MEMORANDUM TO THE AUTHORITIES

REGARDING THE DECLINE OF TAILORING DUE TO EXCESSIVE TAXES

At the beginning of the current year, various craft guilds in Upper Silesia prompted the Chamber of Crafts in Katowice to convene a conference of Upper Silesian craft representatives on April 10, 1931, to establish average profitability rates for individual professions. At this conference, rates were set, including, for tailors making garments from their own material, a rate of 12%, and for tailors making garments from external material and engaged in repairs, a rate of 10%. In the opinion of the undersigned Association, even these rates are relatively too high, due to the fact that the conference did not consider that, given the economic downturn, tailors incur significant losses because some possess old stock of materials purchased at higher prices, which they must now price lower, often at a loss. Furthermore, the conference did not account for the fact that, due to current reductions and unemployment, many clients who took garments on credit are not paying installments, and collecting these debts is entirely impossible due to the complete impoverishment of the recipients. In such circumstances, tailors are currently in a critical situation. It can be quite confidently asserted that no craft profession—in the opinion of the undersigned Association—is in as difficult an economic situation as tailoring. This profession has ceased to be profitable, and as is generally known, tailors actually earn nothing, and often contribute to their craft, depleting their existing assets. To support our assertion, we present below how work in the tailoring profession is calculated:

costs of premises, electricity, heating, and from these amounts, they must pay all social contributions, as well as income and industrial tax. As for repairs, it should be noted that tailoring establishments employing hired labor do not accept repairs, as these are generally not profitable. Repairs are only undertaken by tailors who work alone without hired help, and only have 1 or 2 apprentices. The earnings of such very small tailors are very meager and barely sufficient for the meager upkeep of the tailor and his family. It should be noted here that in recent years, the tailoring profession in Upper Silesia has been steadily impoverishing, and tailors are losing assets year by year, assets originating from pre-war times, inheritance, or acquired through the wife’s property. A striking example of such impoverishment is the fact that the deceased tailor Wojciech Słowiński, who owned a workshop in Katowice, at ul. Św. Jana 9, left no assets after his death, but rather debts amounting to approximately 27,000 zł. It should be noted that this tailoring workshop employed about 6 journeymen during the owner’s lifetime, enjoyed an excellent reputation, had good clientele, and seemed to be one of the profitable tailoring establishments in Katowice. Another example is tailor Zolkiewicz in Katowice, ul. Mickiewicza, whose entire workshop equipment, as well as all his stock of goods, were sold for taxes, leading him to complete ruin. Similarly, tailor Wilkus in Katowice, at ul. Dyrekcyjna, was completely ruined, as the Tax Office sold all his assets for overdue taxes. Tailor Respondek Jakób in Wielkie Hajduki, ul. Krakowska, who employed about 12 journeymen, went bankrupt mainly because his clients, having taken garments on installments, stopped paying due to job loss, and his liabilities exceeded his assets by approximately 30,000 zł.

a) for a suit made from own (domestic) material, average tailoring establishments, i.e., employing 1-3 journeymen, charge — depending on the locality — from 150 to 230 zł. The material for such a suit costs, depending on quality and whether the material is fashionable or not — from 70-120 zł. Accessories — depending on the same factors, from 20-32 zł.

workmanship for a jacket — „ 20 — 36 „ vest — „ 5 — 8 „ trousers — „ 6 — 12 „

For the hatmaker and milliner W. from Król. Huta, over 1000 hats and caps were sold at auction for an overdue tax of 300 zł. They were sold at 10 pieces for 5 zł, and despite this, the required amount was not reached, the taxpayer was completely ruined, and 4 employees were deprived of work. Is this not a loss for the State?

This does not include the costs associated with alterations, which increase labor costs by 5-8 zł per suit. Furthermore, the tailor’s own work, which involves cutting, fitting, marking, and customer service, has not been factored in. As the above calculation shows, when making the cheapest suit, a tailor earns a gross amount of 24 zł, while for the most expensive suit, which is relevant for small and medium-sized businesses, a tailor earns 14 zł. Naturally, these amounts may vary by a few złoty, plus or minus, depending on the price of material, accessories, and whether the suit requires subsequent alterations. In many cases, when alterations are numerous, tailors even have to contribute to the suit. This calculation also does not account for the decrease in material prices, which, with certain stock levels, increases own costs, nor does it account for losses incurred from making suits on credit, an endeavor where, in the current economic climate, one often loses money because the client has lost their job and cannot pay. From the aforementioned earnings, the tailor must still cover

Many such cases could be enumerated in every city, and we believe they are not unknown to the Tax Authorities. Despite such an economic situation prevailing among local tailors, the Financial Department of the Silesian Voivodeship Office issued a circular on August 26, 1931, L. O. II. 20214/3/31, listing average profitability, which stated that tailoring establishments making garments from their own material earn 20%, while tailors making garments from external material earn 30%. This circular is proof that the persons appointed to determine this profitability either are completely unaware of the economic situation prevailing among tailors, or they deliberately misinform the Tax Authorities. Regarding this latter fact, it should be noted that according to § 187 of the executive regulation to the income tax law, the last paragraph explicitly states that criminal proceedings are initiated not only in the event of a punishable act to the detriment of the State Treasury, but also