THE BASIS OF SOCIAL SECURITY

Dominion, Volume 32, Issue 157, 29 March 1939, Page 8

THE BASIS OF SOCIAL SECURITY

Perhaps the most noteworthy point about the new Social Security building, which was formally opened with appropriate Ministerial eclat on Monday, was the speed with which it was erected. Under normal New Zealand conditions and industrial restrictions, the task would have been a sheer impossibility. There had to be compromises and concessions to enable human effort to be given a clear right of way. That the obstacles were overcome, and the building erected in New Zealand record time, is a compliment to all concerned, even allowing for the fact that it was designed and built as a temporary structure. A further point to be noted is the saving in costs to the community effected by cutting down the time. To quote Mr. James Fletcher, speaking for the contractors, “When the final figures have been arrived at, it will prove to be one of the cheapest office buildings that had been erected to my knowledge, considering the finish of the whole and the accessories attached.”

It a similar spirit of team-work could be infused into industry in general, the all-round benefits accruing to the community would no doubt be surprising and satisfying. The saying that time is money expresses a truism to which the Social Security building presents impressive testimony. That it should be left for a State emergency to provide a practical demonstration is a somewhat depressing thought. Is it surprising, therefore, that the Minister of Marine, Mr. Fraser, should have found it necessary at the luncheon on the new liner Dominion Monarch on Monday to emphasize that adequate living standards could not be achieved “unless everybody in the country, whether in workshop, farm or office, were willing to give of his best.”

Here, on the one hand, we have in the Social Security building an example of what can be done if men will put out their best effort; on the other, go-slow and hold-ups on the waterfront penalizing the whole community, and a member of the Government publicly declaring that “when the means of transport is at hand to convey the country’s produce it is a betrayal for anybody not to give of his best and to do his best.” It is essential that these things should be taken to heart, and applied in every field of our industrial activity, because on no other basis can social security survive, and a high standard ot living be maintained.