WORK DEMANDED.

Press, Volume LXVI, Issue 20102, 4 December 1930, Page 9

WORK DEMANDED.

j ♦ j UNEMPLOYED MEN'S j RESOLUTION. I - J ACTION BY GOVERNOR-GENERAL i URGED.

Afier holding meetings in Victoria square and Cathedral square a large body of the unemployed, composed chiefly of single men, congregated in front of the City Council Chambers in Manchester street about noon yesterday, where they were again addressed. As the result of a deputation to Mr E. C. Bailey, officer in. charge of the Labour Department in Christchurch, which took place earlier in the day, Mr Bailey agreed that the requests for the re-instatement of the system of advising nu-n registered with the Department that work was available for them, and that a list of the men given work should be displayed daily for the information of the unemployed, were reasonable. When the Mayor (Mr J. K. Archer) arrived at the City Council Chambers, he was interviewed by representatives of the unemployed, one of them being Mr S. Fournier. They asked tho Mayor to communicate with his Excellency the Governor-General, and request him to decree, by Order-in-Council, that all unemployed men should be given wage labour immediately and retained in it until they were granted a sustenance allowance under the Unemployment Act. The section of the Act relied upon eets out that the Governor-General may_ by Order-in-Council, prescribe such other matters as may be necessary to give full effect to the provisions of the Act. The Mayor said that he would write a personal letter to Lord Bledisloe and ask him to use his influence to have more done for the relief of unemployment.

The result of the interview was communicated by Mr Fournier from the steps at the entrance to the City Couneil Chambers to the waiting crowd. The following motion was proposed: "That this meeting of Christchurch unemployed demands that the ActingPrime Minister take immediate steps, if not to give us work, then full maintenance."

"Leave out tho word 'demands,' and ask him," suggested one of the men. "No; we will demand," said a more truculent man in the crowd. "Rot," said tho man who made the suggestion. The motion was carried, and plans were made to visit the offices of local bodies to ask for work. "Work for Single Men. The following telegram was received yesterday afternoon by Mr D. G. Sullivan, M.P., in reply to his telegram dispatched on Monday after the demonstration at the City Council Chambers with reference to the provision of work for single unemployed men: —"In reply to your telegram, the chairman of the Board is making urgent representations to the Minister for Public Works, urging that provision be made for suitable work for unemployed in your district.— Frascr. Unemployed Commissioner."

HARBOUR BOARD'S GRANT. The Lyttelton Harbour Board decided, at its meeting yesterday, to contribute £l5O towards the Unemployment Fund.

The chairman (Mr IT. T. Armstrong, M.P.) said that the Board had .no work that it could put in hand for the unemployed. The Engineer was doing his best to keep as many men on the paysheet as possible. It would bo cheaper for the Board to contribute direct to the Unemployment Fund than to put on more men. Ho suggested a vote ot" £l5O. The last grant made by the Board was £IOO. Lyttelton could be given £SO, and Christchurch £IOO. The Unemployment Board would subsidise wages up to 14s a day. Captain H. Monro said that shipping people were suffering considerably, and the position could not continue indefinitely. • The chairman moved that the grant be £l5O, and Mr F. E. Sutton seconded the motion, which was carried. Mr H. Holland, M.P., gave notice of motion to move at the next meeting that the Engineer should report on tho possibility of constructing a boat harbour outside the present harbour. It would provido work for another 20 or 30 men, he remarked.

DEPUTATION AT RANGIORA. At the present time Rangiora, like other places, has its full complement of unemployed men. A deputation consisting of twelve unemployed waited on the Mayor afc the Rangiora Borough Council Chambers yesterday morning. Mr C. W. Tyler, chairman of the Works Committee, Was also present. The Mayor (Mr C. S. Ayers) expressed his regret at the circumstances calling for tho meeting, but if men could not get work they were doing right in approaching the Council, who would place their circumstances before the public. Speaking on behalf of the deputation Mr G. Sinclair said that, as things were getting so bad, they thought it advisable to place their case before the Mayor or the Council. They were really "up against it." There wa*; no work to be found. Mr G. Walls, another member of the deputation, supported the previous speaker. He said they had delayed coming before the Council as long as possible, but work Was not to be had, and they were approaching the Council asking that something might be done to relieve their distress. They were not there to demand work, but only asked that something might be done to tide them over the present bad spell. Replying to The deputation the Mayor said he was very sympathetic, and would do whit was possible to get work for them. The Council had applied to the Public Works Department, Christchurch, asking for a subsidy on an amount they intended to spend on some street tarring, but the amount of labour required was not large enough to claim a subsidy, and the request had been turned down. However, there was a little work in making a firo area at Maria Andrew Park, and some necessary street work, which the Council had applied for a 'subsidy on, and as soon as this was sanctioned some men would be put on. H© advised every unemployed man to register through the Government bureau and also to place their names with the Council. Councillor Tyler congratulated the men in approaching the Council in a pioper manner and on the spirit in Which they had come, liie Council's hands were, however, tied. Finance was the trouble. The Council had not tbo money to spend. Certainly there was work to be done, but it meant monov, and they had to consider the ratepayers. On most of the jobs the fo.'t of material was •/■■■eater than the lfnK..ur inquired, and therefore the subsidy Ti-as -small. If nil unemployed rejroterrwl ij ivoul I 1/0 a lonpr v;;iv to st. 1 > nn;tli"n the Council's hands when ofnomi elixir ;>n!icai ion for a subsidy w.trk ! ?iorn the Df .irtment. Cr. • Vl °" su" ' Jed i!i-a iV.v should tnrm " ' ; 11V [|., -i.c*. 1 ' l ' lk -' "!' retiree collection-.

which he thought would be well responded to. The Mayor said the suggestions were good. He promised to place them before the Council 011 Friday evening. The Mayor thanked the deputation for coming to him and placing their position before him, and said that he would do all he could to push the application for a subsidy so that some works might be gone 011 with immediately. Mr Sinclair thanked the Mayor and town clerk for the Way they had been received and the good hearing which had been given them.