REWARDS FOR ENTERPRISE

Ashburton Guardian, Volume 70, Issue 105, 16 February 1950, Page 6

REWARDS FOR ENTERPRISE

COMMENT BY MR. DOWNER

DISINCLINATION TO TAKE RESPONSIBLITY

(P.A.) WELLINGTON, Feb. 15. What he described as a hew and not reassuring factor in New Zealand life was discussed by Mr A. F. Downer, president of the Professional Engineers’ Association of New Zealand, at its animal meeting in Wellington this evening. A report of Mr Downer’s speech was supplied to the press.

There was a marked disinclination on the part of the average man to take responsibility because, it was argued, why run risks or make extra exertion when there was an assured economic minimum, said Mr Downer. New Zealand made a great start when it was colonised by settlers prepared to carve out their destiny and accept full responsibility for their decisions and actions. How would they look on a society which attempted to regulate effort and its results?

“Responsibility has lost its .true status of recent years because employing authorities have not conceded an adequate margin for skill and directive competence,” he said. “We see this demonstrated by the difficulty experienced in finding enough men prepared to exercise initiative by taking positions involving foremanship. . The average man has his guaranteed minimum. It is argued by many, why jump out of this well-regulated sphere to take one’s place among those who have to do the thinking; the planning, and run the risks of failure? What, they ask, is the extra reward, what is the public recognition for all this extra worry? The difference between the man who drifts along with the tide and the man who is prepared to set an independent course,. it is argued, and quite, reasonably, is not worth the worry.” The readiness with which an engineer accepted-responsibility in the management of men and effective, economic design and the use of materials should be the gauge of his worth to the community and should be recognised in the financial reward’ for the exercise of skill and enterprise, said Mr Downer.