A CONTRAST IN WAGES

Hokitika Guardian, 1 September 1928, Page 1

A CONTRAST IN WAGES

LABOUR. DEPARTMENT’S FIGURES. WELLINGTON, Aug. 30. The annual report of the Department of Labour suggests that, with the restored favourable trade balance, thoro will bo a demand for all employable Trade labour. Unemployment for the year ended June last was at its minimum with 1575 registrations in December, and at the peak in June with 3414. Following the precedent of England, an inquiry into all serious cases of unemployment is now in train. Factory workers, numbering 102,622, showed a decrease of 182, but factories increased by 163 to a total of 16,782. The report points out that it lias been urged that to enable New Zealand manufactures to compete with those from abroad and obtain the maximum of efficiency generally, the number of small factories should diminish and the larger works increase. There is no such development, but unemployment may have tended to accentuate the position, many workers who had lost their employment having commenced business themselves in a small way.

It is shown that !X) per cent of disputes under the Conciliation and Arbitration Act last year were .substantially settled by Conciliation Councils. In eight important trades, it is stated that award rates for adult workers are generally exceeded, the trades being bakers and pastrycooks, bootmakers, carpenters and joiners, bricklayers, plasterers, plumbers, furniture trade and waterside workers.

The Apprentice Act has been in operation for four years, and there are I2G committees, representing twentyeight industries. The Secretary of Lqbour is of opinion that, generally speaking, adequate steps are being taken to see that apprentices and employers are carrying out their duties to one another and to their industry. The chief difficulty experienced ip reaching agreement relates to the proportion of apprentices to journeymeij. The report quotes without comment a comparison of award wages in skilled, semi-skilled and unskilled industries, showing that, while a skilled worker's award rate is generally 2s 3d an hour, and he is paid only by the hour, he could ho employed on the wharves at from 2s 4d to 2s 9d ap hour on general cargo or coal, or a horse driver (two horses) at wages i>f £4 Its, without lost time, week of forty-eight hours, with nine holidays on full pay, or a tramway motormap after three years as conductor and inotonnan at £4 16s per forty-eight-hour week, without lost time, with fifteen days’ annual holiday and uniiorni, or a storeman or packer or £4 as and £4 7s Gd without lost time, with statutory holidays and a week’s annuql holiday. The skilled worker’s wage at 2s 3d an hour for a full week was £4 19s hut the report says it is noteworthy that in many of the unskilled or sppnskilled occupations employment is weekly without deduction of lost tune, while in most of the skilled trades it is hourly only.