CHANGE IN THE HOURS

Evening Post, Volume CXIII, Issue 28, 3 February 1932, Page 8

CHANGE IN THE HOURS

REPLY TO MR/ BUTLER

Commenting on Mr. Butler's: statement in yesterday's "Poßt," Mr. J. I. Goldsmith, chairman of the local Unemployment Committee, said that the action taken in effecting a reduction m the working hours of men employed on relief, works on the various, jobs in the city was done constitutionally. Mr. Butler, he said, was fulljr aware

that a resolution had been placed on the minute book of the Unemployment Committee providing for a reduction in hours in the event of the.allocation: at any time not being sufficient to enable tho committee to employ all those men who came within the confines of the eligible grcfup. No real objection, could be taken by Mr. Butler to the action that was the natural corollary of the committee's resolution, even though Mr. Butler had dissented at the time the resolution was passed, but Mr. Goldsmith said that he found it extremely difficult to find words in which to> express his indignation at that portion;of Mr. Butler's statement which professed to lay the whole blame at the door of "some petty official." In the past he had had occasion to respect Mr., Butler for his fearlessness and outspokenness, but in this instance he had resorted to a form of innuendo which was quite: unworthy of him. Surely Mr. Butler could have had the courage of his convictions and declared openly that the certifying "officer (Mr. Kinsman) was the officer at whose door the responsibility lay for the alteration: of the scale of relief. An. inference such as Mr. Butler made was quite unjustifiable, and, indeed, most reprehensible, as it bore a general implication and left several officers of the Department of Labour open to the accusation of having acted unconstitutionally. Mr. Goldsmith regretted "that Mr. Butler did not show more consideration for these officers, as he felt certain that. Mr. Kinsman, who by the way, is one of .the Department's senior officers in Wellington, would have been quite prepared to accept full responsibility for the change that had been made.

In ansr ease, Mr. Goldsmith stated, the matter of affecting an alteration to enable the committee to provide employment for-all the eligible men had been fully discussed between himself and Mr. Kinsman for several ,<lays prior to the public announcement concerning tho change, and he would further like to add that: it was "only with the greatest reluctance that Mr." Kinsman had finally agreed with him that the committee's resolution should be brought inW operation. Every possible avenue had been explored.by Mr. Kinsman and himself, and it was only when the press of men demanding employment at the bureau became such that it was assuming alarming proportions, that the necessity for . immediately introducing . a -reduced scale of relief became' imperatively'necessary. Mr. Kinsman had rendered yeoman service to the committee, 'of which hei-was secretary, and- was known to the members, asi the. very, last man to act in an arbitrary manner. : ...

Mr.- Goldsmith further stated that the worst feature of .the attack was that as a Public^, servant Mr. Kinsman' was denied the right to publicly defend himself, and Mr.- Butler's action amounted to striking at an officer who could not retaliate. It was for thiß reason that he desired to make Mr. .Kinsman's position in the matter perfectly'clear. '; • '' : - ;,\',:-':']'