WHAT IS A LIVING WAGE?

Dominion, Volume 6, Issue 1725, 16 April 1913, Page 8

WHAT IS A LIVING WAGE?

: $ SYDNEY JUDGE'S VIEW. "I was expressly asked to consider, and, if possible, lix a living wage," said Mr. Justice Heydon at the Industrial Arbitration Court iu Sydney on April 7, when delivering judgment in the employers' appeal against the Soap and Candle-makers' .Employees'.Award.- Objection was. taken, chiefly, to tho granting of a wage of Bs. a day to the general workers, and it was contended by the appellants that the work done was not worth more than a living wage, Bs. a day being too high. The employers also objected oij other grounds. "I have given a good deal of consideration to the question," pursued his Honour, "and have come to the conclusion that I havo not enough material to enable me to answer it. No doubt evidence is continually being called bef6ro the boards to show that the cost of living has gone up by percentages which are not always said to be large, though thev do not all agree. But the evidence is neither full enough, detailed enough, nor free from bias. The employers appear seldom to give any.evidence. In this very case, though they invite me to fix a living wage,- they give no evidence to assist mo in doing so. I admit that there are difficulties in their way; they cannot easily get hold of workers' budgets, but their silence is a circumstance in favour of thero being some increase, and so far I feel no doubt. The great difficulty is as to its extent. We are now, it seems to me, back to the position in which we were when_ I first entered on this jurisdiction, and, in July, 1905, laid down the principle that 'ovary worker, however humble, should receive enough to enable him to leadi a human life, fo marry and bring up a family, and maintain them ana himself with, at any rate, some small degree of comfort." "

His Honour referred to the fact that two years later Mr. Justice Higgius had fixed the living wage at £'1 2*: per week, at that timo considered high. He had never raised that, minimum, though he had admitted that the cost of living had increased. In October, 1!U1, Mr. ActingJustice Kcholes had fixed the wage for "skilled labourers of a slight degreo" at' .£2 ss. In his latest judgment, Mr. Justice Higgin.-?, in the tramway case, had allowed Bs. a day to horse dray drivers and other labourers," but: was silent as to the living wage.

"Turning all .these considerations over in my mind," continued his Honour, come to the conclusion that I ought not to intcrfero witli this award as to il< lowest rate of wpges, except perhaps as to tho men doing boys' work. . . Tho employers gave me no help in the way of evidence. My impression certainly is'that Bs. is somewhat high l as a bare living wage, but the general work in these factories was not in mv opinion of the must unskilled and easy kino, and I could not sco that the board was wrong in making some allowance for that. In this respect the award must remain undisturbed."