WH

COOPERATION

Consumers' Cooperative Societies in 1932

HILE the Bureau of Labor Statistics has not been able to undertake a general survey of the consumers' cooperative movement for 1932 it has reports for 90 societies which throw some light on the condition of the movement in that year. Table 1 shows the membership, sales, gain or loss on the year's business, and the amounts returned to the patrons on their purchases. Thus, the reports for 50 retail distributive societies show sales during 1932 of nearly $6,000,000. Of these societies, 36 had a net surplus from the year's trading operations amounting to over $80,000 while 11 others showed an aggregate loss of $43,000 (nearly $35,000 of which was incurred by one society). Although the 35 cooperative oil associations had smaller average sales-$46,345 per society, as compared with $116,724 for the store societies-33 of them realized a net gain of $168,255, and not one showed a loss. Sales of well over $4,000,000 were made by the three wholesale societies for which the Bureau has data and all showed some gain on the year's business. Reports as to purchase dividends are available for only a few of the societies. However, the reports show that altogether 12 societies returned rebates of nearly $70,000 and 10 others paid dividends ranging from 3 to 17 percent of sales but failed to report the amount involved.

It is altogether probable that the consumers' cooperative societies as a whole would present a less favorable picture than that shown by table 1. Those covered are among the best-managed and most stable organizations in the United States. As to the general situation, however, the executive secretary of the Cooperative League reports that while many of the consumers' cooperative societies in the United States are hard pressed, there have been "almost no failures among consumers' cooperative societies due to the depression." It is his opinion that "the cooperatives in the farm belt appear to be better off than those in the cities."

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TABLE 1.-MEMBERSHIP, BUSINESS, GAIN, AND REBATES OF SPECIFIED TYPES OF CONSUMERS' COOPERATIVE SOCIETIES, 1932

10 12 societies.

11 21 societies.

114 societies; 1 other paid 8 percent; 1, 10 percent; 1, 12 percent; and 1 17 percent, but did not report amount.

13 2 societies.

14 5 societies.

151 society; 1 other paid 10 percent but did not report amount.

2 societies; does not include a third society owned by 6 store societies with a combined membership

of over 1,300.

12 societies; 1 other paid 14 percent but did not report amount.

1816 societies, not including society owned by 6 store societies.

19 31 societies.

27 societies; 1 other paid 8 percent; 2, 10 percent each; 1, 12 percent; 1, 14 percent; and 1, 17 percent, but did not report amount.

21 Member societies.

2158 societies, not including wholesale societies.

286 societies.

24 12 societies; 4 others paid 3 percent; 1 paid 8 percent; 2 paid 10 percent each; 1 paid 12 percent; 1 paid 14 percent; and 1 paid 17 percent, but did not report amount.

The following table shows the comparative situation in 1931 and 1932 for 64 societies in regard to which information is available for both years. The retail-store societies as a group show decreases in the sales of 20.8 percent. Inasmuch as retail prices of food (which most of them handle) were 16 percent lower for 1932 than for 1931, there was an actual decrease in volume of goods handled of less than 5 percent. The wholesale societies had sales 18.8 percent below those of 1931. As wholesale prices decreased slightly over 11 percent, the wholesale societies' business showed a "real" decline of some 6 percent. The cooperative oil associations were able to show increases in sales, regardless of prices.

Of the 41 individual store societies reporting sales for both years, 2 showed a gain in money sales in 1932 over 1931, while of the gasoline filling stations 11 had increased sales for 1932.

TABLE 2.-SALES AND NET GAIN OF IDENTICAL CONSUMERS' COOPERATIVE SOCIETIES, 1931 AND 1932

RECREATION

Community Recreation in the United States, 1932

HE annual report of the National Recreation Association for the

recreation facilities more on the whole than ever before although there were fewer trained workers and less money was spent than in 1930 and 1931.

The report covers the recreation activities of 1,012 cities, approximately the same number that reported last year although there is some difference in the individual communities reporting. A small number of cities reported discontinuance of their playground and recreation programs for 1932, but when the severe difficulties which municipalities have faced this past year are considered it is said to be inspiring to see "the way in which cities have met the challenge of curtailed budgets, reduced staffs, and other obstacles in responding to the need for recreation service, which has continued to grow by reason of almost universal unemployment."

The number of workers employed as leaders for community recreation activities was reported by 784 cities to be 23,037, while there were, in addition, 9,280 volunteer leaders. Recreation workers were reported to be employed the year round by 258 cities, the number of full-time workers in these cities being 2,270. The salaries and wages for leadership and other services as reported by 723 cities amounted to $14,092,568.98, and the total expenditures reported by 914 cities. were $28,092,263.09 as compared with an expenditure of $36,078,585.37 by 917 cities in 1931. The greatest relative decrease in expenditures is in the amount paid for land, buildings, and permanent equipment, while a smaller decrease is shown in the expenditures for leadership. On the other hand, slightly more was spent for upkeep, supplies, and incidentals than in previous years. In regard to the question of expenditures, attention is called in the report to the somewhat limited coverage of recreation activities as the report is primarily a statement of community recreation conducted under leadership, or of major recreation facilities such as golf courses, swimming pools, or bathing beaches, the operation of which requires regular supervision or leadership, and does not cover a great many types of governmental and municipal recreation. The most recent figures on Government expenditures for recreation in cities over 30,000 show for this group alone an estimated expenditure of several times the amount given in this report.

1 Recreation (New York), May 1933, pp. 49-62.

A total of 12,684 separate play areas under leadership was reported, of which 554 were reported as open in 1932 for the first time. The recreation facilities provided, for the cities furnishing the information, include 6,990 outdoor playgrounds, 770 recreation buildings, and 2,052 indoor recreation centers, part of these facilities being provided for colored residents. The total yearly or seasonal attendance of participants and spectators at outdoor playgrounds as reported by 516 cities was 235,632,553, while the attendance at indoor recreation centers in 166 cities was 16,089,831. These figures do not include the millions of persons using the athletic fields, bathing beaches and swimming pools, golf courses, summer camps, and other recreation areas. A very marked increase in attendance at playgrounds over the previous year is shown by the figures, as well as at indoor centers, although there was a decrease in winter-sport participation and in golf, the former being due probably to bad weather conditions in many parts of the country, and the latter to the reduced incomes of usual patrons. The figures for participants, however, are only approximations, as the reporting by different cities is not uniform. The special recreation activities have shown a decided growth in both the variety and number of activities offered by recreation departments.

The sources of support of the community recreation activities and facilities are mainly municipal and county funds, private funds, and fees and charges. In 1932 approximately 88 percent of the total amount for which the source was reported was derived from taxation, while of the remainder about 9 percent was secured from fees and charges and 3 percent from private sources.