occasion-
ally Engage in Construction Work 74
XXXIX ITmnhers of Construction Corporations Reporting Net
Incomes or Deficits in 1929, 1951 and 1932 to
the U. S. Bureau of Internal Revenue, and the
Totals of the ilet Incomes or Deficits Reported 76-77-78-79
XXXX 'otal Construction, 1933 and 1934 80
X2CQCI Changes in Average Value of One and Two-Fanily
Housing Construction Per So;aare Poot of Ploor
Space Since 1929 80
XXXXII Changes in Average Valtie of One and Two-Pahiily
Housing Construction Per Square Foot of Ploor ,
Space Since 1932 "oy Class of Operation 81
XXXXIII Per Cent of Union Lie:ihers Unenployed in the
Building Trades 81
8311 -V-
TABLES (Cont'd)
PaiSie
GBAR1 A - Building Construction, Wage Rates and
Mat erials 1'''
-oOo-
1/ Tallies are designated "b;.^ nn.ioers, ca.ptions and pages.
In the report, however, "jrhere the contents of tables
are explained adequately \)j the accojTipanying text,
carotions ha,ve been OEitted to e:qDedite the prepara-
tion of this re-oort.
3311 -vi-
-1-
PACTS CONCEIVING THE CONSTRUCTION INDUSTRY
I. THE NATURE OF THE IIIDUSTRY
NTimTjer of Plants, Establisliiaents or Units
According to the Industry reports of the Research and Planning Division,
the total niini"ber of neintiers of the Construction Industry in 192S was 183,284,
and in 1933, 155,018. These estimates are "believed to be the most early
correct available. They cover contrs,ctors engaged in the actual work on
projects, and do not include about 16,000 practicing architects and 20,000
engineers estimated, also in the Division's Industry Reports, to be engaged
in the Industry.
Other sources reporting the number of members in the Industry e.re:
(a) Tlie 1929 Census of Construction !_/, reporting 144,396 members in
1929. The figure given is considered not to be inclusive, inasmuch as the
Census of Construction was compiled from answers to questionnaires to which
replies were not m.andatory and covers only a major portion of the Industry.
(b) The Occupational Census of 1930, reporting 167,512 Builders and
Building Contractors. This figure if useful at all, would be applicable only
to the Building Construction Section of the Industry, It undoubtedly includes
many self-employed journeymen v/ho reported themselves as contractors,
(c) The mailing lists of the various divisional code authorities and the'
Construction Code Authority, containing all together a total of 123,044 names
of firms or members as of March 10, 1935. The Code Authority mailing lists
are believed to be not inclusive of all members in the Industry.
(d) The Architectual Record's data, showing that 9,575 firms of Archi-
tects and Engineers, including partnerships and individuals, participated in
the 1929 building program. This figure is useful, only because of the absence
of aay other data indicating the groupings into firms of the professionals in
the Industry,
Number and Classification of Members
The 1929 Census of Construction cla-ssified the 144,396 firms reported in
the industry as comprising 30,597 who performed volumes of business greater
than $25,000, having averaged $204,277 each, and 113,799 members who performed
volumes of less than $25,000, having averaged $8,988 apiece.
A classification of members according to the codified divisions in which
they function, with the totel number of memlsers estimated for designated years
in each division and with the numbers of members shown as designated by the
Census of Construction as having performed volumes greater than $25,000 or
less than $25,000 is shown in Table I, preceding.
ry Throughout this report it should be borne in mind that all data reported
as taken directly from the 1929 Census of Construction is not inclusive
of the entire Construction Industry in the United States,
8311
J
TABLE I
CI^SSIFICATION O" M'-JhB' H3 OF THrJ COKSTRUCTION INDUSTRY ACCORD IjJO TO CWIFIED DinSIOMS
IN hHICH l-H.-.Y rWCVL'Ai, WITH T>" hUM» R 0>> hJAIB isS SHOWN i- C»i EACH UlVIilUN IN 1929 1933
AilD 1935, AKa A Cl.ASSIii'ICATION OF Kt-bB'-RS IK i'H JlVISIOJuS .OV.<i D BY Wi. 1929 CINSOS OT*
COK.STRUCTlOa ACCORDING TO TWOS^ '<' Poii'f IM VoUJi; S ORIATEK WAH #25.000 EACH AWJ) THOS!l R3-
POlWINa VOUIME L>:3a than $25,000 hMH
-8-
Hleoellenecnu Soaro«0
Wart^er of Tirma
1929 A/ 1933 y 1933 Z/
Tixma
P«rf am-
ine Over
•25,000
Toluae
In 1929 1/
Cengw of Cooetrttctlcp
Average Voloae
Per riTB Per-
f (Mnalng Over
125,000 VolUM
In 1929 3/
1. Senmral Contraatiog Qroap
Balldtng Conatruotl«i
HS^sroy and Street C(mstruetiOD
S«aV7 saA lUHwij C@n8^ru«tion
Pipe Liae Conetraetlmi
2. Tbe Five Serrloe Trades
103>2^ 155.018 123,0Ml
37.579
5.^12
2'313 ^,
22 V
*5,316
A
3.
Painting and Deoorating 39,000
CLeetrieal Contraotiog 25,000
Mooflng and Sheet Metal Indaatry B,969
Plmbiag Contraoting 25,000
" .000
BaatlBg, Pipl^ A Air CeBditionigg ■>^,,
Total 113,969
^e Tseiva Other Tradea
r
\h
[9
If
h)
Elevater H&nu aoturiEg
CeBeat-&«i Cciitraotiag
Tili aitd Mai^Ie Oontraotii^
Maara CoBtraeting
Reailient Flooring
9eoA nooir Laying
lasalatS^ ^oatraetiag
Kalaaeis Ir laetS7
Plasterii^ and Latklng
Terrasso a d loaalo
Esrble Con j««tiag
StMie Sett ng
Total
150
2,255
'^.271
2,500
3,000
10,000
225
1,000
165
23,999
20,000
5>12
2§y
27,7«W
1>0,000
17,000
10,000
25,000
16,000
ica.Goo
126
2,200
2,500
10,000
19,27«
68,620
330
2,1^
7,000
2.500
1.2?8
in
1^,000
Hoo
30,597
3,863
3075/
25,500* i»v,766
1,102
1 928
t 26 2/
l.'W3
10,176
129
673
382 2/
623
11/
♦ 20^,277
259,000
266,000
797,000
282,530 §/
76,000
163 000
«S,900
87,000 7/
155.000
96,300 §/
600,000
132.000 §/
126,500
96,000 2/
131^,000
^8,9a^^ (2,831)12/ i^w.ooo ^
rima Per-
foralng
Leee Than
,000 in
>29 3/
14^
113,799
96
30.338
91
mi/
8,481 2/
1.
3,
3,«o«
u/
Average
Voluae
Per Flra
Perfoaiaiag
Leas 1%Ml
<23.000 V
I «.988
10,971
12.
U,005^
10,993
6.7^9/
7.«7
u,iw
U/
(1,922)11/ i,**? V
(Poot BOtea en felloalng paga)
-3-
(Foot notes)
* Total nutn'ber on General Contractors Code Authority.
_l/ Based on Industrj;- Reports "by the Research and Planning Division. The
bases and computations for all estimates listed in the columns "below
these dates may "be found in the Industry Reports for the 33ivisions in-
dicated.
2/ The figures in this column are "based on the num"bers of Mem"bers on Code
Authority mailing lists on March 10, 1935.
3/ As reported in the Census of Construction.
4/ The operations of these contractors are considered functions of Heavy and
Railway Construction.
5/ Includes Pipe Line Construction Contractors.
6/ Is average; not totaJL.
7/ Includes Heating Contractors or Contracting.
8/ Includes Mar"ble Contractors or Contracting.
9/ Includes Carpentry Su'b- contractors or Su'b- contracting.
10/ Included in Census of Construction data on Tile and Mar"ble Contracting as
given in this ta'ble,
11/ There is no way +0 determine whether all or any of these figures cover
"Stone Setting, " "because they are given in the Construction Census under
the heading "Stonework."
12/ Is only the num"ber of firms whose reported volumes were used in determinin
the average volume per firm in this group.
8311
~4-
The ITuml3er of Plants, .Estaljlishments or Units in Each State
The 1929 Census of Construction !_/ , reports the numtier of Liemhers
of the Construction Industry "by States as follows:
TABLE II
State
Maine
New Hampshire
Vermont
Massachusetts
Rhode Island
Connecticut
New York
Hew Jersey
pennsylvejiia
Ohio
Indiana
Illinois
Mi chigan
Wisconsin
Minnesota
Iowa
Missouri
North Dalcota
South Daliota.
Nehraska
Kansas
Delaware
Maryland
District of Columhia
Virginia
West Virginia
North Carolina
South Carolina
Georgia
Florida
Kentucky
Tennessee
Alabama
Mississippi
Arkansas
Louisiana
Oklahoma
Texas
Montana
Idalio
Wyoming
Niimher of Memhers
891
737
331
6,689
1,206
4,759
20 , 720
8,455
13,909
9.029
3,615
9,293
7,166
5,345
2,468
3,196
2,147
480
524
1,282
1,582
284
2,239
788
1,180
949
659
401
773
1,406
1,562
1,181
635
452
625
767
955
3,902
490
316
216
ly The Construction Census, as stated, is incomplete.
(Tahle II continued on next page)
8311
TABLE II - Cont'd.
State Htunlier of Mem"bers
Colorado 1,509
New Mexico 231
Ari zona 348
Utah 751
Nevada 166
Washington 1 , 840
Oregon 1,371
California 14,476
Capital Investment
Capital investment in the Construction Industry in 1929 vras reported
"by the Census of Construction as follows:
Establishments cf all classes, numbering 26,718 reported the inventory
value of their equipment at the close of 1929 as $407,039,722.
More complete data are not available, and as stated, the Construction
Census provides only a partial figure.
Number of Eailures
■Bankruptcies, reported by Dun and Bradstreet, as Construction Code
Insolvencies, cover only quarters in 1934 and 1935. They are as follows:
TAB
LE III
1934
Bankruptcies
First Quart
er
193
Second "
143
Third "
139
Fourth "
169
AL, 1934. .
. . 644
1935
First Quar
tef
139
8311
-6-
Definite or partial defaults on G-overrunent contracts for 1932, 1933 and
1934 are shown in the following Table IV:
TABLE IV
DEFAULTS OK GOVEHIMEHT CONTRACTS 1/
1932
1935
1934
number of
Definite 2/
Defaults
ZO
36
37
^'lumber of Contractors
Involved in
Definite Defaults
24
31
31
Number of Partial 3/
Defaults
24
16
11
Ntunber of Contrpctors
Involved in Partial
Defaults
19
16
10
1/ Including contracts under the Architect of the Capital; the Depart-
ments of Agriculture, Commerce, Interior, Justice, lle.vy. Treasury and
War, or their divisions; the District of Colunbia and the Veterans
Adrainistration. Source is Bureau of Contract Info'^mation, Washington,
D. C.
2/ Contracts definitely defaulted are those terminated and awarded again.
3/ Contracts partially defaulted are- those which, although completed with-
out termination by the awarding authority, have required particips.tion
or assumption of responsibility by surety companies, financial in~
stitutions or others besides the original contractor.
Total Value of Products and Volume of Production
The production of the Construction Industry generally is classified under
two major headings. The first is "Building Construction," The second is
"Engineering Constru.ction. " The first again is subdivided into "Non-ReG-
iden'tial Building," under which is included commercial, industrial and educa-
tional buildings and into "Residential Building," under which usually is liste.
apa.rtments and hotels, a.nd one and two family houses. "Engineering Construc-
tion." com.prises dams, reservoirs, highways, public works, streets, utilities,
etc.
The P. W. Dodge Corporation estipiates annual expenditures in the United
States for Building and Engineering Construction in 1929, 1931, 1933 and 1934
as follows:
A6.ditional compa.rative d^ata on construction voluiue in 1932, 1933, 1934
and 1935 a,re as follows:
8311
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TA3LE VI
PRIVATELY ?IMMCBD CONSTRUCTION COITTMCTS
AS AWARDED IN 37 STATES
(in thousands of dollars)
Monthly Average
1st 4 raos. total
Month of April
1932
$48,624
229,424
61,175
1953
$47,542
143,638
38,934
1934
$47,310
166,126
53,428
1935
(1st 4 months)
$52,224
208,895
71,425
CONSTRUCTION CONTRACTS FOR RESIHCNTIAL BUILDING 1/
AS AWARDED IN 37 STATES
(in thousands of dollars)
Monthly Average
1st 4 nos. total
Month of A-pril
1952
^<>0 y 339
114,025
28,895
1953
$20,772
58,921
19,144
1954
$20,737
80,477
22,770
1935
(1st 4 months)
$28,379
113,515
42,281
Source; Dodge Statistical Research Service
P. ¥. Dodge Corporation
Contract Awards in 37 Eastern States
1/ Residential "building includes apartments, dormitories, hotels, dwel-
lings ("both owner occupied and sale or rent classification), two
family houses, housing developments, and, from January, 1934 to date,
H.O'L.C. improvements.
The Research and Planning Division in its Industry Report on Construction,
dated Octo''oer 25, 1933, estimated total 1929 consti^J.ction as approximatelj'- 11
"billion dollars.
The 1929 Census of Construction accounts for contra,cts aggregating
$7,285,720,244, a portion of which is duplication comprising work fcrice ::eported
once "by the general contractors and again hy the su"bcontractors. The Census
therefore o"btained reports actually on $5,778,453,565 worth of construction,
of which ahout $1,507,266,679 was suhlet.
The Federal Emplojnnent Stahilization Board found evidence that construc-
tion in 1929 totalled $10,500,000,000, excluding the value of services render-
ed independently "by architects and engineers, "but including the day la'bor work
on nev.' and maintenance operations performed without contractors directly "by
pu"blic and private agencies.
8311
-9-
II LAJOR STATISTICS
Kuin'ber of Employees
In its report on the Construction Industry, dated October 25, 1933, the
Research cuid Planning:; Division estimated that in 1929 ahout 3,000,000 rjorkers
were enoloyed directly in the Construction Industry.
Estimates of the n-umhers of employees in the 18 codified Divisions of the
Industry, listed in Tahle I a-s given in the various industry reocrts hy this
Division, indicated 2,589,822 employees in 1929 and 1,438,651 in 1933.
The Census of Constmction shows that 27,102 reporting estahlishments
were emplojang 945,235 \7orkers in August of 1929, the month in which the maxi-
mum numher of v.'orkers were on the payrolls of these estahlishments.
The 1930 Census of Occupations lists 3,059,162 wage earners in the Con-
struction Industrj?- as follows:
TABLE VII
Brick & Stone Masons & Tile Layers 170,903
Carpenters 929,426
Electricieiis 280,317
Cranemen, Hoistmen & Derrickmen (Engineers) 60,886
Painters, G-laziers & Varnishers ("building) 430,105
Paperhangers 28 , 328
plasterers &, C.-zent Jirif htr? 85,480
Plumbers & C-as & Steam Fitters 237,814
Roofers & Slaters 23,636
Stone Cu.tters 22,888
Structural Steel Workers 28,956
Building Operatives, Not Otherwise Specified 18,442
Building Laborers 419,802
Unclassified Employees in Road & Street Work 8,565
Laborers in Road 5: Street Work 290,354
Foremen, etc, in Road & Street Work 23,250
TOTAL* 3,059,162
Voting strength reported by 20 A.F. of L. Unions in the Construction In-
dustry indicated their total memberships in 1929, 1933 and 1934 as follows:
In 1929... 974,200
In 1933 631,000
In 1934 635,200
Total Annual Wages Paid by the Industry
,. In the 1929 Census of Construction, 30,597 firms of all classes reported
that they handled $6,250,267,000 worth of business, of which $1,455,494,000
was let under su.bcontract ; leaving a volume of $4,794,773,000 actually per-
formed lij these establishments. The saine group of firms i-e-norted total wage
pajTnents as $1,467,542,000. Thus the total wage payments of $1,467,542,000
comprised about 30,6 per cent of the volume of $4,794,773,000 performed. ;rhis
30.6 per cent, however, is the labor percentage of the total of Building ojid
8311
J
-10-
Hea.vy o-iicl Higli\7ay Construction in 1929. It nould not he applica'Dle to the
total voltijiies in later years 'because of the changed ratios of Heavy and
Highway Construction to Bu.ilding Construction in those years.
Ds,ta in the 1929 Census of Construction, ho'jever, also indicate that
alDOut 53.5 per cent of voluue coraprised wages and 7.3 per cent, salaries in
the Building Construction Section of the Industry, while in the Heavyv and
Highway Division, wages made up a,"bout 38.5 per cent of volume and salaries,
ahout 1,5 per cent.
In Tp.hle VIII these percentages are applied to Building and to Heavy
and Highway Construction Volurie as reported "by the P. W. Dodge Corporation
for the United States for the years 1929, 1931, 1933 and 1934. The Tahle,
however, does not show ninor deviations caused "oy chenges in wage rp„tes and
iiiaterio.l prices S'uhsequent to 1929. Some ds.y lahor, maintenazLce, repair gjiid
reconditioning work likevdse rmdouhtedly is not inclu.ded in the voltine totals
as shown. The estimated total wage funds for the Industry as indicated,
therefore, mas'" he considered highly conser/ative.
8311
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Avero/ce Hoirrly ¥af;e Eates
Avero^ge hourly \ia^e rates for the Construction Industry as a vzhole
have little significance. Thex-e are too many \7idely different divisions
in the Industry and the T,7age rates paid to the various skilled v/or]rers in
them have raiijT^ed from o.hout 10 cents hourly to $2.50 houi-ly.
Average hourly uage ra,teri for vea-ioxis specific types of skilled
craftsmen in different Divisions of the Industry, as reported hy the imions
concerned, the Suilders Association, the Architect-oral Record ajad other
orgo^iizations for the years specified are e.s follov/s:
TABLE IX
PAIhgSBS
llovs-lir Wase Ha^te
1929
l)]3uilders ' Ass 'n,
2) Union
$1.10 Average
1.137 Average
•112. cities
138 cities
1931
l)Builders ' Ass'n.
2) Union
$1,092 Average
1.148 Average
120 cities
129 cities
193:;
l)liuil6.ers ' Ass'n.
2) Union
3)Architectural Record
4)lntern9.tional Society
of Liaster Painters
(A.&.C.)
$ .835 Average
.957 Average
.900 Average
113 cities
87 cities
47 cities
.750 Average - S5 cities
1934
l)Br.ilders ' Ass'n.
2) Union
3)Architectur3.1 Record
(II.A.3.E. - Peh.)
$ .933 Average
1.013 Avertvge
.905 Average
113 cities
88 cities
46 cities
ELECTRICIA!:?S
Hourly Tl3^;e Rate_
1929
l)Builders' Ass'n.
$1,213 Average - 112 cities
1931
l)Builders' Ass'n.
$1.2X8 Average - 117 cities
1933
l)Br.ilders ' Ass'n.
2)Contrs,ctors (A.G-.C.)
3)Architectiiral Record
(1T.A.B.E.)
4) Union (1932)
$1,051 Average
.369 Average
1.111 Average
114 cities
370 cities
48 cities
1.227 Average - 54 cities
8311
-14-
ELECTHICIMS - Cont'd.
Hourly Wage Ro.te
L934
1) Builders' Ass'n.
2) Architectural Record
(N.A.B.E.—FelD.)
$1,071 Avera.ge
1=093 Average
114 cities
46 cities
PLUIvBERS
Hourly Wage Rate
1929
l) Builders' Ass'n.
1931
l) Builders' Ass'n.
1933
1) Builder's Ass'n.
2) Nat'l Ass'n. of Real
Estate Boards
3) Architectural Record
(Uat'l Asc'n. of
Builders' Exchanges)
4) Union (1932)
$1,313 Average - 107 cities
$1,303 Average - 121 cities
$1,068 Average - 113 cities
.805 Average
1.106 Average
49 cities
■48 cities
1.204 Average - 40 cities
1934
1) Builders' Ass'n.
2) Architectural Record
(K.A.B.E.— Feh.)
$1,167 Average
1.105 Average
113 cities
45 cities
BRICICLAYERS
Hourly Wagie Rate
1929
l) Builders' Ass'n.
1931
l) Builders' Ass'n.
$1,512 Average - 114 cities
$1,509 Average - 121 cities
8311
32ICKLAYEaS - Cont'd..
Hourly Wag-e Rate
1933
1) Builders' Ass'n.
2) Union
3) Contractors (a.G-.C.)
4) Architectural Record
(II.A.B.E.)
1934
1) Builders' Ass'n.
2) Arcliitectural Record
(U.A.B.E. - FelD.)
$1,204 Average
1.205 Average
.885 Average
1.218 Average
$1,257 Average
1.214 Average
115 cities
135 cities
193 cities
48 cities
115 cities
46 cities
HOD CARRIERS
Eourl^'- Wage Rate
1929
l) Builders' Ass^n=
1931
l) Builders' Ass'n.
1933
l) Builders' Ass'n.
1934
1) Builders' Ass'n.
$ .781 A,verage - 103 cities
$ .764 Average - 110 cities
$ .624 Average - 96 cities
$ .657 Average - 107 cities
TABLE X
Month
January
FelDruary
March
April
May
June
July
August
Septemoer
Octo'ber
Novemher
December
8311
AVERAGE HOURLY EARNINGS PER MOITOE OE BUILDING
WORKERS IN THE UNITED STATES, AS IlfDI GATED BY
COMPUTATIONS OF THE U. S. BUREAU OF LABOR STA-
TISTICS FROM REPORTS RECEIirED FROM ABOOT 10,000
ESTABLISHIVENTS MONTHLY.
1934
Average Houi'ly Wage Rate (in cents) No. Reiporting Firms
77.5
79.2
79.0
77.4
77.5
77.2
78.8
79.7
80.1
80.1
81.9
83.5
7,471
10,001
10,281
10,410
10,647
10,727
10,725
10,479
10,491
10,366
10,338
10,054
J
-15-
The accompanying Chart A reveals cleprlj how little meaning is to "be
attrihiited to any quotation of average wage rates for construction workers
as a whole. Such averages, to have any significance at all, must he averaged
for specific classif ica.tions of wage earners within specific Industry divi-
sions, sxid even then, depending xtpon the soui^ces, the average may vary widely.
This is shown for the B-ailding Construction Division of the Industry as
a whole in Chart A, which traces the the different average vrage rates for
identical classes of workmen which different agencies reported as existing at
the close of the years 1929, 1931, 1933 and 1934. It may he seen that in the
middle of 1933, average wage rates as reported hy different agencies varied
greatly as follov/s:
TABLE XI
RAIJGE I'N AVERAGE WAG-S RATES REPORTED FOR
BUILDIlvTG WORKERS BY DIPPERENT AGENCIES IN MID-1933
Reporting Agency Average Reported, Mid-1933
Engineering Hews Record 81
A. G. C. -78
National Real Estate Boards 49
The chart, moreover, shows the relative stability of average rates prior
to 1930 and the wide variations each year since 1930 in the wage rates as
reported hy each of the agencies named, as well as the spread in the averages
8.S between the rates reported "by them all at given periods.
Average Hours Worked Weekly hy Building Construction Tiiforkers
The accompanying tahle shows the average number of hours worked weekly
per employee in the Building Construction Industry d-oring each month in 1934
in the major cities of 25 states.
The averages, however, fail to give a true picture of the Industry as a
whole. Although they are given here for the designated States as a whole,
they actuallj'- are based on data furnished by a certain group or certain groups
of employers in one or more large cities in the states, as pointed out by
the B'oreau of Labor Statistics.
The national average, for instance, is based upon reports received by
the Bureau from about 10,000 firms in the 25 states designated in the accom-
panying chart and in other states. These 10,000 firms, inasmuch as they were
able to report themselves as having any em;ployees at all, must have occupied
a relatively favored position in the Industry in 1934. Their particular
group of employees, furthermore, excluded the many thousands of construction
workers known to be wholely or mainly unemployed. The averages shown, there-
fore, should be indicative of the conditions of only the workers covered by
the re-ports, and not of the industry as a whole.
8311
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S311
-20-
Average Weeks Worked Per Year Per Enroloyee
Constriaction i,7orkers are employed "by the hour. The average numher
of weeks worked per employee per year, therefore, signifies little. An
average of any sort, furthermore, whether for hours or weeks worked, or
wages received, v/hen it relates to a classification as general as "con-
struction workers", vrhose occupations and wages vary greatly, will prove
of small value for any use excepting as a vague indicator of conditions.
Although other dat'-. in this report, including the chart showing wage
trends and the tahle of weekly hours worked as computed hy the Bureaux of
La'bor Statistics, have dealt with sta.tistics on the highly general subject of
""building construction workers", there is given here additional findings
as derived in this Division's exoerience in ohserving and analyzing facts
and figures from various localities covered by area agreements for specific
construction divisions. The following table shows average hourly wage
rates and yearly earnings and hours worked in the yea^rs I929 and 1933 ^°^
skilled construction workers, as determined in laany cases from data fur-
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listed areas:
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lyTumljei- of 5m-ployees Under 16 Years Old
The 1930 Census of Occupations lists the following nuralDers of emploj'ees
"between the ages of 10 and 17 years as engaged in construction i7ork:
TAEL3 XIV
Carpenters Ap'irentices 1,925
Electriciems " 2,509
plumbers " 1,956
Apprentices to Other Building
and Hand Trades 4,844
Carpenters 3,096
Painters, Glaziers & Varnishers 2,360
Operatives in Indtistry not
Otherwise Listed 273
Laborers & Helpers, Building
Industry 10,772
Total 25,735
IJumber of Employees in Each State
The number of employees in five states, as reported in the 1930 Census of
Occupations, is as follows;
Alabama
Carpenters Apnrentices
Electricians "
Plumbers "
Brick & Stone Masons &
Tile Layers
Carpenters
Electricians
painters, Glaziers &
Varnishers (building)
Paperhangers
Cement Finishers
Plasterers
Plu-.ibers & C-as & Steam
Fitters
Roofers & Slaters
Stone Cutters
Structural Iron Workers
Operatives not Classified
Laborers & Helpers
TOTAL
California
Carpenters Apprentices
Electricians "
TABLE
XV
Illinois
38
Carpenters Apprentices
351
26
Electricians "
439
33
Pi-umbers "
Brick & Stone Masons &
618
2,055
Tile Layers
14,001
13,056
Caroenters
59,979
3,179
Electricians
Painters, Glaziers &
22,070
3,649
Varnishers (building)
35,848
236
pajDerlmngers
1,018
228
Cement Pinishers
1,583
689
Pla.sterers
plumbers & Gas & Steam
5,332
2,177
Fitters
16,781
244
Hoofers & Slaters
2,008
159
Stone Cutters
1,150
251
3-i-rc.Gtural Iron Workers
2,803
134
Miscellaneous OTJeratives
1,429
3,078
Laborers & Helpers
34,516
29,290
TOTAL
New York
199,931
198
Carpenters Apprentices
435
228
Electricians "
710
(Continued on the following page)
8311
-27-
TABLE XV (Continued)
Pl-amliers Apprentices
174
Brick & Stone Masons &
Tile Layers
5
410
Carpenters
64
682
Electricians
21
215
Painters, G-laziers &
Varnishers (building)
26
580
Paperhangers
537
Cement Finishers
1
522
Plasterers
6
669
Plumbers & G-as & Steam
Fitters
13
405
Roofers & Slaters
1
681
Stone Cutters
679
Structural Iron Workers
1
551
Miscellaneous Operatives
1
064
Laborers & Helpers
22
155
TOTAL
167
750
Pennsylvania
Plumbers Apprentices
821
Brick & Stone Masons &
Tile Layers
31
587
Carpenters
113
641
Electricians
42
905
Painters, G-laziers &,
Varnishers (building)
76
004
Paperhangers
2
021
Cement Finishers
802
plasterers
11
594
Plumbers & Gas & Steam
Fitters
41
207
Roofers & Slaters
3
926
Stone Cutters
3
700
Stru.ctural Steel TaTorkers
6
924
Miscellaneous Operatives
4
061
Laborers & Helpers
70
508
TOTAL
410
846
Carpenters Apprentices
515
Electricians "
636
Plumbers "
828
Brick & Stone Masons
& Tile Layers
16,492
Carpenters
67,525
Electricians
26,691
Painters, etc.
28,299
Paperhajigers
5,443
Cement Finishers
1,769
Plasterers
6,233
Plumbers, etc.
22,693
Roofers & Slaters
2,874
Stonecutters
1,571
Structural Steel Wo
rkers
2,000
Miscellanaous Operatives
1,790
Laborers & Helpers
46,021
TOTAL. ,
..231,980
Summary
F IP »*iK't— '^^- f *^ *^^ '^^
State No,
Const,
Workers
P
Dpulation
Pop,
Per Worker
Alabajna
29
290
2
646,248
90
California
167
750
5
677,251
34
Illinois
199
931
7
630,654
38
New York
410
846
12
588,066
30
Pennsylvania
231
980
9
631,350
42
TOTAL
.1,039
797
38
173,569
37 (Av. for
Total)
Per Gent Which Total Wages Paid in I
ive
States is
of Total
Volume 3jid Total Alinual Wages Paid
in Each of These States
8311
-28-
For tlie Industry in the five representative Statea selected, the 1929
Census of Construction shor/s that the follov/ing proportions of total volume
performed \7ent to wages for labor, skilled and Linslcilled:
TABLE XVI
State Per Gent to Laljor
Alatama , 39 .6
California. 27.2
Illinois , 33.4
New Yorke » 34
Pennsylvania, , 30.9
The application of the above percentages to volumes in the respective
states, as reported by P. W. Dodge, indicates, for the year designated, the
total wage payments to construction workers as shorm in the following table,
TABLE SVII
1929 1929 Wage
State Volume Pa;sTnents
Ala. * 85,367,700 l/ $ 33,800,000
Calif. 2/
111. $ 678,440,800 l/ $226,300,000
i\T. Y. $1,497,307,200 l/ ^509,000,000
Penn's,$ 650,000,000 l/ $200,800,000
1/ P. W. Dodge reports in 1929 covered
awards of contracts valued at $5,000
or more each. The Dodge Con^oration
estimates tiiat projects valued at
less than $5,000 comprised about 23
per cent of the totai of the larger
projects in the United States in ad-
dition. This 23 per cent additional
to the reported volume of larger
projects reported, therefore is added
for the 1929 volumes as given here.
2/ Ho Dodge figures on California.
8311
-20-
III MATERIALS - RAW AM: SMI-PROCESSED
Frinci'pal L.iateria.ls Used in Conptiuction, tlio Ectlmated Value of Each and the
Per Cent TTliich Each Conrprisec^ of All Ma.terjpls Re'^orted as Used .
In the tahle which follov/f;, the estiraated total value of materials used
in 1925 is $2,^77,600,000. On the "basis of Census of Construction data, in-
dicating thiat raa.terial costs in 1929 were aoout 35*5 P'^^ cent of totp„l voli^jne,
the value of naterials as given in the ta.hle indicate a total volume of sli;p;ht-
ly less than $7,000,000,000.
As stated, the estinates of the total 1929 volume of constriaction vary.
The most incl-asive estimate is considered to he $7s901s'^C)'^jOOO, as reported h;''
P. U. Dodge for I929, including Dodge's estimate of the volume of projects
valued at less than $5,000.
37 applying 35»5 p6^ cent to $7>301»^i-00»QC)0, or to any other estimate of
totp.l 1929 voluine, other estimates of total material costs, differing from the
estimate in the tahle, may he derived, and the percentage ratio of each of the
materials listed may he applied to the ne^: total to determine the respective
values of each material used on the Do.sis of any other volume estimate uhich
may he deemed more a.ccurate. On the hasis of 0. volume of aho\it $7,000,000,000,
hovrever, the value of laaterials used and the per cent which they comprised of
total materials in I929 were as follows:
TABLE XVIII
Kind of Material
. Per cent l/
Valuei/ of
Total
Total
$2,U77.6 100.0
Sand, Gravel, Crushed Stone, Slag, Cinders
Brich, (face, common, fire, paving, etc.)
Gut Stone, Granite and Marhle
Cement
Plaster, etc.
Struct-o.ral Steel
Reinforcing Steel
Metal Doors, Windows, and trim
Luinher, roixgh and finished
ilillrrork
Ha.rdwax'e, rough and finished
Paints, Varnishes, Glass
Roofing and Sheet Metal
Hee.tlng a.nd Ventilating Equipment and supplies
Pl\ij.foing and Gas-fitting Equipment and supTjlies
Electrical ApiDliances and Supplies
Elevators, Dumh-waiters and Eauipment
Pipe, drain tile, vitrified, Concrete, Segnent-tile,
Corruga-ted
PiiJC, Cast Iron, Sheet and Tuhe steel, etc,
(Continued on next page)
257.7
10, U
101,6
h.i
69.4
2.S
22-3.5
S.9
2k. S
1.0
200.7
3.1
7^.3
3.0
27.3
1.1
1S3.3
7.^
7^.3
3.0
29.7
1.2
52.0
2.1
S9.2
3.6
19s. 2
s.o
205.6
S.3
156,1
6.3
Sl.g
3f3
32.2
1.3
52.0
2,1
S311
-30-
TABLE XVIII (Cont'cL)
Bit\i::iinous paving naterials, Tar, Asphalt, a.nd Oil
Macliiner7
Meta,l products, U.E. S. (including raetsd furniture)
All other liaterials
39.6
1.6
?9.7
1.2
29.7
1.2
2i45.3
9.9
Source: 15th Census of the United Stn.tes ~ 1930* Construction Industry
(p»27)} P'J.rea'a of the Census, U. S. Depo.rtnent of Comnerce,
1/ Estinates hased on reports of pa,rt of constr-cction estatlisliinents through--
out the United States, showing $1, 573 j 000, 000 rrorth of materials, hy kinds
used hy them. All valties in millions and tenths of nillions of dollars.
are:
Other materials used in conr_,tru.ction, not covered in the preceding table,
Tile ( fireproof ing)
Tile Pacing, Terra Cotta, Z].oor C^ Wall
Concrete and Cinder Block
Riprap, rubhle, etc.
Lime
Cast Iron, Miscellaneous, E::cluding Pipe
Metal and Wire Lath and Furring
Ornamental Metal Work
Lath, Shingles and Shalces (rood)
Composition Board
Waterproofing liaterials
Finished Flooring, Other Than Cenent, Wood and Tile
Screens, Shades, Awnings, etc.
Wire Ca.'ble Guards, Fencing, etc.
Wood Piling and Timher
Ready Mixed Concrete
Freight, Hauling or Trucking to Job
Cast Forms, Beads, etc.
Chemicals and Chemical Products
Mineral products (non-metallic) not elsewhere
classified.
Sealing Materials
Textiles and Caulking Materia.ls
Total Material Costs in the Constru-ction Indiistry
The 1929 Census of Construction indicates tha^t for 30»597 firms in the
United States, the total costs of naterials comprised 35*5 psj-" cent of the
total volume of business which thej;- performed.
Applying this ratio to the total voliirae of const3niction in the United
States in the years 192S, 1931} 1933 s-J-i'l 193^, naterials costs were:
g3ii
.Jl
-31-
TABLE XIX
Total Voliune Material Costs *
1929 $7,901,UOO,000 $2,210,000,000
1931 ^,293,733,000 1,525,000,000
1933 1,761,393,000 625,000,000
I93U 2,OS7,7lU,000 7^2,000,000
* The application of the I929 ratio of material costs to total costs
to the total volijines of later years, of course, results only in an ap-
proximate figure. Fluctuations in mpterial costs, or labor or other costs
may have changed the ratio slightly for these years, but there is avail-
able no data for the industry &s a trhole upon which the later ratios may
he computed with exactness.
Im-Qorts by Years^ 1929 through iq3^> of ST}ecified Products Consumed in
Whole or in Fart in the Const'raction Industry.
Data were found on imports of Portland Cement, Iron and Steel and
Lum.ber, as set forth in the table on the following page. Perhaps, as
on many other topics covered by this report, more complete information
might be worked up if time permitted.
S31I
J
32-
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2311
other data on the production of uaterials and/or equipment used in the
Industry follows:
Huiaber of States Where Specified Sc-mi^processed Materials and S'oecified Types
of Machinery, Used in 'Jhole or in Fart in Construction, are L'anufactured and
the Total Value of the Products Listed.
TABLE XXI
Product or Group of Products TVliich
Are Produced in 35 oi" Pevrer States
Kura'ber of
States
En.^aged in
Production
Valuel^
Portahle and ready cut houses
Uallpaper
Cement
G-lass
Building Stones for exterior use
Marhle
Roofing slate
Other stones (sandstone, "bltiestone, etc.)
Sand-lime hrick
Cast iron pipe
Doors, shutters, and window se,sh and frames, metal
Hardware not elsewhere classified
Nails, spikes, etc. not made in wire mills or in
plants operated in connection \7ith rolling mills
Plumbers' supplies, not incliiding pipe
or vitreous-china sanitary ware
Stear.if itting and hot water heating appa.ratus
Stoves and ranges (other than electric)
and warm air furnaces
liachinery
Cement and concrete machinery
Cement making machinery
Cement and concrete block machinery
Concrete mixers
Other cement and concrete machinery
Conveying and elevating machinery
Belt type
Bucket type
Cranes (including hoists^^id derri^is)
Crawler
Locomotive
Overhead traveling
Stationary
Dredging, excavating and roaxl-'building machinery
Dredging machinery
Excavating machinery
Road-building machinery
(Continxied on next page)
25
9
35
23
30
9
21
17
13
22
2S
12
2S
25
35
$ 11,575
30,00s
267,509
303, S19
6,217
5,20s
3,1^9
2,971
SO, 261
72,160
229,^76
12,S55
129, 67U
22s, 310
271,7^7
9
10
15
15
U,3S7
1,1^7
ii,Uos
2,9S5
2U
21
iU,206
9,327
15
9
IS
23
6,626
5,953
23,059
22,202
17
22
25
3,6^2
57,103
30,69U
S311
-55-
( Cont < d)
Product or Group of Products TJliich
Are Produced in 35 o^" Ferer States
Kurnlaer of
States
Engaged in
Production
Value 1/
Elevators and elevator machinery
Passenger
Freight
Motor vehicles
Commercial
Pneumatic machinery
Air compressors
Stone working machinery
'.7ood-T7orking machinery
Paving materials: asphalt, tar, crushed
slag and mixtures
Roofing, "built-up and roll: asphalt shingles,
roof coating
other than paints
A - Total
B - All manufacturing industries. Total
C - Per Cent A is of B
21 $ 29,UUU
23 lU, 6oo
31
277,352
20
39,623
12
■2.125
33
35,151
2U
■29,275
23
103,506
-
2,373,932
70,U3U,S63
3.^
Source: 15th Census of the United States - Manufactures - i929-V0l.II -
(pp. ^69, 561, S35, S69, SS6, S96, 913, 921, 936, 969, 972, 992,993.
1103, 1106, 1336, and 1350), Bureau of the Censu.s, Department
of Commerce.
ij Value in thousands of dollars,
Names of States Engaged in Mining G-:/-asum in 1932 and 1933
TA5LE XXII
State Volume
(in thouse.nds of short tons)
1932
1933
Kumher of States
United States
Arizona
California
Iowa
- -17
i.355
(Continued on next page)
50
17s
1/
_ _ 16_
„ii335_
1
57
173
S311
i
-35-
TABLE XXII (Cont'd) ITames of States Engaged in Mininne: G.^/psuin in 1932 and '33
Kansas
Michigan
IvTevada
New York
Oklahoma
Texas
Other States
1/
63
2U9
211
SI
7^
3H7
36U
1/
97
110
112
3U0 2/
1S3 i/
Source: Minerals Yearbook, 1932-'33, (p. 621) and 193U (p,S52)
IJ. S. Department of Interior.
1/ Included in Other States
2j Arizona, Colorado, Indiana, Kansas, Montana, Ohio, Oklahoma,
South Dakota, Utah, Yirginia, and Wyoming,
j/ Colorado, Montana, Ohio, South Dakota, Utah, Virginia and Wyoming.
Quantity. Value and Per Cent of G-ypsum Consumed "by the Construction Industry
TJ\3LE XXIII
(Qjiantities and Values in Thousands)
193,1.
1932
1933
Use
Short Short Short
Tons Dollars '-^"^^ Dollars Tons Dollars
Sold for use exclu-
sively "by construc-
tion industry -
Without Calcining -
To Portland
Cement Mills 66^ 1,266 3^6
Calcined ^
For iDuilding
purposes
TOTAL 2,lgl 19,903 1,21s 12,127 1,137 ll,2Ug
752 377
669
1.^17 18,637 832 11. U3^ 760 10.^79
Sold for use largely
or exclusively "by
industries other
than construction
industry -
Without Calcining -
For agriculture
For other purposes
Calcined -
To plate glass wks
To terra cotta wks
For other manufac-
turing purposes
For other purposes
2S
SI
139
161
16
^3
S9
89
11
33
9\
13
25
6
122
^3
12
2
100
12
IS
2
127
15
IS
2S
2U9
27
17
309
120
26
16
2S6
iiU
TOTAL
1S6
S9S
117
719 106
S311
(Continued on next page)
679
-37-
TIBLB XXIII (Cont'd)
Total sold for all
purposes 2,567 20,801 1,535 12,906 1.24Z 11,927
Per Cent of total
sold for use excl^l-
sively "by construc-
tion int^ustry - 92.1 95.7 91.2 94.4 91.5 94.3
Source: Minerals Yearbook, 1932-33 (p. 622) and 1934 (p. 853)
U. S. Department of the Interior.
1/ Includes sales of domestic crude gypsum and gypsum
products made from domestic crude gypsum.
per Cent of Total U. S. Manufacturing production Consumed in Constriaction
in 1929
TIBLS XXIV
Item Value 1/
A. Total Maniifacturing production 70,434,9
B. Products consumed ty the construction
industry 2,477.5 2/
Per cent B is of A
3.5 3/
Source: 15th, Census of the United States, 1929,
Ivlanufactures., Volume II (p. 15) and
Construction Industry (p. 25). Bureau of
the Censusj United States Department of
Commerce.
1/ Values in Millions and Tenths of Millions of
Dollars.
2/ Estimated from an 83 per cent sample.
3/ This percentage is helieved to he higher, owing to the fact
that the figures assigned to total manufacturing production
include large hut indeterminahle amounts of duplication
arising out of the use of the products of some industries
as materials ty other industries.
8311
i
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S311
h"! cJM^i'L?]^
4
J
Shipments of Donestic Portland Cement From kills Into ?Tor.-cement and
Cement Producing States in lbi51 and 1935
(in Thousands of Barrels)
States 1931 1932
Non-cenent Producing States
Arizona
Connecticat
Dela¥/are
District of Columbia
Massachusetts
Mississippi
Nevada
New HaiiTp shire ■ -
ITew Mexico
North Csxolina
North Dalcota
Rhode Island
South Carolina
Vermont
Alaska, Hawaii and Puerto Rico
TOTAL
Cement Producing States - Total ij
Cement and ITon-cement Producing
States ~ Total
Per cent of total shipments shipped
into Non-cement Producing Str?,tes
Value of aJ-1 shipments in
thousands of dollars 140,960 82,022
Source: Minerals Yearbook 1932-33 (pp. 497-498) U. S. Department of
Interior.
1/ This total includes "both intrastate and interstate shipments.
Amount S'pent for Ma^chinery and Equipment
The 1929 Census of Const-^iction reports that establishments numbering
26,713 had at the end of 1929 a total oi $407,039,722 invested in equipment
and machinery,
Percentg.ge which Material Costs are of Total Volume
The 1929 Cens^^s of ConstrLxction reported that for 30,597 firms material
costs made up 35,5 per cent of their total volume of business performed by
own forces.
2311
438
151
1,477
808
347
298
1,250
1,070
3,0^4
2,126
525
467
155
648
437
267
265
174
1,015
434
258
175
570
305
2,251
358
312
250
746
660
13,068
8,222
114,083
72,621
127,151
80,843
10.5
10.2
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-41-
IV. PSOFJCTION AMD I3ISTS.IBUTI0K
Value of Construction in Four Representative States
The value of conctraction in four representative states in 1929, 1933 and
1934 is shown in Tatle XI'IVIII.
TABLE XXVIII
TOTAL CONSTHUCTIOK VOLllffi IN roUH
EEPEESMTATIVE STATES 1^/
Str.te 1929 1953 1934
Alatana $ 69,417,7002,/ $ 25,762,400 $ 21,222,900
Illinois 551,440,8002/ 78,540,700 117,747,500
Nerr York 1. 217,307,200^/' 209,682,000 225,526,400
Penns7/lvania 528, 556,400S/ 77,055,200 103,649,000
1/ The voluine of construction in each of 37 eastern States is ohtaina.lDle from
P. ^. Dodge Heports.
2/ Totals reported for 1929 cover onl;^ -orojects valued at nore than $5,000,
ivhereas the totals of 1935 and 1934 include sone projects of lesser value,
nature of Advertising; Media Used, etc.
Ver^'' little national advertising is done by individuals or concerns in
this Industry, In national, popular nagazir.es there appears occasionally an
advertisement or so 'b;'- a large contracting firm.
Extensive cajnpaigns hovever are carried on "by the producers of constr'ac-
tion materials, whose advertisements, with those of various contractors, appea
regularly in publications such as "The Engineering News Record." Material
producers likewise use national popula.r magazines extensively.
Operative Builders ha,ving homes and other property to sell advertise wide
ly in local newspapers but in so doing the^r are not advertising constraction
services but the sale of real property.
Sales efforts in the construction industry are extensive but do not ofte;
involve advertising. Leads are secured through Construction Hews Services,
from personal conta.ct, connections, affiliations, etc. Sales presentations ai
made in the for.n of estimates and engineering or economic studies, etc, Data
on sales or estimating costs are lacking.
Shifts in Volume by G-eograt)hic Areas
The voltune of construiction may rise or fall in various areas as a result
of or in conjunction with other economic changes, such as:
1. Improvements or declines in general economic conditions in a region,
2. The launching in an area of a construction project financed by &
■oolitical or other agency and causing an increase in real estate and
other values in the region, and pdding to the incomes of the local
peoples by wage payments; the improvement in local conditions brought
8311 ■ . " ■■
-43-
about "by a large -oro.ject of this cort nay Give iripetus to all othei-
kinds of tuilding activities.
3. The shifting of industries to different sections of the co\mtr7/ np.y he
s.ccompanied hy corresponding shifts in constraction vol-ujne,
4. Agricultural characteristics of different sections of the country, de-
termining economic conditions in those sections in different years, may
he important factors influencing the volf^ne of construction. In the
same year, a profitable cotton crop may increase construction activi-
ties in the South, while a poor wheat crop may depress building in
other regions.
5. As in the case of agricultural characteristics, so also in the case of
other naturoJ characteristics in various regions; an unprofitable year
in the coal mining regions of Pennsylvania, and West Virginia may de-
crease construction in those states, while a boom mariret for copjper or
lumber may inprove construction a.ctivities in various copper or lumber
production regions.
Productive Car)acity of Construction Industry.
The "oroductive caiDS-city of the Industry is practically unlimited, depend-
ent only UTDon the volume of capital and the number of skilled craftsmen avail-
able. When, for example, the industry in 1929 performed a volume estimated as
high a.s 11 billion dollars, the productive capacity was bj'- no means utilized
fully.
Per Cent of Productive Ca-pacity Utilized
Inasmuch as the productive capacity of the Industry is practically tuilimit
ed, the proportion of the productive capacity utilized Ta&j not be determined
accurately in any one year. Assujning the 1929 capacity as 100 per cent, how-
ever, the volumes* performed in recent years indicate utilization of the capa-
city in the following degrees:
1931 54.2 per cent
1933 22.3 per cent
1934 26.2 per cent
Other Inform-ation
Many specific examples of the interstate character of operations in the
Constraction Industry are available.
Boulder Dam, for instance, wa„s constructed by Six Companies, Incoroarated,
which itself was composed of six firms, located in various parts of the United
States as shown on the following page.
As estimated by F. W. Dodge,
8311
Six
Companies,
Incorporated
-43-
Farticj-patinff: Firms
(Utah Construction Company .
( (Henry J. Kaiser & ) . .
( (W, A, Beachtel Co.)
(McDonald and Kskn, Ltd. . ,
(Morrison - Knudson Company
(j. F. Shea & Company. . . ,
(Pacific Eridge Company. , .
Location
■ ■ — *
Ogden, Utah
Oalcland, Calif.
Los Angeles, Calif.
Boise, Idaho
Portland, Ore,
Portland, Ore.
The three organizations which hid on Boulder Da,ra moreover were located in
three different parts of the United Stp.tes . , , , San Francisco, California,
Baltimore, Maryland, and Lincoln, i'lehrasks,.
Research will disclose many firms, located in many different parts of the
country, have oeen on hand to hid on and perform work in any localit;?- where thf
vol^urne of construction has been suff icientlj'' Is.rge to attract them. Firms tvor:
all of the United States were operating in Florida during the Florida, boom of
1925 and 1926, and in other localities where Doom conditions have arisen.
8311
I
V T31JDE PEA.CTICES
Unfair Trade Fi-g„ctices Prior to the Code and Their
Effect ITpon The Ina-ustr;.'
(1) The tfj.-'nin?'^ out by architects or enginc3ers, in competition nith
other rg-chitects, en,^ineers or public officials, of deficient pl-?ais or
s-oecifications. Lxpon nhich contractors are forced to hase their hids . This
results often in los-jes to contractors xrhose hids may therefore he in-
o.cci-'-rate, or in losses to OT.-ners .
( 2 ) The callin": for an e::cessive nunher of rlternate "bid proposals :
which greatly increases the cost of preparing hids paid \Thich nay he a
device to heo,t do-.rn hid 2:)rices.
(G) Bid Peddling, A contractor is consic.ered to be "peddling" his
bids if, after having alread;^ sp.buitted an original bid on a project, he
learns nhat the low bid on the project hs.s been and offers by some means
or other to redp.ce his hid below the low hid, or if by other devices he
lowers his original bid. The resT-ilt of the practice is to lower prices and
stand,ards in the industry.
(4) Bid Shopping. An awarding authority is consid-ered to be engaged
in "bid shopping" when it rejects all original bids on a project, often
revealing the low bid, for the purpose of callin,^ for new bids at still
lovrer prices, or vrhen it by other devices seelcs to indp.ce a low bidder to
reduce his price. The effect upon the indiistrjr is the sane as tiocut of
"bid peddling."
( 5) The witliliplding by general contractors of pa^.mients a..ue to sub-
contractors or inateri?.! men, so that such contractors may utilize the funds
witlilield to finance other projects for which, often, because of prede-
pression financial stringencies, they were having difficulty in obtaining
necessar^T- money,
(6) B:cce s s ive Back-Charging . This practice arose on larger projects.
Fnen subcontractors lieA perfonaed their shares of jobs they would find
themselves presented with a bill from the general contractor calling for
the pajTnont of excessive fees for having used soae of the contractor's
equipment, such as scaffolding or hoists, or for s\ipplementary services.
(7) The Substitution of Inferior liaterials. Intense competition
giving rise to the practice of hid peddling and hid shopping, end result-
ing in prices which were imreasonably low, often forced contractors or
subcontractors to substitxxte cheap a-nd inferior ma,terials in order to save
themselves possible losses on projects \7iiere prices had been thus cut.
Desire for greater profit also results in the substitution of inferior
materials,
(8) Unhalaziced Bidding . This is a practice in which contractors in
heavy end highway constraction ordinarily engage. On many projects, bids
are based on numerous and different units, such as per cubic yard of dirt
or roch to be removed, or per thousand feet of Imiber to be used. By
8311
i
-45-
taliinr advantage of their ov/n findings on the rmiiibeT of units and their
costs, as against the specifications of an a^JTon-ding authority's engineer,
contractors retaliate the specific "bids on luiits of xrorh so that the total
of their "bids for all units will "be 1o\t and at the sane time nay Vring high
profits on certain tmits of the vrork which they snaspect will "be more numerous
than, the axrarding authority's engineer ha,s estiraated. Lihe\7ise, ^q-j quoting
high prices on ujiits of vrorh -.vhich vri.ll "be completed in the early life of a
project and keeping the units performed near the end of a low price, a con-
tractor is a"ble to force an owr).er to hear a large portion of the finarncing
costs through the greater part of the life of the project v/hile keeping his
total "bid sufficiently low. The un"b.alaacing of oids of course assumes many
other fonas.
(9) RedLicing Wa/^es, Lengthening "IJorking Eqijts sjid Deoasing Other Con-
d.itions of ^Torlcnen. These practices a.rose from and accentu.s,ted depression
conditions. They 'oroke dowia the foundation upon which the competitive
stsjidards, such as they were, had "been maintained and helped plujige the in-
dustry?- into the chaos existing in 1933.
(10) Inecaiities Arising from Loose CrG3.it Practices, Lien acts made
and still mal^s owners as well as contractors responsihle for the paj'Tnent
of materis,l and other "bills. As a result, credit was loosely extended to
irresponsi'ble contractors, who often would finish projects c^id leave dehts
for materials, etc., to "be paid li^'' o\7ners. The a'bility to emploj'- this
method to defrau.d ovaiers naturally resulted in loose "bidding "by irresponsi"ble
controxtors, often cutting "bid prices "below ajiticipated costs. Contractors
thus performing contracts at a loss were ena"bled to thrive, especially
during the period ira;:iediately preceding the depression.
(11) The "Kick-Back Eacket"". To avoid the payment of wa.ge scales
required "by "[Jnion agreements or otherwise, there developed \7hat "became
known as the "]:ick "back racket." In order to und.ercut the required rate,
some contra^ctors would pay the reqn.ired scale to their employees in full.
Thereupon, the employees, i-..ir.:ed.iately upon the receipt of their pay checks,
Tfould he forced "by the contractors (-onder the threat of losing their jo"bs,
etc.) to give "back, or "kick "back" a portion of their daily or weekly
earnings.
(12) The Lnjn-oing or Su."bletting of La"bor. TJlien a contractor o"btains
a contract for a project from an orrner, he nay tai:e it upon himself to
furnish only the materials for the jo"b and to let out to a su.i)contractor
or a journeyman the responsi"bility for providing the necessary la"bor for
the jo"b at a specified price. Such su"bcontracts calling for the provision
of la"bor alone are often negotiated at a low price, at which the contractor
who provides the material is safegiiarded against loss, while the profit^ of
the su"bcontractor or lahor gang foreman ordinarily depends uj^on his a"bility
to hire as little la'bor as possi"ble at as low wages a.s possihle, and to
ejrploit the lahor thus emplo-yed as thoro-u^hly as possihle. The imposition
of such conditions upon a su"bcontractor or a jom-neyinan gang-foreman
naturally results in the degredation of la''oor conditions and of the la"borers
thus hired. The results, of course, are th3 debasement of lahor standards
for whole communities, the unsettling of competitive conditions and hrjrried,
slipshod worlc, causing dissatisfaction ai-iong project owiiers and injuring
the reputation of the original contractor.
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(13) Settiri;';; Bid Price Belovf Cost with the E:coectation. of Grinding
Profits Out of SuTjcontractors, or of Frofitin,?: Tj;," not Paying Material Bills ,
By this practice a contractor submits his oid on a project helow his oi7n
estimated cost, e:cpecting to taice advantage of competition among suibcontrac-
tors in order to recoup not only the losses liut also perhaps some profit.
Bound up v;ith this pra.ctice are the practices of "bid peddling, hid shopping,
etc.
(14) The Em-pl07/tient of Prison Lahor, Especially in the Street Paving
and Hishv.-ay Construction Suhdivision of the Industry, convict lahor in some
States has "been substituted for free lahor. Contractors in Street paving
and Highv/ay Construction i\sti-ally have a great deal of capital invested in
mechanized equipment. These contractors, in the States where convict lahor
has moved into the field, have found themselves confronted with ruination
and the loss of exoensive equipment, which in many cases have heen put up
as collateral for credit. With impoverished crews of worlanen, they have
heen cijriven into States where convict Irahor has not demoralized the mai-ket,
and in those States they have slashed prices and wages in desperate attempts
to sove their equipment rjid their "businesses.
Trade practices ff.iich, Becaxise of Ahusive Ure. Became Detrimental
Llany of the unfair trade practices in the Construction Industry are
the ou-tgrowths of normal practices, and their unfairness depends often upon
the degree in which and the purposes for which, the normal practices are
engaged in,
1. Calling for alternate hids may "be justifia'ble to give the "bidding
contractors a clear leeway to siiggest nev/ and perhaps cheaper and more
efficient designs and to provide an idea of the relative costs of designs.
Only when an excessive nxuaher of alternate "bids are required and the pujrpose
is to ""oeat down prices, does this practice "become -unfair, as listed under
No. 2 in the list of imfair trs.de practices.
2. M awarding authority may "bo justified in calling for new "bids^
upon d-iscovering that true competition has "been a'bsent or upon discovering
that the specifications upon \7hich hids have "been received will prove
"beyond the financial means of the awarding authority. When new "bids are
repeatedly called for in order to "beat down prices, however, this consti-
tutes an unfair trade practice,
3. General contractors a:id owners have al\7ays witliheld 10 or 15 per
cent of the monthly amounts owing for work performed, usually to "be paid
upon the completion of a joh or upon the receipt of the final pajnnent from
an 0T,7ner, The practice "becomes unfair, however, when the amounts witliheld
are e:ccessive or are 'TitMield for devious p^irposes; as listed as ITum'ber 5
in the list of unfair trade practices,
4. It is considered ethical for a suDcontractor of his o^m accord, to
pay reasonahle fees for the use of a general contractor's equipment. General
contractors, however, have "been known to force stfocontractors to use their
equipment in order to overcharge them for it. And often, altho-ugh not pro-
vided in contracts, general contractors will su"bmit su"bcontractors with "bills
for excessive payments for the use of the general contractor's equipment
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and general services. Under the latter conditions, the prs^ctice iDecomes
xinfair end is knov/n as "excessive "back charging," a,s listed o,s IJumber 6 in
the list of -unfair practices.
5. Inferior materials, if agreed to hy the omier, nay oe sf.hstituted
justifiably on a project for the salce of e^cpediency, or for other reasons.
The substitution of inferior materials without the laio\7ledge of an owner,
however is unfair, as listed as i'lvunher 7, in the list of luifoar practices.
6. Unbalanced bidding ms.y be justifiable if the o\Tner of a project is
able to secure finances more cheaply than the contractor, gnd therefore, "by
unbalancing the unit price bids so that the OTmer, and not the contractor,
will carry the heavier financing costs during most of the life of the
project, a savings is achieved on the total costs. Unbalanced bidding,
however, may serve as a. means for contractors to tal:e advantage of unfore-
seen circxmistances (foreseen by the contractors but not by the engineers
who prepared the plans and specifications upon which the estimates are
based), by which the units run higher than were estimated, thereb;r enabling
the contractors often to profit unreasonably at the expense of owners. In
this and in similar instances unbalanced bidding mprf be considered an imfair
trade practice or at least a sharp practice as described as Number 8 of the
list of unfair trade practices.
7. In a few service trades, such as Painting and Decorating, the
letting of contracts for la.bor services alone, when the contracts guarantee
fair wages, etc., may be justified. There are Interior Decorators in maiiy
cities and towis, for e:cample, \7hose work consists of designing and advising
and vrho maintain no forces of their own. When they secure decorating con-
tracts, involving, for instance, painting, they go into the field and hire,
proba-bl;'- through a subcontractor, the necessary skilled la.bor, while they
furnish the ma.terials. Under these circ-umstances, therefore, the Iximping
or subletting of labor nay be justifiable, but under other circiunstances,
this practice nay be considered unfair both to labor and to competitors
and results in the dire consequences set forth under llumber 12 of the list
of unfair practices.
The development or the ca.uses of the other imfair practices set forth
in the list of -onfair practices are debatable. There of course, may be
found peciiliar circumstances when some of then as well may be justifiable,
but, as stated, the determination of unfair practices in the Industry must
be based noi-e upon the degree or the purposes of the practices, as well a.s
upon the practices themselves.
Unfaar Trade Practices Wliich are Prevalent ITow
Because of the extremely decentralized condition of the Construction
Industry and the large nunbers of large and small units, it is not to be
doubted tliat there are members engaging today in -onfair trade practices.
Whether unfair tra.de practices are practiced \7idely enoiogh now to be con-
sidered "prevalent" in the industry, however, data are lacking to determine.
Trade practice complaints in the Construction Indxistry filed with the
IJRA since the approval of the Code have covered the follovring specific
practices (including violations of provisions in the Construction Code or
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its Cliapters aimed to curl) various unfair practices):
Bid Peddling
SulDmitting Bid After Opening Date
Failure to File Duplicate
Violation of Registration Provision
Selling or Bidding Belor,' Cost
Contract to Other Tlio,n Lowest Bidder
Parity to All Bidders
Collusion "between A\7arding Authority and Bidder
Revision after Bids Opened
Called for too Many Alterna,tes
Reliates
Siihcontract or Material Men Financing Joh
Miscellaneous and Unclassified
Failure to Pay Filing Fee
ComlDining Costs of Other Products to Conceal Costs
Tailing Bid after Opening Date or Place
Selling or Shipping Tile
Suhstitution of Inferior Grade
Failure to Awor-d Contract to Original Bidder
Failure to Pay Assessment
Doing Work without License
Loa,ning License
Misusing License
Inadequff.te Accounts and Records
The following talDulation shows data reported hy the Compliance
Division relative to the numher of complaints on hand at the end of each
reporting period and the nunher of new complaints docketed during the
pei-iod:
TABLE XXIS
TRADE PRACTICS COLIPLAICTTS
CONSTRUCTION imUSTRT AND SUPPLEIvIENTS
Period ending
Numher of Corn-plaints
Docketed
On hand at
during
end of
period
period
63
196
139
261
180
357
160
399
121
394
175
385
161
382
133
356
172
389
January
5,
1935
Jrnuary
19,
1935
Fehruary
2,
1935
February
16,
1935
March
2,
1935
March
16,
1935
March
30,
1935
ipril
13,
1935
April
27,
1935
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Instr^tices Wliei-e Unfair Conpetitive Practices in Ono Area Have Spread to
Another Area or Sffected the FloTf of Interstate Commerce
It na7 not "be stated exactly' where the various unfair competitive
practices in the Construction Industry first arose. There are no records.
Unfair practices coinnon in recent j'-ears, however, are laiotm to have
gromi out of the highly competitive situation existing in 1925. They had
"become accentuated in 1926 thro-oghout the United States.
Specific instances of these practices were cited almost weekly in the
"Americaja Contractor" under the heading, "The Plying IlorteJ" Box," from
Juiie of 1926 through the Pall of 1927. The material covered interviews
with contractors in 14 States, and traced the development of an.d specifically
exemplified the outgrowth of ujifair practices from prevailing conditions,
and set forth their results. Similpjr information, also with specific
examples, may he ohtained from the "ijnerican Contractor", issues from July
of 192G through the lall of 1930, under the title, "The PLajahling Mortar Box."
Effect of Prices Qiioted hy Individital Members in an Area Uoon the ITationcJ
Price Structiu-e of the Construction Industry
The 1929 Census of Construction indicates that reporting contractors
performed the following volujnes of hxisiness outside of their home cities
and outside of their home states:
TABLE HX
llumher of Total Volume fo Outside Volume fo Outside
Contractors Volume Oo.tside Home City Oatside Home
Ee-oorting Performed Hone City Home State State
1/ 2/ 2/ 2/
29,799 $6,013,034 $2,576,887 43 $1,057,352 17.5
l/ All classes of estahlisliments
2/ Total of vol-ime of business ti-ansactions
in Thousands of Dollars
Prom the above it may be seen that 43 per cent of the total volume
of 29,799 contracting establishments of all hinds was performed outside
of the home cities of tliese cstablisliments, and that 17.5 per cent of their
total volume was performed outside of their home states. It shotild be
evident therefore that price cutting by any individual or gro-ap of individ-
uals in an^r ojrea, city or state must aJfect prices in other areas, cities
or states where these individuaJ.s also operate.
As also indicated, there are many contractors whose operations cover
the entire United States, p,nd it is obvious that their price levels are
of national consequence.
The national effects of local price and wage levels are also maiiifested
by large migrations of skilled and un-skilled construction workers; as evi-
denced in the migration of construction operatives to Florida, during the boom
of 1925 sjid the emigration of construction workers from states where convict
labor has depressed the wages azid. conditions of those engaged in loighway con-
struction ojid maintenance .
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CFJiP[l!ER VI
THE INDUS mi - GENEKAL liviromiATIOSr
Brief History of the Constraction Industry
CHABACIERISTIC DEVSLOPMEWTS IK GEi^IEEAL BUILDING
CONSTRUCTION SINCE 1S23
GroiTth of Pre-Depression Fro'cleins
Construction organizations and tlieir facilities for performing iTork \Tere
rapidljr expanded in 1923 and 1924. There occui*red simultaneously an acvite
shortage of meclianics and tuilding materials. The shortage was overcone, hut
the number and the capacity of contracting organizations continued e:manding
heyond recraireraents. The outcome was a "buyers' market in the huilding indus-
trj'-. The situiation was acute as early as 1926.
The need for a continuous volume of business to keep down overhead costs
gave rise to "bid shopi:5ing" and "bid peddling, " v/hich soon dominated the in-
dustry.
As such practices grew more common and while 10 or more contractors were
conroeting for every reasonably sized project open to competition, the total
overhead costs of the industry ascended. Prospects for individual profitable
operations declined. Pujids and energ;^ were v/asted. The waste was cha.rged to
the industrj'^'s cost of doing business. It assumed staggering proportions,
despite several futile a.ttempts to devise procedures to eliminate "bid shop-
ping" and "bid r)eddling, " the antagonisms among the various groups in the in-
dustry, general contractors, architects and subcontractors, became sharper*
Increase in Loose Credit Practices
Puj-'ther complications arose out of the financial and legal relations pe-
culiar to the buildin™ industr^r. The lien laws ordinarily establish a d.vB.1
liabilit:/ for a conti\-;,ctor' s debts. An owner thereby is responsible for impaid
labor and ma-terial bills incurred by a contractor in improving his property.
These laws and boom-time methods and laxities broixght about loose credit
pra,ctices v/ithin the industry. Irresijonsible contractors, performing contracts
at a loss, were enabled, to thrive.
General contractors, bearing the brunt of this competitive condition,
passed on their woes to subcontractors and material men. Hade possibly b3'- a
continiially increasing vol-ome of demand, a steadily declining price level for
materials constituted a saving feature in the "futures" operations tj'pical of
the industry.
Stable ijage Rates as Protection for Contractors
Chiefly for two reasons labor was not seriously affected by these pre-
depression circumstances. The first reason was that general contractors \7ere
able to opers-te with greater assurance, in a "futures" market when v.'age rates
\"ere stable and insured in advance. Unstable rates complica,te the ^'ork of es-
tima.ting and jjrevent contractors from figuring jobs excepting on a wild, gamb-
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ling "basis. StalDilit^'- in this res-oect, therefore, rs an economic necessity.
Each "building contractor must know what his competitor is goinf; to pa3'- for la-
tor hefore he may figui-e his own price in the competitive "futiir-es" narhet.
Otherijise chaos reigns.
The second reason for the comparative stahility of pre-depression -.T^e
ra,tes and for the escape of labor from competitive enhroilments was the ex-
istence of strong labor organizations in the building crafts field. Collect-
ive bargaining had generally established vage rates. Even in open-shop
communities, such as St. Paul and Minneapolis, San Erancisco and Detroit, the
emplajrers cooperated in fixing wa,ge scales almost up to the level of those set
'oy tinions , and they pledged themselves to pay these rates.
Because of these several factors, r/age rates rose gradually from 1922 to
1930, v,'hereas material prices in 1926 began the decline which continued until
1932 and 1933.
Other Factors in Labor Conditions
The rise in wage rates was accelerated grea,tly by speculative or opera-
tive builders who, for reasons not connected with the general economic interes
of contractors, f reouentl:'- offered bonuses or increased wages to craftsmen in
order to speed up specific projects.
The seasonable characteristics of the industry, ho'-^ever, have complicated
labor and vrage scale problems. Activity within the different crafts varies
with the parts they play during the different stages of con=;tru.ction projects.
Labor requirements during the busy season of the year necessitate a tre-
mendous excess of reserve man-power during the off-peak seasons. Erequently
from 30 to 40 per cent of the carpenters, masons, iron workers and other
structural craftsmen may be found unemployed while there is a shortage of heat-
ing, -olriabing, electrical and plastering workers and other finishing tradesm.en.
In other m.onths mary be fouJid from 40 to 50 per cent unemploj^ment in all trades.
Considered therefore with an eye on the comion pool system of labor mobiliza-
tion, wage rates for building mechanics have had to achieve a high hourljr level
if annual earnings were to be sufficient to induce men to remain vrithin the
industry.
The fact that m.ost operations were, and remain, the operations of skilled
craftsr.en has played a -part in emplover-emploj.^es relationships in the building
section of the indr.stry. Approximately 70 per cent of the total labor time ex-
pended in building construction is that of skilled or semi-skilled workm.en.
The reno.ining 30 per cent is classified as unskilled.
Variations of Labor Costs
Wage rates have varied for different classifications of labor in ratio
with the degree ofskill required in each, although the factor of skill lias beer,
modified considerably b"/ the degree of strength of the resi^ective labor organ-
izations.
In different sections of the country wage scales have varied \7idely, re-
maining, however, fairly stable for each of the various trades in specif ic
localities oluring the successive years between 1922 and 1930. In the higher
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vrage centers, as a rule, the competition xor jobs among' workmen ijlio collected
in these centers from all over the coujitry enalDle the selection of the hest
mechanics. In such localities, therefore, procluctivitj^ per man-hour was great-
er, and tended to counteract the effect of higher rates xvpon Duildin,™ costs.
The percentage which lahor costs comprised of the total value of work
performed likewise varied widely among the different trades. It ranged from
a low of hetween 15 and 17 -oer cent for marble setters to between 40 and SO
per cent for painters cuid from 42 to 55 per cent for plasterers. The medio.n
range of total labor costs to total value of production vras betvreen 50 and 37
per cent for all trades involved in general building construction, 1/
Labor cost percentages, however, varied widely among different individujal
jobs. They were complicated by factors of management and, to a greo.ter extent
by uncontrollable factors such as labor supply and weather.
In viev; of such un-oredictable variations in Isibor costs, therefore, it
obviously becomes all the more necessary to remove uncertainties as to v;age
rates.
Qverexoansion and Credit Practices
The ra;oidly increasing volwne of available business was accompanied b^-' a
tendency for most contra.ctors to erpand their facilities and operations still
more rapidly. This tendency brought about two conditions; first, an inten-
sification of competition despite the increasing volume, and second, the
necessity for additional outside financing by those firms ^-.hich were overex-
tended in a, given period. Before intensified competition drove dovrn the pro-
fit margin, banJc capitsl was available in quaiitities sufficient to meet the
requirements of overextended firms. Later, however, when intensified compe-
tition reduced profit margins to levels vrhich made loa.ns -nrecarious to banlcs,
other devices were resorted to in order to secure the required finpjicing.
There arose generally the wractice by which subcontractors were forced to
finance general contractors. The practice became T\rides-nread.
Pajniients duixe to subcontractors oj general contractors were withheld in in-
crea.sing proportions. Contracts normally permitted a general contractor to
vrithhold from 10 to 15 ver cent of the monthly amounts owing to subcontractors
for work performed, usuallj'' to be paid ixpon the comoletion of the job or upon
the recei-it of the final po-yment from the owner. But this CListom degenera.ted
into the practice of withholding from 25 to 50 per cent of the amouats of the
arao-unts due to subcontractors, and general contractors thus were eno.bled to
ewploj these unpaid sums to finance other projects.
The practice was recognized as an unfair method of competition ajnong
general contractors and as an imposition uwon subcontractors. Efforts to
correct it neve fu.tile, excepting in a few instances, such as the banding to-
gether of subcontractors and some general contractors in New York Cit3'- to es-
tablish the Credit Bureau, of the Building Trades of New York Gitj. The Bureau
partially alleviated the condition, but it failed to secure the full coopera-
tion of either general contractors or subcontractors, because the constantly
diminishing sujjply of ready money rendered increasingly necessar;- the passing
on of financing to subcontractors,
1/ Based on data in the 1S29 Census of Construction,
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"Bad: Clmi-j-^inA'. "
"Back charging" was another practice croppinry up in this period. It -Tas
s, system v'herein general contractors required subcontractors to p?."" charges
for itens such as lighting, scaffolding, the installation of laddernays and
stairs, sxreeping and cleaning uj), "back patching," hoisting materir.ls r.nd
occasionally for shanties used loy vrorkraen. "Back charging," of covv-se, oec0-me
a feature on the larger operations. There \ras little opportunity for such
levies on small residential or store huilding projects.
Ovmers and contractors in sone instances, ho'-rever, went so far as to vjith-
holo- final estirar.tes for long Deriods of time, often hy the artifice of issuin.
notes sta,ving off a settlement date until after lien rights had lapsed. An
increase in inter-city and ixiterstate operations vrorsened the situation. On
certain projects general contra.ctors frora distant cities would call together
suhcontractors from many other localities. As a condition of secixring work,
they would demand of the subcontractors vraivers of lein rights. Large "balance
of pa-;Tnents subsequently would be withheld indefinitely. The breadth and
fertilit3r of the field in which these practices flourished are well depicted
in the 1939 Oensus of Construction, showing that only 59 per cent of the total
business of 9,89o re-3orting contra,ctors was performed in their respective home
cities, while 15.4 per cent of the total was performed outside of their re-
spective ho ine s t c"', t e s .
Spread of Segregated Contract System
.inother factor ajjpeared during this period to vex the industry, A grow-
ing nuiaber of owners began building on a segregated contract S3'"ste;n b;- which,
with the assistance of architects or superintendents, they closed their ovm
subcontracts for the various special operations on their respective projects.
Thus general contractors found their work of coordinating different specializ-
ed construction operations being performed by usurping owners. Because of the
antagonisms elreadj shown to have been growing between general contractors a^nd
subcontractors, many subcontractors became proponents of the segregated con-
tract sj'stem and its inherent tendency to eliminate general contractors.
The general building contracting industry, therefore, may be seen to have
been sick in 1929, prior to the onset of the dejpression. A shake-iip v/as por-
tended, slrjii'o or no slump.
Depression and Declines
Tims rn accnm-olation of problems risen from, tl^e exigencies and the reck-
less ways of seeming prosperity began agitating and upsetting the industr^r vrher
building volume in 1929, some nine months before the stock market crash, began
dropping. A 13,5 per cent decline from the 1928 volume of building projects
valued at more than $5,000 each was re-oorted by the ?. W. Dodge Corporation foi
1929. The decrease i;7as about $794,800,000, or from $5,832,200,000 in 1928 to
$5,027,400,000 in 1929. For the same two years the volujue of projects valued
at less than $5,000 was re^ported b3'- Dodge to have dropped 10.2 per cent.
Crash of I7a:"^:e Structure
In the chaotic conditions orevalent in the ino-ustrj^ by 1933, the stabilit;-
of wage rates was lost. Slight breaks in the established scales in 1930 had
widened, to send the wa.f-e striicturt by 1932 tiombling into wreckage and thus it
8311
.Jm
-54-
remained to 1934.
The tine had come when general contractors fotmd it impossible to deter-
mine v/age rates in advance. There uas no means of knowing v/hat rates competi-
tors would figure. Guessing "became necessary; guessing at rates vfhich looked
small enough to undercut the other fellow and trusting to luck that such rates
could he forced upon the employees of the general contractor and the suhcon-
tractors involved. The interlocking of SLich "futures" estimating with increas-
ingly fierce competition created a situa.tion in which once the wage structure
had hegun tottering, the collapse was not to he stopped without outside inter-
vention.
The Prevailing Wag:e Act
The federal Government in 1931, attempted to halt the down swing as it
effected federal building. Urged by organized labor, the Bacon-Davis Prevail-
ing Wage Act was passed.
Opposition to the Act came from organized contractors. There was no
prevailing rate, they argued. The spread in rates the contractors declared to
have been already so great aiid the economic compulsion to cut wages so insur-
mountable, that the sole remaining hope was for the Federal Government to writf
into the specifications for each project the minimiim i-ates to be paid in each
trade on each job. A bill thus to amend the Bacon-Davis Law passed by Congress
in 1932, biit was vetoed.
The Prevailing Wage Law failed to check the downward trend of wages or re-
duce the spread in \;age pcijonents. Several times organized labor fought for anc
obtained from the Secretary of Labor decisions establishing rates approximatiUt'
those set by unions as the prevailing rates in certain localities. Bvit it is
not aroparent that the Act halted the decline even on Federal projects. At best
it re"tard.ed here and there the decline in top rates and thereby, however, in-
creased the spread bet-'-.een the high and lov/ rates paid in the commLmities afr-
fected. Its general failure is e:cemplified by the complaints of a group of
general contractors in Atlanta, Georgia in 1932 that their competitors were
paying comnon buildiUcg laborers wages rates as low as 5 cents per hour and
that 10 cents per hour had become common in that city. They added their voicer
to the general outcry that something be done to set a bottom.
Summary
The precarious situation of general building contractors in the first halj
of 1933 therefore may be summed up as follovrs;
1. Sapped by loose credit practices, the industry had become em^ieshed in
a credit stringency acutely strangling it,
2. The volume had dwindled to the smallest on record; to 16,5 per cent of
that in 1929.
3. Unfair trade practices were ramnant, agitating the crosscurrents of
antagonism and recalcitrance among architects and subcontractors to a calmina-
tion threatening enou^jh to give rise to proposals in Congress and in vc-xlov.s
State legislatures for laws that would have prevented general bu.ilding contrac-
tors from performing public building contracts.
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4. Wage rates were in chaos, for"bidding intelligent predeterminations of
labor costs and degrading the exactitudes of estimating to a gaiiae of cliance
fron which emerged too often losses event-ually made up from lahor pa^rrolls.
Almost vanished w. s the purchasing -oouer of ahout 515,000 building work-
men normally emnloyed by general contractors and of about 900,000 others nor-
mally in the services of special or subcontractors. The division of available
work liad reduced their standard of living to less than subsistence requirementj
Codes, A Last Resort
The predicajaent of the industry generally was conceded to be hopeless vn-
less throug'h Governmental power correctives were to be supplied and effectively
applied. Of that last resort, however, many were skeptical. Many still are
skeptical. But none to date has suggested an alternative to the code method.
Complaints against the non-enforcement of code provisions have been n-umberous.
Individual, local and regional opposition to specific regulations, as in the
instance of the General Contractors' Code, has been common. But the pressing
need for the application of an external force has been universally recognized
as a la,st hoioe.
CHAEACTEPJSTIC DETELOBiENTS IN HSAF/ CONSTRUCTION
The above summary of important trends and happenings in the Genero,! Build-
ing Contracting Division of the Industry in the last decase as stated, does noi
include a fe\? major points having to do with the history of other Divisions
since about 19.23, These may be summarized as follows:
In the Heavy Construction Division of the Industry, rapid growth of
mechanization and the larger scale of financing required, because of the size
of most projects, were factors differentiating considerably the course of this
Division in the last decade from the courses of most other Divisions. Opera-
tions in the Division are frequently conducted on a na.tional or regional scale,
and contractors in it have always been accustomed to rapid changes in total
and individual volumes of business. A srummary of important changes in the
Division from 1923 to the first half of 1933 follows:
1. The stringencies of finance and surety compo,nies since the depression
rendered the less well financed concerns incapable of competing for available
projects, and drove many firms into combinations or into idleness.
2, The rapid depletion of assets because of high carrying charges on
idle heavy equipment, depreciating or becoming obsolete, or losing value in a
declining market for both used and new equipment, forced numerous firsm into
competition at losing prices in order to carry or to liquidate equipment invest
ments.
3. Y/ages in this Division were extremely susceptible to redrxtion; first,
becf-use they constituted the major item of cost which coriJ.d be changed at
pleasure, and, second, because unionization in this Division h£.s been extremely.
limited. The progressive intensification of competition between 1923 and 1933,
therefore, bore down most heavilj?- upon ws-ge rates,
4, "Unbalanced bidding" was a practice characterizing this Division
particularly. Because of financial stringency and the pressure to e::tr?,ct high
8311
^56-
■unit prices from early operations in order to carry through the renainder of
projects involved to corApletion, this form of "bidding hecame increasingly pre-
valent,
5. The vol-urae of business of this Division 'bet'-^een 1929 and 1S35 declined
less than the volumes of other Divisions. The decline was 44 per cent in this
period.
CHAEACTERISTIC DEVELOBffiivlTS IN STREET PAVIN&
MiB HIGHWAY CONSTRUCTION
In addition to the parts pla^red hy prison lahor in degrading the ^rrages
and working conditions of free laoor in some states, and the consecuent ixo-
setting of competitive standards in other states, the major conditions and
their results in the Street Paving and Highv/ay Construction Division of the
Industry from 1923 to the first half of 1933 may he summarized as follows:
1, The pressure of hanks and security companies for the liciuidation of
assets, e::isting primarilj?- as mechanized equipment, as in the Heavy Construc-
tion Division, forced cutthroat competition causing reductions in charges for
eqiiipment and wage rates.
2, Because of the liquidation process, continuous since 1930, assets vrere
rapidl;^ depleted.
3, Public agencies, including states and the Federal G-overnment, because
of the necessity for relieving unemployment, stepped int6 the Street and High-
way Construction field, and became to an increasing degree, competitors as well
as members of this Division.
4, Intensified competition enabled almost entirely by the variability of
wage rates depressed the earnings of the workmen of contractors so lov? that
many States supplanted the privately employed woriimen with publicly employed
day-labor crews, or set minimum scales in project specifications. Other pn.b-
lic agencies, having heard the cries for unemployment relief, undertook, on a
relief basis, orojects ordinarily performed by contractors said on these the
public agencies paid rates as low as any in the construction field,
5, The volume of the Division had dropped in 1933 to 39 per cent of that
in 1929.
6, On July 21, 1932, the Emergency Reco:-struction and Finance Act was
enacted. It provided an appropriation of $120,000,000 for Federal aid to
states for highway construction and maintenance and reqtxired that state high-
way depart;ients establish minimum wages for workmen engaged in Federally
financed work. Work by hand, rather than by machinery, was made m.andatorj'- in
a few operations.
CHARACTERISTIC DEVELOPMENTS AMONG SUBCONTRACTING GROUPS
In the period from 1923 to 1933, the major characteristics developing in
the 17 major groups of subcontractors (which have not been mentioned already
in connection with developments in other Divisions) v/ere as follows:
1. Many established firms declined to the status of small employers,
8311
J
-57-
2. Scores of thousands of employees were displaced ty the groring pro-c-
tice of some subcontractors doing their orn v;ork with their o\7n hands; causing .-.
in some of the subcontractor grouiJS unenployraent greater tlian v.-as vmrrcjated by
t he vo lui'-ie de cl ine .
3. An unlcnouTi number of journeynen entered the contracting field and
sought and performed small jobs and contracts in order to keep themselves
occupied.
4. Because of the haphazard and cutthroat practices inherent in the pool
system governing the distribution of both volui-ie of business and enplo3n-.ient ,
the standard of living of all employees had been reduced to or belor/ subsis-
tence requirements.
5. In the subcontracting groups, and in the relations betrreen subcon-
tractors and general contractors and owners, the practices of "bid peddling"
and "bid shop'ping," as \7ell as most of the other unfair trade ;oractices listed
in this report flourished.
Operations of the Conrtruction Industry
kP. outline of operations, as on a typica,l construction project, follows:
Plans and specifications having been prepared by architects or engineers,
the OTiner or his agent, acting as the awarding authority, advertises for gener-
al contractors and/or specialized contractors to submit bids on the project.
Any number of competing general contractors and/or speciaAized contrac-
tors may submit bids. Before submitting their bids, competing general contrac-
torB maj'" call for subcontractors' bids for the performance of special opera-
tions, and may call for material prices, or they may base their bids on their
own estimates and call for sub-bids and material prices afterwards. In any
case the project and/or portions of it are l^anded over for completion xisiii:,lly
to the general and/or specialized contractors submitting the lowest bids.
TiThen the project or a portion of it is awarded to him for construction, the
general contractor, if he intends to sublet sone of the vrork (he nay perform the
entire project or his portion of it with his o\7n forces if he desires) and if he
has not already received sub-bids from subcontractors, mair set about calling for
bids from. svLbcontractors and ordering the materials he v/ill need. To the siib-
contractors v/ho offer the lowest bids for the performance of their respective
specialized operations are generally awarded the subcontracts.
M3.terials are ordered so that they will be delivered on schedule as needed
while the work progresses. If the awarding aiithority has awarded narts of the
project to specialized contractors, such as plumbing or electrical or roofing
contractors, these contractors perform their respective tasks as progress on the
job allows.
Most important on snj project is the coordination of all specir.lized oper-
ations, su.ch as the installation of piping before the floors or walls are built,
or of electrical wiring, etc. , and the organization of work on the jjroject so
that as soon as one subcontractor, for instance, finished his special operations,
the next special operation will be started immediately and no tim.e will be lost.
This coordinating of operations usua,lly is the responsibility of the general
contractor or engineer or architect or all of them,
8311
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On a large project tliers may "be anywhere from 12 to 1,000 material a.nd
subcontracting firms involved in the work or in f-arnishing materials; some-
times most of then may "be located in different cities or states.
The general contractor hires his own men for worlc which he performs
himself, while the various suhcontractors and/or specialii^ed contractors
hire their own men.
Monthly payments (excepting 10 or 15 per cent of the amounts due, which
is held hy the o^mer or his agent until the project is completed), are made
"by the owner to the general contractor and/or the specialized contractors,
and the general contractor, in turn, usually distributes among the subcon-
tractors their respective shares.
There are scores of variations in this procedure.
BRIEF EISTORY OF TMDE ASSOCIATIOIIS AlID COOPERATITE
ACTIVITIES WITHIN THE CONSTHUCTION IIOUSTRY AW
NAlvIES OE mTIOimi ASSOCIATIONS IH INDUSTRY
Number and Variety of Emijloyer Associations
The countless intersecting cleavages of economic group interests, as
well as the basic issue of volume promotion upon which all members tend to
unite, are reflected in the organizations in the Construction Industry. The
resultant maze of organizational structures comprises at least 68 national
associations, having hundreds of state and local branches and chapters. They
compete or interlock with at least 55 regional associations. Local group
associations, either independent or affiliated with other local, regional,
or national organizations, are so n-omerous and in such a state of flux as to
defy enumeration. They run into thousands. In addition in the industry
there are scores of thousands of members always among the unorganized, al-
though rarely may a nember of exoerience or standing be found who at one
time or another has not participated in some organization.
For industr-'- members to belong simultaneously to several associations,
which may be op-oosing eacli other over conflicting economic issues, is not
uncommon^ 1/
TABLE X]SI
NATIOML EJiPLOYER ASSOCLA.TIOWS:
CONSTRUCTIOII Il'IDUSTRY
Inclusive of Most or all Divisions of Industry
American Construction Council
Construction League of the United States
1/ Several members of the Executirve- Board of the National Association of
Buildin,- Trades Emplo:"-ors and of the Board of its ally, the National Asso-
ciation of Biiilders ' ErzcIiP-nge s , for "d--anple, were found at the same time
to be members or exectitives in the Associated General Contractors of America
during the period' from June 30, 1933 to Jan-uary 31, 1934, when the two
former associations were contending with the latter before the National
Recovery Administration over the issue of a separate code for the Building
Construction Subdivision of the Industry.
8511
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Partially Inclusive
National Association of Builders Exchanges
National Association of Building Trades Employers
National Committee of Building Congresses
Designers
American Institute of Architects
American Society of Landscape Architects, Inc.
Architects Small House Service Bureau, Inc.
American Engineering Council
American Association of Engineers
American Institute of ConsiiJ.ting Engineers, Inc.
American Societjr of Civil Engineers
American Society of Municipal Engineers
American Society of Keating and Ventilating Engineers
American Association of State Highway Officials
American Institute of Quantity Surveyors
Building Officials Conference of America
National Engineering Inspection Association
National Associ?.tion of Poner Engineers
National Conference on Gitj Planning
G-eneral Contracting
Associated G-eneral Contractors of America
Associated Pipe Line Contractors of America
American Railway Bridge and Building Association
Suhcontracting
Ashestos Contractors National Association
American Institute of Steel Construction, Ind.
American Association of Water Well Drillers
Cement-Gun Contractors' Association
Contracting Plasterers' International Association
Heating, Piping and Air Conditioning Contractors
National Association
International Society of Master Painters and Decorators, Inc.
Institute of Steel Plate Construction
Mason Contractors Association of the United States and
Canada
Metalic TIall iStructure Association
National Concrete Chimney Builders Association
National Elevator Manufacturers Association
Natioiu.l Erectors Association
National Association of Electrical Contractors
National Resilient Flooring Association
National T/ood Flooring Contractors Association
National Warm Air Heating and Air Conditioning Association
National Kalamein Association
National Association of Metal Purring and Lathing Contractors
National Association of Meirhle Dealers
National Association of Sheet Metal Contractors
8311
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Table XXXI (Cont'd)
Natiohal Association of Ornamental Iron, Bronze & Wire Mfrs.
National Association of Master Plum"berG of the U.S.A.
National Screen Ansociation
National Slate Associa,tion
National Stone Setting Contractors Association
National Terra Gotta Manufacturers Association
National Terazzo & Mosaic Association
Plumtihg and Heating Industries Bureau
Roofing and Sheet Metal Industries Conference
Simplex Concrete Pile Association, Inc.
Tile end. Mantel Contractors Association of America
United Roofing Contractors Associa.tion
Weatherstrip Trade Association of America
Specialty IncluBive
Asphalt Institute
American Concretel institute
American Road Builders Association
American Institute of Sanitation Service
America.n Water Works Association
Highway Industries Association
Land Developers and Home Builders Division of the
National Association of Real Estate Boards
National Rivers and Karhors Congress
National Municipal Incinerator Association
River and Harhor Improvement Association of the U. S.
Standard Steel Building Institute
Practically every locality presents in miniature the complex organiza^tion-
al picture existing for the country as a r'hole. The failure to corral the "bulk
of the industry vrithin a single organization thus comes to light clearly 3.s
a consequence of the fundamental economic structure of the industry itself.
The multitudinous and contending local, regional and national associa.tions are
the natural outgrowth of the multitude of conflicting or contending special
economic interest;:^. The idea for an all-inclusive organization of the Con-
struction Industry, however, frequently has "been advanced.
National Associations and Their Experiences
The National Association of Builders Exchange wp.s formed in 1897, At no
time since, however, has it "been able to extend its field to interest agencies
involved in Highway or Heavj'- Construction. It has failed to bring ujider its
wings architects and engineers, neither of fhora have oeen attracted "by the
succession of small "deals," which are the life l)lood of an exchange. It has
"been frought with cleavages as between the special interests of ma.terial pro-
ducers and vendors, general contractors and assorted groups of subcontractors,
so that no major problem was to be acted upon without endangering the local
or national exchange structure. The one, safe line has been the promotion of
building volume, a common interest i/hich ha.s served in a way to enable both
the National Association of Builders Exchanges a,nd the many local exchanges to""
survive constantlj'- recurring organizational crises,
8311
-61-
In 1918 ■onder the auspices of the ChaTnher of CoFinerce of the United State;
there was Is^iJiched the Federation of Construction Industries, 9,n agency intend-
intended to encompass the entire construction industry. Almost innediately it
was confronted rdth group conflicts, and vraiished.
The Ainerican Construction Council was l':'i.ijjiched in 1924. It attracted
lahor and architects, "but no significant grouos in Heavy Construction and High-
way Construction. Its promotional 3.ctivity for 'ouildin,-; construction kevt it
alive in the Btiilding Division many years. The Association, however, diTindled
axjaj to 3, skeleton following attempts to discourage over-speculation ''oy opera-
tive huilders, to develop an a-oprentice training program and to reform methods
of real estate "bond underwriting and flotations. Since then it has been kept 1
a few man^ufacturers v.'ho encoura^ged its promotional activities.
In 1918 the National Association of Building Trades Employers was formed
to bargain with labor in the interests of ern'oloyers. It drew members from all
Industry Division and in 1953 claimed 6,030 members in 45 cities.
Representatives of special interest national organizations in 1931 found-
ed the Construction League of the United States on a program at first confineci
almost entirely to the promotion of constniction volume. The League was in-
terested primarily in Federal, State a.nd local appropriations of public for ■
construction work. Aroimd this core of activity it grew rapidly in strength
and prestige and m.oved tentati37:ely to expand the scope of its activities and
to enter upon som.e of the intra- industry problems rooted in the special econom-
ic interest of major groLips in the industry. Such endeavors had not matured
prior to the advent of NPJl, but the League nas on the stage as the strongest
and most active and representa,tive organization purporting to speak for con-
struction as an industrj;-,
A major characteristic of all of these inclusive national organizatiohs,
however, is their inability, when questions of serious economic import crop, up
to claim the undivided support of their resiDective members for whom they seem
to be best qualified to speak.
HISTORY OF RZLATIOITSKIP BSTWEEIT
LABOR Al^D I-IANAG-EIIEKT
A history of the rela.tions betvfeen labor and management for the Construc-
tion Industry as a whole may not be summarized, because such a history perforci
is made wp of the histories of these relationships in thousands of different
localities throughout the United States. Likewise the history of rela-tionship;
within each Division of the Industry in each locality may differ considerablj'-.
For the highlights of r, history of this pha-se of the Construction Industr
however, the reading of William Haber's "Industrial Relations in the Building
Industry" is recommended. The facts which follow were taken from this volume.
They comprise, at best a scants;- outline.
8311
-.62-
1791 - The first stril'e in the building trades when Philp.delphia carpen-
ters str-uck for higher overtime pay and for workin'^ hours from "si
to six." The strike v/as lost.
1800 - The desire of "better conditions and a. shorter working day had
"brought a"bout "by 1800 the forma,tion of many unions in the "building
field.
1836 - The master carpenters of Philad.elphia organized a masters' associa-
tion "for the purpose of putting down, the com"bina,tion called the
'Trade Union. • "
1837 - Depression put many unions out of existence.
1850 - This year sa^v a growing cooperation among employers against unions
1835)
1853)- Dates when carpenters tried unsuccessfully to form national unions
1865)
1864 - la,tional union of palsterers formed.
1865 - National 'brickla.yers' union formed,
1873-79 - Depression, hampering national union organization,
1877 - Hationa.l granits cutters' union formed.
1882 - Brotherhood of Painters formed,
1887 - National stone cutters union formed.
1888 - Steanf itters' national union formed.
1889 - Plura'bers national union formed.
1890 on - Many other nationaJ. unions formed,
1897 - The National Building Trades Council was formed as a res^ilt of pre
posals for it "oy Sa.raual Gompers at the 1888 Convention of the
American Federation of Iia"bor.
1910 on - Period of stabilization and grovftn of national unions.
As stated, any national history of employer-employee relationships in the
Construction Industry must "be made up of a series of histories of various
localities, A summary of the history of collective "bargaining in Chicago fol-
lows:
1875 - Year marking post-depression revival of "building activites ac-
companied "by a revival of union activities and a:a increase in the
num"ber of unions.
1887 - The first ar"bitration "board in the local building trades was es-
tablished as a result of a bricklayers' striice.
8311
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1890 - A local Building Trades Coiincil was organized.
1893 -1900 - This period, san the growth and strengthening of local unions.
1894 - The contractors organized a "building conference committee, r'hich
quickly v^ent out of existence.
1889 - A Building Contractors' Council ttp.s organized as a "war m.easure."
It resemhled the Building Trades Council, and was empowered to take
any action it saw fit, to order a lockout, to supervise agreements,
etc.
1899 - Contractors coniraittee appointed, to confer with union comm.ittee,
1900 - Having failed to secure union agreement upon six basic demands, the
contractors declared a lock-out.
1901 - Various affiliated locals having withdraira and made separate a.gree-
ments with the contractors, the Building Trades Council disbanded,
1907 - The anions by this year had restored their central organization to
a stable basis,
1908-11 - Increase in jurisdictional disputes, which were handled by the
Contractors' Coujicil.
1911 - This yea,T found both employees and employers thoroughly organized.
1913 - An important strike and a lockout of 27,000 eraploj'"ees and the sit-
imtion from which emerged the Joint Conference Board composed, of
em.ployees and. contractors to arbitrate d.isputes.
1S15 - The year in which 19 trad-e agreements expired, involving the in-
terests of more than 40 employer trade associations, 1,000 in-
dividual emplo5''ers and 80,000 workers. The new agreements ad.opted.
incorporated no-strike clauses, etc. and. brought about op-oosition
from the Building Trades Department of the American Federation of
Labor. .and culminated in strikes or lock-outs involving about 60,
000 employees. The strikes and lock-outs ?/ere settled by com-
promises, the last of which enabled, the readmission of the lathers
into the Building Trades Council in 1920.
1917-18 - 'War Conditions in these years resulted in a carpenters strike .'
for higher wa,ges, which was followed lij a general building lock-
out involving more than 100,000 men in the erection and materials _
trades. The employers capitulated and an agreement was consummat-
ed to run until May of 1920.
1921 - Stril-es, resiilting in the award of September 7, 1921 by Judge K, K.
Landis, reducing wages, requiring peaceful arbitration, etc, A
Citizens' Committee t© Enforce the Landis Award was set up imd.er
the sponsorship of various employer organizations and it instituted
8311
i
-64-
boycotts against all unions refusing: to abide lij the award. To
replace members of unions refusing to reco;5nize the Landis Award,
nore than 12,000 were imported into the City of Chicago a,nd 600
guards were employed to prevent interference with strike brea'-ing
activities.
1922 - The Building Trades Council was rsorga,nized to include only the 22
unions adhering to the Landis Awa.rd.
1923 - The anti-Landis award unions returned to the council. The Landis
Award expired on May 3 of this year, and raa-ny contractors ^had be-
come indifferent toward the Award,
1926 - The Building Trades Cotmcil had regained its favorable bargaining
position in relation to employers.
1927 - The Building Construction Emplo3/ers' Association met the demands of
unions, and severed its connection with the Citizens' Committee
to enforce the Landis Award. In this year, rlso, although desert-
ed by most contractors, the Citizens' Committee issued a statement
that it woiild remain in existence "as long as there is one con-
tractor who demands its services."
In brief it may be said that the history of the relationships between
building labor and employers has been a history of changing balances of power.
Labor Departm-ent data on the number of strikes a^nd lock-outs in the B'aild-
ing Trades from 1919 through 1933 show the following:
TABLE ESI I
DISPUTES II THE 3UILDING TElDES
!Io. of No. of
Year pis-putes Year Disputes
1919 473 1927 194
1920 521 1928 134
1921 583 1929 212
1922 113 1930 186
1923 208 1931 215
1924 270 1932 199
1925 349 1933 113
1926 272
Re-ore sent active Character of Em-ployer Associations
The representative character of various employer associations which spnn-
sored approved codes or codes awaiting approval is shown in Table XXXIII.
Table XXXIV, Table XXXV and Table XXXVI. The tables are self-explanatory.
8311
-65-
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2311
-71-
LaTJor G-rou'os and I'Jum'bers of Members in Each in the Construction Industry
Tables XXXVII and XXXVIII show the unions affiliated rith the American
Federation of Labor whose members are enga^^ed \?holly or partially in the Con- '
struction Industry, the nnojnbers of members in these unions in 1929 and 1953 ]
and the numbers of local uaiions in them in 1929. The tables are self-explan- '
atory. |
8311
-72-
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8311
-73-
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c23ll
-75-
The jpinancial Condition of the Industry in 19oo as Connared to Its Condition ir
1929 and 1931
The tens of thousanc's of scattered iinits in the Construction Industry and
the constant shiftin-'^ of their diverse financial positions and the differences
in their respective f^mctions mai'-e it virtually iiripossihle to fraxne, in regard
to the financial condition of the Industry as a whole, 3.ny stateraent or set of
statistics that ^70U.ld not "be almost too general for any use, excepting as a
vague indication. As stateif., the Industry coraprises T'ell over 183, OOu firms
operating in all parts of the United States within various different Divisions
of the Construction Industry.
In sorne divisions, investnents in heavy, mechanized equipment have con-
stituted prohlems of increasingly seriou.s import during the decline in the
volu-ne of construction since 1929. In other divisions, fixed capital prac-
ticalD.y does not exist, so that the decline in voluine has resulted in the re-r
maining volume "being divided perforce 'among the existing mem'oers who have not
iDeen driven "by the scarcitj'- of work from the construction field.
The only discoveraole data which, might "be u.sed to indicate the financial
condition of the Industrj- since 1929 are income tax retu.rns to the Bureau of
Internal Revenue. Significant data from these returns are set forth in Ta"ble
XXXIX which follows and is seli-explanator;^/.
8311
-76-
X!
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3311
-80-
Effect of Code on Construction Industry
There are, as stated, no statistical data sufficiently inclusive to in-
dicate accurately the Tjrevalence of -unfair trade i^ractices in the Construction
Industry today. The effect of the code and its sup-olements uiDon the Industry
and its divisions, however, is lielieved to have diminished to an unl.oiovjn de-
gree the number of merahers re.^ilarly engagin-^ in unfair trade practices.
Little data are available to ascertain the extent to i*ich the code hello-
ed to maintain "bid prices ahove costs, althou,i:^h the "buoying influence of the
code and its supplements upon wage levels in the indiistry prohatly has helped
to maintain prices, at least among the members who have adliered to the wage
provisions in the codes.
Wage data, as given elsewhere in this report, indicate that the average
wage rates -oaid to construction workers in some cases represented slight in-
creases in 1934 as compared to those in 1932, although in several instances
the data reported for certain specialized craftsmen indicated slight decreases
in their hourly wEige rates in 1934, as compared to those in 1933.
Other data indicate the following changes In volume, etc., since the in-
deption of the Construction Industrj'-'s Code:
1. An increase in the volume of total construction hy both public and
private agencies as follows:
TABLE XXXX
1933 1954
Total Construction $1,761,893,000 $2,087,714,000
2. That current sauare footage costs for the construction of one and
two-family houses have just about been maintained, but are below their level
in 1932, The following data show the average value of one and two-family
housing constru-ction per square foot of floor space as indicated by the F, ¥,
Dodge reports on total sauare feet of such housing constructed in 37 states and
the total valixe of the same by years since 1929;
TA3LE IXXXl *
Year Contract or Reported Index ij'
Value per Sauare S'oot WT^"ber
1929 $4.50 98.7
1930 , 4.47 98,0
1931 4.11 90.1
1932 ^-. 3.63 79.6
1933 3.22 70.6
1934 3.37 • 73.9
1935 (3 months) 3.39 74.3
* Computed from data in Dodge Statistical Research Service Reports.
1/ 1926 equals 100.
8311
-81-
Data in the nrecedins; ta"Me are reo^rted "by Hodge "by class of operation
as follo\-s:
TABLE XXXXII
Year
Total of All
Qi^ner Occupied
Dwellings for
Contract or
and T\70-Fa,7nily
Sale or Rent
Reported Value
Housing Contract
and Housing
Per Square Foot
Value per
Square foot
Developments
Reported value
■^er Square Foot
1952
$3.65
$3.70
$3.52
1935
3.22
5.30
3.05
1934
3.37
3.66
2.80
1955 (3
F.onths)
5.39
5.62
3.14
Additional data r^hich may show the effedts of the Code on conditions in
the Industry are given in the ilraerican Federation of Lahor's "Unemplojnnent
Report" for January of 1935, indicating the percentage of union ineinhers in the
Building Trades who ■^ere unemployed during various months of recent yeexs.
Such data are set forth in the succeding tahle for the years 1933 and 1934.
TABL": XSCSIII
PSR CE1:T of Ul^ION lISIffiEHS UlIEIiPLOYED
IIT THE 3UILDIHG TRADES
Aver-
Year
Jan .
Feh.
Mar.
Apr .
llsy Jnjjie
Jiily Au^.
Sept.
Oct.
I'Tov.
Dec. 3.1-ie
1933
70
71
72
71
68 66
67 66
63
62
65
62 67
1934
58
55
55
58
57 55
57 60
58
56
56
57 57
Prom the foregoing, it may he seen that in 1933 throughout the year a,n
average of 67 per cent of all union memhers in the Btiilding Trades T;ere un-
employed, whereas in 1934, an average of 57 per cent of the union memhers were
jobless. The improvement is shc-m despite a slight increase in total union
memh er ship in the Building Trades in 1934.
Qjialified Memhers of the Construction Industry
Well Posted on the Industry's Prohlems Qual-
ified to Speeik Ahout Them
Buildin.'^ Contractors
Perhard P. Meyne:
General Buildln!°: Contractor with exceptional emerience in
the handling of lifficiilt remodeling operations, is a been
student of econoi.iics of the huilding industr?,'-. He is a
member of the National Committee for drafting a standardis-
ed mechanic's lien act of the Department of Commerce, Ad-
dress; 7 South Dearborn Street, Chicago, Illinois.
8311
Ei M. Craig:
Arthur Hol6.en:
-83-
Secretary of the ITational A? so Gift ion of Building Trades
Employers, is one of the best ojialified men in the huilding
industry to s-oeak upon relations "between contractors and
their emplo^rees. He has been actively engaged in negotiat-
ing and ohserving the effects of lahor agreements for more
than 40 years.
Address: Builders' Building, Chicago, Illo
An architect and menher of the firn of Holden-HcLaughlin
Associates, is a deep student of the building industr;'', its
problems, the relationships betvyeen its vprious groups and
between employers and employees.
Address: 561 Fifth Avenue, Uew York, l.Y.
T. 3, Holden:
Vice President of F, W, Dodge Corporation, is one of the
best q"ualified men in the coi^ntry as regards volume of con-
struction and the statistics of the building industrj".
Address: 119 West 40th Street, Hevr York, Hew York,
Peter A, Stone!
Theodore Crane;
C. M, S-oofford;
A, E. Horst;
Burt L. Knowles;
8311
Former editor of the jimericar. Contractor and the G-eneral
Building Contractor publications of the F. W. Dodge Cor-por-
ation, is extremely well informed on all phases of the build-
ing industry including the relations between employers and
employees and marketing methods and relationships of produc-
ers and distributors of construction materials. He is a
Unit Chief in the Division of Hesearch and Planning, Kationa
Recovery Administration, since August, 1933.
Address: 1805 Kilboiirne Place, IT.W. , Washington, D, C. .
Professor of the School of Contracting, x.-here he occu.pies thi
Thompson-Starrett Chair at Yale University. For severs.l
years, editor in chief of the G-eneral Bixilding Contractor,
and well qualified as an exjoert on building construction.
Address: ¥eirhall, lew Heaven, Masse
Professor of Structural Engineering at Massachusetts Insti-
tute of Technologjr; is also a Eiember of the engineering firm
of Fay, Spofford and Thorndike, He is well advised as to
structural materials, their production, distribution and use.
Address: Cambridge, Massachusetts*
The Henry W, Horst Company, is a deep student and widels^
experienced engineer and contractor, having a detailed LjIOwI-
edge of the work in the construction of highways, hes.vy con-
struction operations, such as subways, dams, public wox'-ks
projects such as sewers, and in the construction of buildinge
of all kinds, inclu.din- reside.-nces,
Mr. Horst is Clialrman of the Divisional Code Authority for
the General Contractors, ■
Address: lolS Schaff Building, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania,
Of E. D. Y«'ard Company, widely exoerienced builder of indus-
trial structures and other tjq^es of buildings, who also has
had considerable experience in heavy construction. He is
well q\i0,lified as an expert on the relations between material
producers, distributors, and purchasers in the Construction
Industry. Address: 82 Foster Street, Worcester, Massachusett
«83-
Chester W. Wright: Architect pnd General Contractor of the firm Wright and.
Kremers; is exceptionally well qualified as an ejroert on
the trends of constriiction costs, on evolution of factors of
design and construction methods, on lator relationships
and particularly as to the costs of industrial accidents and
accident prevention methods as applied in the building
industry.
Address: Niagara. Falls, New York,
Joshuas, Barney: A building contractor and engineer of the firm of Earney-
Ahlers, He is exceptionally well f]ualified on matters of
teclinical improvements in the building contracting industry,
on labor efficiency, labor costs, and labor relationships.
Address: Barney- Ahlers, New York City, N, Y.
Stephen y.Voorhees: Architect of the firm of Vorhees-Cmelin and Walker, 101
Park Avenue, He^J York City, Highly qualified to discuss
phases of the building industry.
Mr. Voorhees has served as Cnairman of the Construction Code
Committee and the Construction Code Authority since the
inception of K.S.A.
John W. Harris: Of the firm of Hegeman and Harris; general building contrs.c-
tors; is highly qualified as to building costs, services, ar
trade practices.
Address: 360 Liadison Avenue, New York, N. Y,
K. S. Cole: Executive Secretary of the Tile and Mantle Contractors'
Association, is one of the best qualified subcontra.cting
executives, most familiar with the trade practices affecting
relationships between architects, general contractors, and
subcontractors engei,ged in the building section of the con-
struction industry.
Address: Investment Building, Washington, D, C.
F. P. Byington: Vice President of Jolms-Manville Sales Corporation; is
exceptional].y '-rell a'oalified as to the relationships beti^reen
producers, distrib\itors, and purcliasers of constru-ction
materials used in the building industry.
Address: 22 East 40th St., New York, N. Y.
Theodore E, Laist: Formerly Engineering Professor at Antioch College, Yellow
Springs, Ohio, is exceedingly well informed as to building
costs and material prices.
Address: not at hand.
Heav^;- and Highway Contractors;
E, M. Sciimidt: Editor of Engineering News Record, has a vast store of
experience on the development and relationships existing in
all branchei:; of heavy construction and highway industries.
Address: McGraw-Hill Publishing Company, 330 West 42nd
Street, New York City, N.Y.
Richard Hopkins: An outstanding highway contractor and Professor at Cornell
University. Is extremely well informed about all phases of
highway engineering, construction trade practices, a,nd la-bor
relationships. Address: Box 1025, Albany, New York,
8311
Ward P, Christie;
-84-
Consulting Engineer, formerly with Uhlen and Company, and
engineer of the Associated General Contractors of America;
is a life long student of economics, business relationships,
trade practices, and labor policies of all sections of the
construction industry.
Address: National Press Building, Washington, D. C»
Colonel Hugh L« Cooper:
Consulting Engineer; is one of the outsta,nding hj^-draulic
and power plant designers and bTiilders,
Address: 101 Park Avenue, New York, N.Y,
Ralph D. TTinstead: Formerly editor of The American Contractor, published by
the Po W, Dodge Corporation, and of The Constru.ctor, pub-
lished by The Constructor, Incorporated, Washington, D. C.
Is informed as to the statistics of all branches of the
construction industry, merchandising methods of construction
materials, labor relationships, and other phases of the
industry. Since March, 1934, connected with Research and
Planning Division of National Recovery Administration.
Address: 2:26 Chester Street, S.E., Washington, D, C,
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