HOURS NOT ENOUGH— WHAT CAN YOU DO?

Chronicle (Levin), 1 June 1946, Page 5

HOURS NOT ENOUGH— WHAT CAN YOU DO?

+ what prime minister could tell workers By Telegraph — Press Association WELLINGTON, May 31. ' 'For myself I do not think any hours are sacrosanct," declared the Prime Minister following a reference to the shortage of timber, cement and coal, to a deputation which waited upoii him today to present remits adopted at the Dominion conference of the Retiirned . Services' Association. Mr. Fraser added that if a proper standard of living could not he maintained on a 40-hour week, ht did not see any o^jection to additional hours that would produce it. If 30 hours could do it then he saw no reason why they should not be reduced to that. The question was, what would produce it? , r,. . The remarks by tlie Prime Mini.itgr followed an inquiry by the Doniihioii vice-president of the K.B.A., Mr. C. G. Bell, as t-o what was • being done to' injcrease supplies of tiniber and cement for housing. It had been stated that the shortage of 'cement, which was a bottleneek, was due to the coal position. What was the position so far as working conditions 111 those industrics were concerned? The Prime Minister said he advi'sea the R.S.A. to set up a committee oi trade unionists and other workers to address themselves to these problems. He would be glad to have representations from any such committee. A great many men who went to the war would not go back into the tiniber mills. Tlie sanie applied to the coal miues. The State Forest Service was taking steps to. provide better housing conditions at the mills. Young- men would hesitate to take their young wives to live in shacks around the mills. This problem was being tackled. More coal was being produced in New Zealand now than at any time Hi its history and less imported. There w jt e shipping difficulties in regard to coal and cement. The cement work or. tnnnels had been stopped so that Taranaki and Palmerston North could be assisted with cement. These problems wre being dealt .witli but they were not easy. There was also the problem of cigarettes aud niatches. Young- girls had been ordered into factories during the war but they could not be kept therO" now against their wislies. The question had come up the other day of the shortage of bricks. There were enough 'kilns to produce enormous quantities of bricks. By and large no country had had better from its wotkers than New Zealand had had during the- war. "I would not hesitate to say to workers in- any industry that hours are not sufiicient — what can you do?' ' said the Prime Minister, who added that in some coal rtiines- the men were going back to work on Monday and on "hack" Satufdays'.