Wiley Blount Rutledge

“ In this case, if the exemption does not apply, the petitioners are within the statute and respondent is liable on their claims.
To escape liability, respondent has the burden of showing the exemption does apply. But to do this it cannot merely show the definition of the Administrator is invalid. That would only leave itself and the petitioning employees subject to the Act's provisions, which require the payment of the claims. Respondent's dilemma therefore is both sharp and real. If the definition is valid, it does not cover these employees and respondent is liable to them. ”

“ Obviously, 'area of production,' in the sense of where the commodity is produced for purposes of commercial marketing, will vary from the whole nation, in the case of the more common grains, fruit crops and root crops, down to a few highly concentrated regions or areas in the case of others more dependent upon special climatic and soil combinations. ”

“ The line not only is pertinent to each of the statute's provisions but, where the contrary is not clearly and unambiguously stated, it is controlling. There can be no assumption that Congress intended employees in one group to be transferred to or treated as being in the other where no such clear mandate can be found.
In determining what Congress intended by the delegation, it is crucial to keep in mind that, whatever decision the Administrator may make and by whatever criteria, the effect of his action must be to put some employees on one side of this line and others on the opposite side. ”

“ In my opinion the Administrator has defined 'area of production' in a valid manner, and therefore the employee petitioners should prevail. But if, as the majority hold, his definition is not valid, then the exemption is not operative, and for that reason the petitioners likewise should prevail. ”

“ And so does a section in a statute. 'Area of production' as used in Section 13 (a) (10) means an exemption, limited to persons performing the specified operations within a producing region, but selected from all so situated by an exercise of the Administrator's judgment in accordance with the statute's prime objects and chief limitations, among which necessarily is the size of the plant. If that is so, I see no good reason for forbidding the Administrator to say so. ”

“ Cotton, grains, root crops, etc., less perishable, may wait longer on the farm, some for months, before these processes become necessary. Some crops are highly concentrated for production in a few regions, such as citrus fruits in Florida, Southern Texas, and Southern California, but are marketed on a nation-wide scale. Others have regional areas of production, like cotton in the South, celery in Michigan, tobacco in the border states and a few northern regions, yet depend on the national market. ”

“ The statute's primary design was to bring industrial workers under its protections and to eliminate as rapidly as possible the substandard conditions of such labor. But this was to be done with an eye also to two other matters: one, that by too rapid advance employment be not curtailed; and, two, that competitive conditions in the affected industries be not unduly disturbed or competitive advantages created. Cf. Section 2.
These purposes were inescapably pertinent to the problems of exemption arising under Section 13 (a) (10) . ”

“ It follows necessarily that the Administrator's power is discretionary and the important questions are to what extent and in what manner may his discretion work. Neither subdivision (a) (10) nor Section 13 as a whole supplies these answers. The section itself does not supply all the standards necessary for definition of the term. At most it affords direction to exempt some but not other employees engaged in the specified activities and that those exempted must be within the 'area of production.' This necessarily includes some region where the commodity is produced. ”

“ The alternative, either to sustain or to hold void the regulation, and fix the rights accordingly, is not only the accepted and established one. It is the only one by which men can know the risks they assume at the time they become subject to them. ”

“ And, it would seem, the preponderance of sentiment in favor of exempting small plants, but not large ones, except in occasional instances where this would be necessary to protect the small farmer, well could be taken as his guiding light. The legislative history, therefore, in so far as it sheds light at all, clearly is not inconsistent with what the Administrator has done, but on the contrary supports it. ”

“ He can run the lines around big towns, but not around big factories. Baltimore could be excluded, but not Martin's bomber plant or one like it, in size and methods, for processing or canning fruits and vegetables. Towns may go out, though surrounded by truck farms, but not commercial canneries. Residences, apparently, must surround the cannery. In short, the Administrator can draw whatever map lines he thinks will achieve the appropriate economic adjustments, except one which leaves out perhaps the biggest cannot factory of all, and no court can interfere. ”

“ It is beyond prediction what the consequences may be, of uncertainty, or hardship, of injustice in deprivation of rights, in windfalls of right to others, in laying on new and wholly unexpected liabilities and in relieving from anticipated ones, if retroactive administrative refashioning becomes the general practice. ”

“ Congress exercised its authority over commerce, 'to correct and as rapidly as practicable to eliminate the conditions above referred to in such industries without substantially curtailing employment or earning power.' Section 2 (a) , (b) , 29 U.S.C.A. § 202 (a, b) . (Emphasis added.)
The broad line between farming and industry runs throughout the Act. [10] It is the statute's basic line of policy between coverage and noncoverage. ”

“ It is one from which there is no escape without exercise of inventive genius beyond the right of either court to apply and which, as applied here, makes the cure worse than the disease.
Respondent's invention, and likewise the Court of Appeal's, was to strike the limitation on the number of employees and apply the remainder of the definition. This but emasculates it. Hence all here, but one, are agreed such liberty cannot be taken with the Administrator's function. This Court's invention however does it equal or greater violence, first, as I think in emasculating it ”

“ Nothing prevents the Administrator from drawing the lines as he thinks best, unless the suggestion of the specially concurring opinion is followed that they must be drawn in regular circles or squares. ”

“ Some legislators were concerned to have the exemption apply whether the work were done in large or small plants; others to limit it to small ones only; and still others to secure it completely for particular crops. Numerous amendments were tendered, but for the most part defeated. It was not until the Conference Committee's report was framed that the problem was solved by referring it to definition by the Administrator. But even proponents of the amendments which were adopted recognized that the problem was one which 'the board * * * would have to decide,' 81 Cong.Rec. ”

“ Department of Labor Release, G.-60, July 24, 1940.↑ Cf. Farm and Ranch Schedules, U.S.C.ensus of Agriculture, 16th Census of the United States, 1940.↑ As the legislative history shows, cf. text infra at notes 13-16, there was fairly general agreement that some part of the work specified in Section 13 (a) (10) should be exempt, whether or not it was done on the farm. But beyond this, a great variety of opinion existed both as to how far the exemption should go and as to the economic basis for it. ”