HOURLY WAGE RATE

Hawke's Bay Herald-Tribune, Issue 54, 19 March 1937, Page 5

HOURLY WAGE RATE

i— Press Association.)

Intermittent Workers' Plight POSSIBLE SOLUTION

(By Telegraph

WELLINGTON, aLst night. The plight of intermittent worker,--whose rates of pay do not enable then to earn the baslc wage was the subject of comment to-day by the' Minister oi Labour, the Hon. H. T. Armstrong, who suggested that the diffieulty xnight be overcome if an hourly basis of remn neration, similar to that applying to waterside workers, were fixed. "Eepresentations have Deen made to me, from time to time, from ali parts of the Dominion," he said, "coneerning the earnings of intermit tent workers, particularly builders and other classes of labouxers. The figures? supplied to me show that the averagt weekly earnings of these workers art considerably less than the basic wage of £3 16/- a week, the low rate pf ear^-> ings being due to tlie loso of time on account of wet weather, the lack of continuity of employment and other causes. "It waa the intention of the Legis> lature when the Industrial Conciliation and Arbitration Amendment Act 1936 was enacted that the basic rate of wages for adult male workers should be such rate as would be suffieient to enable the reeipient to mamtaln a wife and three children in a lair and reasonable standard of comlort. It was thought at the time tnat an hourly basie rate would have been fixed which would have Ead regard to the earning power of intermittent workers. HoweVer, the only basie wage fixed was a weekly one, possibly because no representations were made to the court for the fixation of any other basic wage than a weekly one. Power is contained in the Act for the general order to be amended not less than every six montbs and it 'will, therefore, shortly be possible for the workers in question to ask the court to deelare an hourly basic wage. "The waterside workers, who are paid on an hourly basis, have always reeeived a considerably higher hourly rate than the average unskilled worker on account of intermittency of employment and it appears to me that there is no reason why other workers engaged in irregular employment should not receive Bimilar consideration.