Statement by the President on the Purchasing Power of the Wages of Factory Workers.

THE SECRETARY OF LABOR today gave me a very interesting report which concerns every American who works for a living.

He has informed me that the Department of Labor today issued two reports--one on the September cost of living, the other on the factory workers' take-home pay for September.

These latest figures reveal that as of September the average factory worker with a wife and two children could buy more with his paycheck than in any September in our nation's history. In other words, the purchasing power of the average factory worker is at an all-time high level for this time of year despite an increase of three-tenths of one percent in the average of consumer prices since last month.

This means that while consumer prices have risen 2.8% in three and one-half years, the wage increases received by our country's factory workers during that same period have meant to them a gain in real wages of 8.6%. When I say real wages, I mean the workers' actual buying power after deductions have been made for the cost of living and federal taxes.