SOLDIERS' PAY

Bay of Plenty Beacon, Volume 4, Issue 137, 4 August 1941, Page 4

SOLDIERS' PAY

DISCUSSION BY FARMERS UNFAIRNESS ALLEGED A lively discussion resulted when, at the of Plenty sub-pro-vincial meeting of the Farmers* Uniton ' held at Edgecumbe ons Thursday, a remit was considjered! which suggested that the Government should raise the rate of pay of soldiers overseas to the average received by the Civil Service. Mr Moffat, of Katikati, in speaking to the remit stated that there were many cases of employees wages being made up to their civil rate while they were overseas. This had again been brought to the notice of the farmers when recently a dairy company had- considered doing likewise as well as a Power Board als» discussing the suggestion. It was felt that if subsidised wages were found for some then they should be found for all. Appeals of Stat#-T"*"* - 4Sjoyees It had then that the rate of soldiers' brought to the level suggested. here the money was to come from was not concerning the individual, and if it was possible for the State to find CI a day for its employees in Ne\* Zealand then it should be able to find the same for the fighting men. He continued that recently a Mag« tstrate had remarked in the Appeal Court that he did not know the policy of the Government when three employees of the Department of Agriculture were before the Board. "Employees of the Department" which is our bane and abhorence —those State servants gelt a good, wage in a nice clean job and are paid a better wage than our men going overseas. We will have chaps who don't want to fight crawling into State jobs. 1 don't ask that wages should be brought down but that the pay of soldiers be lifted up to at least the State servant's rate of pay." Mr J. Mullins stated that the mat* ler was being approached from the wrong angle and would only accentuate the Dominion's difficulties. At present there was a system under which to lift the rate would cause complications, although it was very desirable to do so. Rate. Last War Another speaker suggested that in the last war a soldier received a better wage than the farm worker when clothes and keep were considered. "The clothes and keep were not all that could be desired, perhaps—the hot water service not being all it should have been," he said adding that in this war the farm worker received much better money than the soldier. It was the alteration of the standards whicht was opposed. Mr Poole suggested that the soldier might be getting more money now than the average of the civil service. He pointed out that the private, soldier received £2 9s per week plus his clothes, keep and medical expenses. A voice: You work it out again. Twenty-four hours a day, seven, days i week is what the soldier works. Lead the Way Mr Moffat: When I said Civil Service, I meant Civil Service —from the Commissioners down. And then Vou can take the hours and the socalled "dirt" money in too. He added that someone might get hurt in Hie process, but the majority would benefit. Referring to the cost he said, "Let us show that the Farmers* Union of this district are at least willing to bear their part of the sac Hfice that would be necessary to give these soldiers a reasonably decent remuneration. The chairmanship are making a sacrifice. At the beginning of the war we agreed thsuC we would not press for an increase in the Guaranteed Price and that has so far cost us £10,000,000 —the biggest contribution any section of the comß munity has made as a war effort." It was decided that the remit be forwarded to the Provincial Executive for further consideration.