NOT m' b?lito / fOI4 E4l_BLw/b l i| i m\\ 4\M\M$i M HARRISON E . HOWE, Editor
Published b y th e America n Chemica l Societ y SEPTEMBER 2 5 , 1 9 4 1
VOLUME 19
NUMBER 18
DIRECTORS' mINUTES
T
HE Boar d o f Director s o f th e
AMERICAN CHEMICA L SOCIET Y me t
for dinne r i n Roo m 134 , Haddon Hall, Atlanti c City , N . J., at 6:30 p. M. , September 7,1941. A t 8:25 P. M. the meeting wa s calle d t o orde r b y Thoma s Midgley, Jr. , Chairman, wit h th e fol lowing Director s present : L . H. Adams, Roger Adams , Rober t T . Baldwin, E . K . Bolton, Willar d H . Dow , Gustavus J . Esselen, Willia m Lloy d Evans , Arthu r J . Hill, Harry N . Holmes, S. C. Lind, Charle s L. Parsons , Edwar d R . Weidlein , and Robert E . Wilson . Harriso n E . How e and Counse l Elish a Hanso n wer e presen t by invitation . I t wa s moved, seconded , an d carrie d that th e minutes o f the previous meeting , which ha d bee n sen t i n advance t o each Director, b e approved. Vincent d u Vigneaud an d Walter G . Karr o f the Committee o n Chemical Serv ice to Medicine mad e a report of progress in detail, for which the Directors expresse d their thanks and ordered tha t the report be put o n file. / An a d interim repor t b y the Secretar y was presente d t o t he Directors. O n t h e following mornin g it was presented by t he President to the Counci l and appears in the minutes of that meeting . I t will be foun d on page 1017 of t he Council proceedings. The Director s then considere d the statu s of professiona l chemists , member s o f t h e AMERICAN CHEMICA L SOCIETY , i n rela -
tion t o labo r union s demandin g t h e in clusion o f chemist s an d chemical engi neers in a closed shop and employment an d promotion o n t he basis o f seniority. A resolution thereo n wa s adopted . B y re quest o f the Committee o n Policy, i t was decided t o infor m th e Counci l o f t h e details of this actio n at its meeting o n the morning o f September 8. I t wa s moved, seconded , an d carrie d that a committee o f five be appointed by the Chairma n t o be known a s the Committee o n Economic Status . Th e follow ing member s wer e appointed : Lawrenc e W. Bass , Georg e Calingaert , Walte r A. Schmidt, Harlan L. Trumbull, and Frank C. Whitmore. T h e duties o f this committe e shall b e to make a study o f the chemists' economic situatio n a s it exists toda y an d to be ready to act in an advisory capacit y
both to employers and employee-groups of members whe n bot h partie s desire it to do so. I f deemed helpful , it s findings shall be publicized. I t wa s moved, seconded , an d carried that a n appropriation no t to exceed $200 0 be mad e for the necessary expense s of the Committee o n Economic Statu s an d tha t the Treasure r b e and is hereby authorize d and instructe d t o make th e necessary expenditures fro m fund s no t otherwise appropriated. A report o f the Finance Committe e was received, accepted , an d ordered place d on file. I t wa s moved, seconded , an d carried that th e sum of $500 be appropriated for the SOCIETY' S expense s in connection wit h the Nationa l Expositio n o f Chemical I ndustries to be held in New York, Decembe r 1 to 6, 1941 , an d that the Treasurer be and is hereb y authorize d an d instructed t o make the necessary expenditure from fund s not otherwis e appropriated . I t havin g bee n recommende d t o t h e Directors b y the Counci l tha t a study be made of waiving due s in the case of members calle d t o active dut y i n the armed forces o f the United State s durin g t he period o f such activ e duty , th e question was considere d i n detail. Sinc e the num ber o f chemists affecte d ar e for the mai n part reserv e officers , i t was moved, sec onded, an d carried that th e Council be informed that , i n the opinion o f the Directors, suc h actio n wa s inadvisable . The questio n havin g bee n brough t be fore th e Directors a s to the SOCIETY'S policy i n replacing journal s los t throug h hostilities abroad , i t was deemed inadvis able to take any action at the present tim e since th e SOCIETY' S stoc k o f journals has been almos t completel y deplete d b y such losses. Mos t of these replacements ca n be made i n future onl y b y purchase throug h second-hand dealers . B y vot e o f t h e Directors, the matter wa s accordingl y lai d on the table. I t was moved, seconded, and carried that the Boar d o f Directors o f the AMERICAN CHEMICAL SOCIET Y hereb y empower s and
instructs th e President an d the Secretar y and th e Treasurer o r any one of them on behalf o f said SOCIET Y to assign, transfer , and se t over t o a committe e fo r and o n
1013
behalf o f the Chemical Foundation , Inc., 8 share s of preferred an d 2 shares of common stoc k o f said foundatio n whic h stoc k is now owned b y said SOCIET Y an d which stock i s to be assigned, transferred , and set ove r i n consideration o f the premise s and of other good , and valuabl e considera tions a © set forth i n Agreement b y and between sai d foundatio n an d sai d SOCIET Y signed an d dated Septembe r 8 , 1941 , and that sai d officer o r officers b e and are hereby authorize d an d instructed t o execute all paper s and do all things necessar y and proper t o effectuate thes e purposes ; pro vided, furthermore , tha t th e Treasurer b e and is hereby authorized an d instructed to charge of f the value o f said securitie s in the book s of said SOCIETY . A request havin g been received from the American Coordinatin g Committe e o n Corrosion fo r funds t o cover expense s of that committee , a s recommended b y t h e SOCIETY'S representative , i t wa s moved, seconded, an d carrie d tha t th e American Coordinating Committee on Corrosion an d F. N . Speller b e regretfully informe d tha t the AMERICA N CHEMICA L SOCIET Y canno t
alter it s establishe d polic y a s outlined in its communicatio n o f December 7 , 1938 , and tha t accordingl y it s representation be discontinued. I t wa s moved , seconded , an d carried that t h e Secretary infor m th e Nationa l Committee t o Signalize Benjami n Frank lin's Continuing Contributio n to American Civilization tha t th e AMERICA N CHEMICA L
SOCIETY is very appreciativ e o f its invitation t o deposit historica l papers , memora bilia, etc. , with tha t committee , an d tha t the Directors are sympathetic to the objectives of the committee's work . However , the Secretar y wa s instructed t o inform the committee tha t th e SOCIETY ha s alread y completed arrangement s whereb y suc h documents are to be deposited for preservation with the Edgar Fah s Smit h Memoria l Library. The Committe e t o Study th e Natur e and Desig n of the Fifty-Year Membershi p Award being ready to report to the Council, and an advance copy of this report being before the Directors, it was moved, seconded, and carrie d tha t shoul d th e report b e approved b y the Council the sum of $100 be appropriated to carry out its recommenda -
NEWS
1014 tions and that the Treasurer be and is hereby authorized and instructed to make the necessary expenditure from funds not otherwise appropriated. It was moved, seconded, and carried that the Editor of Industrial and Engineering Chemistry be allowed an additional 150 pages to be divided between Industrial and Engineering Chemistry and the N E W S EDITION as conditions may require. The Blakiston Co. having used the 1940 Directory of the AMERICAN CHEMICAL SOCIETY without permission of the SOCIETY
for the purpose of mailing advertising matter, notwithstanding the Directory was copyrighted and was issued to a member of the SOCIETY under contract that it would not be so used, it was moved, seconded, and carried that t h e Secretary write the Blakiston Co. that unless it gives assurance that the Directory will not be misused again and returns the copy in its possession, the whole matter will be referred to Counsel for such action as he may deem right and proper. It was moved, seconded, and carried that the Directors' next meeting be held on Thursday, December 4, 1941, at the AMERICAN CHEMICAL SOCIETY head-
quarters in Washington, D . C. At 1:00 A. M., just prior to adjournment, it was moved, seconded, and carried that all motions above recorded be approved. There being no further business, the meeting adjourned. CHARLES L. PARSONS, Secretary
Second Meeting
T
HE Board of Directors of the AMERICAN CHEMICAL SOCIETY met in Room
509, Haddon Hail, Atlantic City, at 5:15 p. M., September 8, 1941, on call of the Chairman, with t h e following Directors present: Thomas Midgley, Jr., Chairman, L. H . Adams, Robert T. Baldwin, E . K. Bolton, William Lloyd Evans, Gustavus J. Esselen, Harry N . Holmes, Charles L. Parsons, Edward R. Weidlein, and Robert E. Wilson. I t was moved, seconded, and carried that the action of the Directors as presented t o the Council be reconsidered. In view of the discussion in the Council, as reported in the Council minutes, the Directors reworded the paragraph regarding the relative economic status of graduates from educational institutions approved by the AMERICAN CHEMICAL SOCIETY and those
not approved, and then unanimously adopted the following statement as the policy and procedure to be followed by the AMERICAN CHEMICAL SOCIETY, of which
the Board of Directors by national charter is the governing body.
EDITION
Vol. 19, No. 18
Employer-Employee Relationships for Professional Chemists as Recommended by the American Chemical Society " D E C A USE of efforts to compel chemists and chemical engineers to join labor organizations in order to obtain, or retain. employment in certain plants, the Board o f Directors of the AMERICAN CHEMICAL, S O -
CIETY has given consideration to the broad problems of employment in th.e field o f chemistry. So that the position of the SOCIETY may not be misunderstood, the Board of Directors issues t h e following statement for the more complete information of o u r membership: The SOCIETY has taken no stand against "collective bargaining" for professional men when such bargaining is not controlled by nonprofessional groups and 'where t h e bargaining unit is composed exclusively o f professional men. The SOCIETY condemns no o n e of i t s
members for joining any noncoercive labor union so long as he does so voluntarily. The SOCIETY, however, is unalterably opposed to the forcible inclusion of professional men in bargaining units dominated and controlled by nonprofessional employees, whether that inclusion b e brought about by economic pressure upon an employer, by intimidation o f the professional employee, or b y operation o f either state or federal law. The SOCIETY will bend every effort t o maintain for all its members the "right t o work" and the "right to employment and promotion" on the basis of worth a n d merit. Accordingly, the Board of Directors goes on record a s opposed to affiliation of i t s members with any organization that conditions promotion primarily o n the basis of "seniority", or that insists that they join any labor organization where they would be i n a minority, with n o power t o protect themselves while paying "protection" thereto as an essential t o the privilege of earning a livelihood and with their wage scales negotiated by those whose selfish interest would require that benefits be sought for the larger number o f nonprofessional workers t o the detriment of the relatively few professional e m ployees. Letters from some members, supported by facts and intelligent argument, claiming that conditions during the depression and under the emergency have secured f o r tradesmen and laborers, under union leadership, advances in income not enjoyed b y trained professional men often directly associated with the former, have been given consideration.
Already a number of our more progressive employers have made surveys of their personnel and have taken, or propose to take, corrective measures. In order that some logical conclusion may b e reached, it seems wise t o consider the distinction between professional and nonprofessional employees engaged in chemical work in order properly to differentiate between professional and nonprofessional workers. At the present time there are a large number of technicians employed in the field of chemistry. The term "technician" may be applied t o routine workers, trained in t h e laboratory but with no special education or mental proficiency in chemistry and allied sciences. Normally they will be individuals with secondary school education only, or perhaps ones who have failed to acquire a baccalaureate degree through lack of funds, insufficient effort or capacity, or attendance at underequipped educational institutions. These are almost always paid wages on the hourly basis and are often included i n labor union agreements. N o proper objection can be raised to their inclusion in a bargaining unit composed of employees doing various kinds of skilled, semiskilled, or unskilled work. T h e two groups of employees which should not be subjected t o forcible inclusion in a heterogeneous bargaining unit are those who have received degrees in chemistry or chemical engineering and are engaged i n those fields, either a s chemical internes or as professionals. T h e term "chemical interne" may b e applied to those who are essentially i n the final qualifying stage for their life work in the field of chemistry. They have received their baccalaureate degrees with majors in chemistry or chemical engineering, have proved their proficiency not only in chemistry but also in mathematics, physics, modern languages, etc. They are acquiring thereby the necessary training and experience t o qualify for full professional status or standing. Those in industrial corporations are engaged in professional work on problems confidential t o management, whether their work be control, research, or development. T h e term "professional" should be applied only to those who have the baccalaureate degree, or its equivalent b y specific accomplishment, and who, having been graduated from institutions approved by the AMERICAN CHEMICAL, SOCIETY, have"
had at least two years of postgraduate train-
The AMBBICAM CHEMICAL SOCIETY assumes no responsibility for the statements and opinions advanced by contributors to its publications. Published by the AMBBICAM CHEMICAL SOCIETY, Publication Office, 20th & Northampton Sts., Eaaton, Penna. Editorial Office, 1155 16th St., N . W., Washington, D . C ; Telephone, Republic 5301; Cable, Jiechem ("Washington). Advertising Department, 332 West 42nd St., New York, N . Y.; Telephone, Bryant 0-4430. Entered as second-class matter at the Post Office a t Easton, Penna., under the act o f March 3,1879, as 24 times a year on the 10th and 25th. Acceptance for mailing at special rate of postage provided for in Section 1103, Aot of October 3, 1917, authorised July 13, 1918. Annual subscription rate, $2.00. Foreign postage to countries not in the Pan American Union, $0.60; Canadian postage, $0.20. Single copies, $0.15. Special rates to members. N o claims can be allowed for copies of journals lost in the mails unless such claims are received within 60 days of the date of issue, and no claims will be allowed for issues lost as a result of insufficient notice of change of address. (Ten days' advance notice rwruired.) "Missing from files" cannot be accepted as the reason for honoring a olaim. Charles L. Parsons, Business Manager, 1155 16th St., NT. "W\, Washington, D. C , U. S. A.
NEWS
September 25, 1941
EDITION
ing in chemistry or chemical engineering in institutions of like grade or have for an equal period obtained experience in chemical work. For graduates of other educational institutions five years of postgraduate training and/or experience subsequent t o the baccalaureate degree should be required. These are the minimum requirements for full professional membership in
A minimum starting salary not less than $1500 per annum for any chemical interne; and one of not less than $1800 per annum for a n y chemical interne of better than average ability or training, including especially those graduated from institutions whose chemical work is of particularly high quality such as those approved
t h e AMERICAN CHEMICAL SOCIETY.
a minimum starting salary of not less than $2400 per annum for any individual who has attained "professional" grade as hereinbefore described, and, according to the extent of training and capacity, higher starting salary in proportion to training, experience, merit, and individual accomplishment.
T h e Board of Directors has heretofore hesitated t o make any suggestions on the matter of adequate compensation. On the whole our educational institutions and chemical corporations have realized the value of brains and have compensated employees accordingly. T h e chemical profession as a whole i s o n a level with any other profession in material return. There are today i n our profession, as i n many others, individuals whose compensation is high, indeed almost fabulous, and others who are grossly underpaid. There are many who, even i n t h e higher brackets, earn more than their income. There are some, even in the lower brackets, who are not worth their hire, and who, for their own sakes and for the reputation of the profession, should seek other more fitting fields for a livelihood. I n spite of this generalization there has come to the attention of the Board of Directors evidence that there are today many cases where worthy professional men with years of study and training are grossly underpaid and are receiving less compensation than m e n without any specialized education employed in many of t h e trades and crafts. I n the opinion of t h e Board of Directors, the time has arrived when it must publicly suggest t o all employers of chemists and chemical engineers that they review with care their employer-employee relations in this line of endeavor. The AMERICAN
CHEMICAL
SOCIETY
stands
ready through a carefully chosen Committee on Economic Status t o act in an advisory capacity to both employers and employee groups of its members and, if deemed helpful, t o publicize its findings. Enlightened management will, i t is believed, welcome consultation with such a committee composed of carefully chosen individuals. As a beginning, the Board of Directors suggests that all worthy chemical internes and professionals when engaged in professional work be paid on a salary and not on an hourly basis. The extent of training, experience, and capacity, as well a s individual personality and merit, are factors that must be considered when employing one to engage in professional work. Bearing these factors in mind, as well a s the objects of this S O CIETY, and the requirements for membership therein, the board ventures t o make the following suggestions t o employers for their consideration in respect of starting salaries for chemical internes and professionals under present economic conditions, when such persons are employed to do professional work:
b y t h e AMERICAN CHEMICAL SOCIETY; and
The foregoing suggestions are for minimum starting salaries only and are not to be regarded as suggestions for maximum salaries or as recommendations for a wage scale. They are made in respect of only those who are engaged for professional
1015 work in the field of chemistry and chemical engineering, as t h e SOCIETY cannot concern itself with problems of employment in other fields. Inasmuch as technicians normally come under nonprofessional status, t h e technician grade does not come within the purview of this organization. The Board of Directors recommends t o employer and employee alike personal contact and careful consideration before concluding financial arrangements. Also it respectfully reminds both employers and members of this organization that t h e Employment Clearing House held at t h e semiannual meetings of the SOCIETY affords special facilities for consultation. The Committee on Economic Status will give its immediate consideration to the whole question of employment in professional work in the field of chemistry. The meeting then adjourned a t 6:00 p.
M.
C H A R L E S L. PARSONS, Secretary
Council Policy Committee Minutes
T
HE Council Policy Committee m e t at 3:00 P. M., Sunday, September 7,1941, in Room 509, Haddon Hall, Atlantic City, N . J., with William Lloyd Evans presiding and Messrs. Robert T. Baldwin, Erie M . Billings, E . J. Crane, Gustavus J. Esselen, Harry N . Holmes, Harrison E. Howe, A. B. Lamb, S. C. Lind, Thomas Midgley, Jr., Charles L. Parsons, and Walter A. Schmidt present. I t was moved, seconded, and carried that the Council Policy Committee request that any action taken b y the Directors at their meeting on the evening of September 7 covering the question of attempts to control professional men b y nonprofessional groups be read t o t h e Council and that their statement be supplemented b y an account of the activities of the Secretary
a s reported to t h e committee. The committee appointed a committee of six t o present two nominations for a Director-atlarge for the period 1942-45. The committee voted t o recommend for approval by the Council t h e report of the Committee to Study Nature and Design for t h e Fifty-Year Membership Award, 'which was adopted b y t h e Council, and will b e found o n page 1019. The committee recommended the adoption of a report o n t h e question of laboratory equipment and supplies and possible priority therefor, which was submitted to the committee and through i t to "the Council. I t was adopted and will be found printed o n page 1020. The committee then adjourned. C H A R L E S L. PARSONS, Secretary
S. S. Kurtz, Jr., presents award to D r . Folkers at the general meeting.
