Registry No. 1610—02 NATIONAL RECOVERY ADMINISTRATION PROPOSED CODE OF FAIR COMPETITION FOB THE BUILDING CONSTRUCTION AND BUILDING MATERIAL INDUSTRIES AS SUBMITTED ON JULY 5, 1933 R PART The Code for the Building Construction and Building Material Industries in its present form merely reflects the proposal of the above-mentioned industry, and none of the provisions contained therein are to be regarded as having received the approval of the National Recovery Administration as applying to this industry UNITED STATES GOVERNMENT PRINTING OFFICE WASHINGTON : 1933 For sale by the Superintendent of Documents, Washington, D.C. -.------ Price 5 cents CODE FOR BUILDING CONSTRUCTION AND BUILDING MATERIAL INDUSTRIES Approval is asked of the President of the United States by Building Industries of America, a Service Organization. Charles J. Columbus, Managing Director, National Headquarters, Raleigh Hotel, Wash- ington, D.C. Section 1. Purpose of Code. — The purpose of this Code is to apply to the Building Industry generally the principles of the Industrial Recovery Act, namely, "An Act to encourage national industrial re- covery, to foster fair competition, and to provide for the construction of certain useful public works, and for other purposes", by the legal- ization of these rules of fair practice. The effect of the Code will be to give increased employment and to safeguard public welfare through the elimination of abuses harmful not alone to the worker but to the investor, large and small. This Code is designed to improve the standard of living of workers and employers alike in the Building Construction and Building Mate- rial Industries. It will give the worker and the employer a living on an adequate standard and enable the investor to buy on a fair market, free from unsound economy. It will ensure fair dealing for all through a fair price, quality-defined system of fair dealing. The competent and the quality-minded will thus be served in emer- gency and, it is believed, will be secured in the same manner in the future. Sec. 2. Definition. — (a) "Building Construction Industry" shall include all persons, firms, or corporations engaged in the business of erecting buildings or structures, and the repair thereof, through con- tract or agreement of any kind. (b) The definition "Building Material Industry" shall include any ndividual or set of individuals or corporations engaged in the manu- facture or distribution of commodities used in construction work. Sec. 3. Objects of Building Industries of America. — (a) Building In- dustries of America is a service organization operating to promote the good and welfare of active and associate members and clients engaged in the Building Construction and Building Material Trades in the United States of America; also persons interested in but not engaged in the said industries. (b) Building Industries of America pledges itself, its clients, and members to support the Industrial Recovery Law, approved June 16, 1933, and the Code for the enforcement of fair practices in all phases of the Building Construction Industry and the Building Material Industry in the United States of America. Sec. 4. Classification of Activities. — General Contractors; Material Dealers; Contingent Insurance; Masonry; Floor Finishes; Lathing and Plastering; Cut Stone; Mill work; Roofing; Sheet Metal; Glass and Glazing; Ornamental and Miscellaneous Iron; Hardware; Heat- ing and Ventilating Systems; Electric Wiring; Elevators; Vacuum Cleaning System; Refrigeration; Iron Doors and Shutters; Sidewalk and Roof Lights; Chutes and Conveyors; Interior Marble and Stone; 8929—33 (1) Terrazzo; Mail Chute and Box; Alterations to Existing Work; Models and Carving; Yard Work; Brick, Concrete, or Steel Stack; Subcontractors; Bonding; Excavation and Foundations; Reinforced Concrete; Terra Cotta and Gypsum Fireproofing; Arch. Terra Cotta; Granite; Carpentry; Hollow Metal Windows; Fireproof Doors and Trim; Painting and Decorating; Structural Steel; Plumbing System; Power Plant; Lighting Fixtures; Pneumatic and Compressed Air Systems; Sprinkler System; Elevator Enclosures; Metal Sash and Frames; Bronze Work; Vault Doors and Equipment; Tile Work; Furniture and Equipment; Revolving Doors; Scaffolding; Acoustical Treatment and Sound Proofing. Sec. 5. Services. — Building Industries of America serves its mem- bers through information and counsel on the state of the Building Trade, reflects opportunities for new business, acts as counsel in the interpretation of the National Recovery Law and the Code, and other services. Sec. 6. Active Members. — Any individual, firm, or corporation en- gaged in any form of building construction, in services or materials shall be eligible to Active Membership in Building Industries of America provided they are known to be competent and experienced in their respective lines and agree to abide by the terms of the Code as approved by the National Recovery Administration. Dues are $40 per annum per member, payable semiannually in advance. Sec. 7. Associate members. — -Any owner, architect, engineer, crafts- man, or citizen other than those actively engaged in the Building Industry may become Associate Members on application and accept- ance and the payment of dues in the sum of $10 per annum, payable semi-annually in advance. Sec 8. Clients. — Any individual, firm, or corporation may become a Client for whom a special service is to be rendered, provided they conform to the rules respecting Active and Associate Memberships and pay such fees as will be required for the services to be rendered. Clients shall be bound by the National Recovery Law and the Code. Sec. 9. Membership. — All individuals, firms, or corporations desir- ous of becoming members shall make application to the National Headquarters of Building Industries of America in Washington, D.C., stating corporate title and character of business; experience; officers, if any; names of those who were the last four employers; give two financial and two character references, and check for $20, which will pay dues for the first six months from date of acceptance as member. Sec 10. Resignation. — Any Active or Associate Member or Client may resign on payment of accrued obligations. Sec 11. Identification of membership. — All Active and Associate Members will be supplied with certificate of membership for posting in the home office, with copies for use at job sites. Sec 12. Bidding. — (a) Owners, architects or engineers, or others seeking bids shall supply every bidder with a complete set of plans and specifications and give a reasonable intervening time for prepara- tion of bid. (b) All bids or estimates of projects involving $500 or more shall be in writing, computed from plans and specifications duly approved by municipal, State, or Federal authorities. Each bid must be accompanied by names of sub-bidders and the name and source of material supply. (c) No bids shall be submitted or accepted where the specifications fail to provide a definite time and place where they shall be opened in the presence of competing parties. (d) No bid shall be amended after filing but may be withdrawn prior to acceptance. (e) Provision must be made that the project shall be awarded to the lowest bidder who can qualify with the terms of the specifications. Sec. 13. Noncompetitive work. — In all instances of noncompetitive undertakings the rules of practice shall be the same as set forth in the Code and the National Recovery Law. Sec. 14. Minimum wages — Unskilled Labor $0.50 per hour Skilled Labor .75 per hour Skilled Mechanics 1.00 per hour Highly Skilled Mechanics 1.50 per hour Sec. 15. Maximum hours. — Five-day week of six hours per day. Sec 16. Manual labor of partners or officers. — No more than one member of any firm or partnership shall work with his tools, and he shall observe the conditions of the Code. Sec. 17. Maximum wages and working conditions. — (a) Wages in excess of the minimum defined by the Code shall be the subject of conference between employer and employee. Each shall appoint three representatives. In the event of dispute, if the matter in con- troversy affects wages, hours of labor, or other features of the Code, the matter shall be referred to the Industrial Recovery Administration for decision in accordance with law. (b) Pending the decision of the Federal Authority and in the event that decision is not reached within ten days of date of bid filing in any jurisdiction the hours and wages and conditions shall be as set forth in the Code for the duration of the job. Sec 18. Jurisdictional and other disputes. — Jurisdictional and other disputes shall be handled and determined in the manner prescribed for the fixing of wages and working conditions. Sec 19. No stoppage of work. — There shall be no stoppage of work pending the determination of any dispute, save for failure to meet minimum payroll. Sec 20. Costs of doing work. — (a) All individuals, firms, or corpo- rations engaged in the Building industry shall keep an accurate record of all costs, which shall be open to the inspection of any duly authorized authority. Records shall show the quantity of and the price paid or contracted for of all purchases or commitments, subdi- vided as to projects and the source of purchase. (b) Administration costs and general overhead shall be kept sep- arately. Six percent interest shall be added to tins and the total cost of general administration prorated to each project. (c) All wages, salaries, engineering costs, and expenses of every character and kind for each individual project shall be kept in a sep- arate record, and the total charged to the project. (d) All material costs and estimates shall be kept in a separate record according to project. (e) All equipment of a usable nature, such as buildings, machinery, and other equipment, shall be charged to and collected from the project as used in an amount comparable to their fair rental value, together with amortization allowance and the addition of 6% on the amount involved. Sec. 21. Material dealers' costs. — All material dealers shall keep an accurate record of all purchases, expenses and sales, including out of pocket and assumed obligations of every character, including admin- istrations cost and general overhead, wages, salaries, rents, taxes, and do all things provided in Section 20 of the Code, including an allow- ance for amortization, obsolescence or damaged goods, and all other losses. There shall be a minimum gross profit of 25 percent. Sec. 22. Unsalable or slow-moving material. — Dealers in material shall give public notice to the trade, through newspaper, trade paper, or the mails of price changes in unsalable or slow-moving material. Such price changes shall not affect contracts or verbal agreements already made at higher prices. Violations thereof shall be punish- able in accordance with the procedure provided in Federal and State laws. Sec. 23. Operating Funds. — Each Contractor or Material Dealer shall make a charge equal to 6% for all monies held or borrowed for the financing of a given project and assess that amount and include it in the contract or estimated price of all projects, which shall be a part of the enumeration of all the other costs of doing business. Sec 24. Gross Profits. — Gross profits shaU be added to the antici- pated cost of the project, as shown by material and labor surveys as set forth in this Code and all other out-of-pocket expenditures. Gross profits shall be 10 percent of the above total for General Contractors or others contracting for an entire job, and 15 percent for subcontractors. Sec 25. Collective Bargaining. — The right of Employees and Em- ployers to Collective Bargaining, one with the other, is recognized. Such bargaining and wage determination must be made in advance of completion of estimate or estimates on work and the presentation of bids to permit of the following of the procedure as already outlined in this Code. Wage scales current on the date of bid presentation shall be the scale for the duration of the project. Sec 26. Allocation of Funds. — Funds accruing from a given project shall be expended exclusively on that project. Sec 27. Payments and Releases of Liens. — (a) Wages shall be paid weekly, on a given day. When employees are released they shall be paid on the hour of dismissal or in accordance with the working rules of the Union employee. (b) Payments for material furnished shall be made monthly or in accordance with specific agreements not inconsistent with this Code, but in no case shall payment to material dealers be less than the amount received for materials in any particular payment. (c) There shall be no release of liens by any holder thereof or party thereto until a full settlement has been made in cash or a usable check. Sec 28. Retents and Final Settlements. — No party to a Building Construction Contract or Agreement shall, on completion of the work in accordance with contract, retain a sum greater than 15% of the gross amount of the contract price beyond thirty days after the completion of the contract. Sec 29. Commissions, Preferential Discounts, Illegal Rebates, and Belittling of Competitors. — It shall be unlawful for any individual, firm, or corporation engaged in whole or in part in the Building Industry to give or accept or be a party to any of the above-named acts or those of a like nature, such as any special discount or privilege not a part of the specifications or other written agreement for the job executed between a general or subcontractor, material or supply dealer or agent; nor to engage in any form of collusion the effect of which is to circumvent the welfare of owner, architect, competitors, general or subcontractors, or any other person or persons in interest, nor acts which shall be contrary to public welfare. Sec. 30. Other Unfair Practices Declared Illegal. — (a) It shall be illegal for any owner, architect, or engineer, material dealer, general or subcontractor, or others to give any secret or preferential: Price discrimination Dealer aids Quantity discounts Free deals Quality discounts Seasonal reductions Terms of sale Ad allowances Premiums Samples Allowances Free goods Carrying charges Or to indulge in — Substitution False or misleading advertising Commercial bribery Interference with contracts Misrepresentation Irregular billing dates False invoicing Free service Freight absorption Refunds Piracy of design Unearned discounts Dumping Confidential prices Misbranding Special service. or other acts of unfair practice. (b) The naming, marking, or billing of materials, fixtures, appa- ratus, or installations of products and free labor, for the purpose of, or with the effect of misleading or deceiving purchasers, is con- sidered illegal. (c) The acceptance of securities, bonds, mortgages, stock, or promissory notes, at other than their true value as whole or part payment for work done is price discrimination and is considered illegal. (d) The bidding on jobs without sufficient time for preparation or proper estimate or without an individual copy of the plans and speci- fications being available to bidder as a basis for the bid is illegal. (e) The failure of architects, engineers, and owners to award con- tracts promptly to the satisfactory bidder in each class of work upon his original bid results in unfair methods of competition; and the failure of architects, engineers, and owners to keep confidential the bids received and opened prior to the time that all bids upon such work have been received and opened is illegal. (f) Undertaking to complete a contract upon which another con- tractor has temporarily stopped work because of nonpayment of amounts properly due is illegal. (g) The payment, or promise to pay, to any employee or agent of purchaser, or prospective purchaser, of a commission or consideration of any character for the purpose of inducing or compensating for the sale either with or without the knowledge of the principal purchaser is illegal. UNIVERSITY OF FLORIDA 6 3 1262 08850 3155 REPORT OF VIOLaxhjinq All violations shall be reported to Building Industries of America, at Washington, D.C. Sec. 31. Safeguards jor Employees. — -All Employers of Labor of any character or kind in the Building Construction Industry or the Building Material Industry shall exercise reasonable safeguards to protect the health, safety, and well-being of employees. They are required to carry insurance in an adequate amount or otherwise indemnify the said employees against peril arising out of accidents occurring in, on, or out of a job in accordance with the laws of the States, District of Columbia, or other civil jurisdiction of the United States of America. Sec. 32. Apprentices, Beginners, and Learners. — No male or female, under the age of sixteen years, shall be employed in any capacity in the Building Industry. Such persons sixteen years of age and over may be employed at a minimum rate of pay of two dollars per day, a maximum of 130 hours per month and not more than six hours in any one day of a five-day week. Sec 33. Code Applies to All. — It is agreed that the obligations imposed by this Code shall be made a part of any other Code approved for the Building Construction and Material Industry. Sec 34. Reports to Building Industry of America. — All Active and Associate Members and Clients of Building Industries of America shall make report on the last day of each month of the number of projects on hand, the number of employees and the hours worked by each in the said month and the minimum wages paid. Sec 35. Violations. — All violations of the Code shall be reported to the National Headquarters of Building Industries of America in Washington, D.C. Such reports must be in writing. This organiza- tion will cause an investigation to be made and redress sought. Sec 36. Penalty for Violation. — The penalty for violation shall be those set forth by law and expulsion from this organization. Sec 37. Reports to Industrial Recovery Administration. — Building Industries of America shall make reports to the Industrial Recovery Administration, as called for by the President of the United States. Sec 38. Amendment oj Code. — (a) This Code may be amended, or modified, with the approval of the President of the United States, if it appears that public welfare may best be served thereby. (b) If any provision of this Code is declared invalid or unenforce- able the remaining provisions shall remain in full force and effect. Building Industries of America, (Signed) Charles J. Columbus, Managing Director. Executive Office: The Raleigh Hotel, Washington, D.C. Dated July 5, 1933. O