RENTS AND WAGES.

Hokitika Guardian, 6 February 1924, Page 2

RENTS AND WAGES.

THE ALLOWANCE MADE. [by TELEGRAPH —PER PRESS ASSOCIATION.] DUNEDIN. February 5. Ai tlie Arbitration Court this morning, Mr Justice Fraser stated that the Court had received an application from Mr Evans, Secretary of the Otago I.alioin Council, asking for information rejrjirtlinjr the* rout statistics «>/ tho Dominion. His Honour said the Court had been willing to give the information some time ago. when another body asked for it, hut it had put its request in .such a manlier that the Court could not give it. The Labour had tt.ske.l for the amount in sterling allowed by the Court for housing costs nr tents in its basic wage for the following periods; April. 1919; May. 1920; March. 1922; September. 1922; March, 1923; and in the last pronouncement of October 20. 1923: and also, wlint would be the amount of Lite rent allowe! in the cost-of-living ligates for July, 1921. In tlie course of it- piouounceilicnt. the Court stated that it did not allow in July 191 I. nor has it since allowed. any definite weekly sum lor rent, or housing cost, in fixing the wage of the minimum grade of labourers. The movement of rents had received full consideration and had been fully allowed for v lien wages had. beer, increased or tedured. .11;;: first erd of living legixlo.ton pas.-of! New Zealand, v.the NyHe:-, and

the Statute L."v Ant: v:d:::c”t. A”. IMS. When the Act ’ ’me into fere, the Court took a.> tho basis ot its calculi! t ion the estimated average minimum wage at that time, of Is 9d per hour. Jt did not work on tho basis of the unskilled labourers’ minimum wage, of any other specific minimum wage, but on an average of the minimum wages generally. The percentage increases and decreases in the cost of living all through had been measured in wages. On tlie same basis, nWier increases in the minimum rates of wages payable under awards from time to time had been granted in nearly every industry independently altogether of tho statutory cost of living adjustments, so Hint the minimum rates now payable approximate generally to the equivalent in purchasing power of those current in 1914, and in many eases considerably exceed that equivalent. The Court’s estimate of the distribution of domestic expenditure under ihe group headings of loud, rent, iuel, and light, clothing ami footwear, and miscellaneous commodities and services. has also been based on an average arrived at by dissecting a nttm-l,-i- of domestic budgets collected in 1911. from which it was ascertained tha* rent accounted for 20.31 per cent, of the expenditure of the average family “We do not know, and have no means of knowing, exactly- wlmt percentage of weekly expenditure of the minimum grade of unskilled labourer was accounted for by rent in 1911. in 19M, or »t any subsequent time. We know that budgets showed that the average rent for workers of all grades was 20.31. per cent, of the domestic expenditure: The percentage increases in rent- have been fully taken into account by the Court. So far as the minimum wage labourer is concerned, rent increases have been more than fully taken into account. for he lias hml tin- advantage of an extra li) per cent, on so much of liis actual expenditure on rent in exceeded 20.31 percent, of his total expenditure.