LABOUR STATISTICS.

Dominion, Volume 2, Issue 414, 25 January 1909, Page 3

LABOUR STATISTICS.

FLUCTUATIONS DURING SEVEN TBAEs! : twelfth abstract of labour statistics issued '" ,By..the British Board ,'of Trade Labour •Dβ- , pa'rtmerit, for', 1906-1907 -contains- many;impor- ■ tant tables, the: chief of these dealing, with the .fluctuations in emploympnt and wages.. Tlius," -taking, 1900 as 'the base/of;'a comparison, and putting the level of employment in that year '■ at 100,: the general downward, trend since.. then is indicated , by-"tho.;following figures:—,, ; ■ '.- isob'.;/..;^::i.;..;/loo;/ ';i9oi' ..:.:..-.L!..^ : 95.9 ' 1901 ......;..........." 99.0 1905 '..:....;......;;:;■:'97.1 1932 .:......;.......;: .-98.2 '■' 1906. .. 1 ...'.'.:..".....,;.'" 98:7- ; 1903 .....:............ 97.5 : '1907 :95:5 ' Oh the same.basis, it appears that the mean of wages ■'between 1900 and the end of 1907 '■ has slightly increased froin 100, including igri-, culture, to 101.68,: and, , excluding agriculture, from 100 to ;■ 101.79. In the building trades the mean;has remained stationary; in coal-mining it, has sunk to 96.25; ill: engineering,' textile, trades, and agriculture, it has risen to respectively, 102.00, 108.89, and 101.25.. ■■■■■"-. .-' A 'return of the average cash/wages of. ordi : nary labourers employed on certain farms in England and Wales shows that the rate of , payment had.risen from 9s. 3Jd. in 1850 to 14s. Gd.,in,1907,' having:been practically stationary: for the previous seven years.'•; In Ireland the , Average rate had risen from ss. IOJd. in 1850 to ',11s.. Oid/last year. TheVcash wages are esclusive: of extra - payments for piece work, hay and com harvests,':overtime,'etc, and , also: of'the value of allowances in. kind. ■'.-' . .'. :/, ' ;.; An .interesting' table, is that concerning, the weekly .earnings','of.'.'railway servants from 1898 to 1907. The number employed in England and ! .Wales in 1907, by'.-IS companies. was 412,804, and - the-average'wages- per head wore 265. ijd., against, 353,785 employed in 1898 at an average wage ,of 255.. lid. :■ In , Scotland; where/46,416 we're; employed, the average wages ■ were -.'sas.sJd.j and in Ireland, ; where 19,470-were em-. : the average wages were 195., B£d./■ . Tho number of: paupers, including vagrants and insane, in 1892, as.compared.with 1906, are. shownas follows:—. . •', V, /:.;. .-'t "-• -/ ; ,/-:■ ■ :'; ■-:■ •■■■'..-'■■ :1892. :/ 1903. England and Wales .:.v , .i. : 758,776; ; 893,316 Scotland ■.;;;'; .....'.- ...91,339 .109,281' Roland;/;:..,.; ■;.://... .../103,604::;,101il27 '■ -.'^The'ratios per, 1000 of "the population , in the' 'same years:are-as follow:—i '-.-",-> / ■. •■ ;/. .-V ' - : > v: !/ ,r -':- ; -,>/:.: ,/ /1892". , 1906.: * .England:and'Wales ; ....' .:. V .;./25;8 ' - ,25.9 ■'■Scotland ■ ...■"...:■ ...'/,... 22,4, ' 23L1' : :Ireland/...y,/: v ./ ;. v : ~./.; ...22.4/ .23.0 ; ~'The rise ]in- the.estimated'.population, since ,; ; 1894 is' shown ; ;as .follows:f-/ ..-■ ../'.//..; ,/; '-.-. ; ///England.. .•,. .::..■:,■-;■:..'' ; : : ' .'■ : and Wales. Scotland." Ireland, Total. 1894-.'1../'30,104,201 -.4,165,608 4,589,260 ' 38,859,06" 1908.. ... 35,348,780; 4,826,587; 4,383,351 44,538,718