THE ARBITRATION ACT

Dominion, Volume 21, Issue 116, 14 February 1928, Page 10

THE ARBITRATION ACT

Sir,—Kindly permit me space to comment oil speeches (which I read in This Dominion) made by certain gentlemen' at a conference of the Dominion Farmer?’ Union recently held, and who wish the abolition pf the I.C, and A. Act, to reduce wages and to make pay r meat by results. I am utterly surprised at the statements made by some of these farmers, and I am quite satisfied that they have never given the law? of economics one thought, but look at things from a one-eyed point of view, and now that farming to a good many wage.cutting, agitating farmers is ono big nightmare, their ope main object is to rush straight pt the throats of the wage-earners. I will deal with the two sides of the question. First of all tube the workers’ side of the question. A great many people think that because a worker is getting £4 5s- tq £1 16s. per week he is getting a big wage and can afford to have his wages reduced. Now, this | wage is only actually earned while the ; worker is toiling, not during holidays, j wet weather, sickness, i r other unfore. : seen stoppages. Thus it may be seen that when this wage is covered over tlie period of fifty-two weeks, the actual wage per week runs out to. ft liltjo over three pounds. Out of this little over three pounds per week |s to be paid the weekly rent of from -tl to £1 15s. Then there js food, clothing, bpots, etc,, to.be purchased for himself, wife and family, leaving a surplus balance in cash, nil. How In the name of common-sense can a worker have his earnings reduced without being forced into debt and then the Ba nkruptcy Court ? Now for tlfo farmer’,s side of the quesr fion. Item I—Mad1 —Mad rush in land speculations during war boom, prices double, treble, and even more, than the real value of the land, befog paid, with the result that to-day farmers of tins country ar? paying away in interest alone many thousands of' pounds yearly on mortgages and will continue to do so for many years to come. Item 2—Overlapping of’dairy factories. If larger factories were built ihorq centrally and dozens of the little factories abolished, it would inean a saving pf thousands of pounds yearly to farmers, but at the present time tlieve are small factories all oyer Npw Zealand, dozens within ft few miles of one another, eaefi striving its best to outdo the other for the farmers' cream and thus creating undue overlapping of lorries, entailing a loss to farmers of thousands pf pound? yearly in unnecesr sary expenses, Item 3—Bacon. In tfie Manawatu the farmers are receiving threepence halfpenny to threepence three farthings per pound for their pigs. The same farmers go info the shops and buy bacon, paying from one shilling to one shilling and fivepence per pound for what in the first instance they received such a miserable price. There again a loss to farmers yearly of thousands of pounds which the workers are not getting. Item 4—Fat Stock, Farmers sell fat stock at a miserable price for which butchering firms are selling over the counter at a profit— a few more thousand? Joss yearly fo tlie farmer?. Item s—Balance-sheets of auctioneering firms show profits yearly of thousands of pounds through the sale chiefly of farmers’ products, Still further thousands yearly loss to farmers. I have dealt with five main items and could deal with numerous other items, but this would take up top much space. Befpre I go further I want it to be distinctly understood that the loss to the farmers of thousands of pounds yearly is the actual profit of individual firm? accumulated, after wages have been paid. Now, if every farmer would become a member and form a powerful union, there is nothing io prevent them from owning their own auctioneering company, bacon factories, butchers' shops. They could centralise more in larger and up-to-date dairy factories, and they would find there would be ft saving of hilftdreds of thousands of pounds yearly to themselves. If the farmer? are going to reduce the wages of the workers, whp are the greatest consumers of their produce, then the workers will have to still further curtail the buying of the farmers’ products, and if such is the case then the farmer will be no better off, for he will have to reduce the price of his produce if ho wants to sell. Good wages mean good purchasing power. Now, as to payments by results. J have been a piece-worker for close on three years, foiling hart! and very tired at the end of a day’s work, and yet my average wage covering fifty-two weeks of tlie year is between J;3 and >£4 per week, out of which ’ I have to pay rent, provide food, clothing, boots, etc., for myself, wife and family, leaving nothing as a stand-by in case of sickness, unampioyment, etc. If it comes to payment by results throughout New Zealand, how many elderly men will be thrown, out of employment? There are hundreds of these unfortunate elderly men walking the roads to-day seeking work, and not wanted on account of their age. One elderly man who, by the way, is a splendid ploughman, informed me that ho Went from farm to farm looking for work, and /he first question asked him was, "How old are you?” and when he told them, th o reply Jia got was, "too old.” Many elderly men told me with tears in their eyes they were not wanted,, although there was a vacancy.

The farmer and the worker are the two great sections of the community who are the great wealth producers of the world, and one depends on the other for their livelihood. The farmer depends on the worker, who is the greatest consumer, to buy his products. The worker depends on the farmer for his eatables and clothing, therefore these two sections of the community must unite together in better co-operation and create a better and stronger feeling of friendship, and the only wstv to do this is to bridge the great gulf of misunderstanding, and abolish the antagonism that is so prevalent between the two parties to-day. Only hy doing, that, can we hop? to get anywhere and come to a finality of greater understanding and spirit of greater friendship—l am, etc., EX-FARMER. Shannon, February A