Untitled

Hokitika Guardian, 18 May 1932, Page 4

Statistics received by the International Labour Office during the last few months show an almost universal mernaso in unemployment during 1931, writes the Times Geneva correspondent. It is pointed out that the figures on this subject are not comparable as between countries. Some countries give the nmmbor of unemployed in receipt of benefit, others the nuniiiwfi registered. In other countries the unemployed are neither in receipt. of benefit nor registered, and the rtatistics provided show less unemployment that there is. The infr.rmation is obtained from three sources-—unemploy-ment insurance statistics, trade union statistics, and unemployment ex-

change statistics. The latest figures j under these three heads are as follow (the figures for a year ago are given in parentheses):—From nnem-' ployment insurance statistics : Austria, 361,222 (336,989) ; Belgium, 228,286 (115,016); Czecho Slovakia, 146,325 ! (93,476); Denmark, 105,582 (70,961); Germany, 6,041,371 (4,886,925); Great Britain and Northern Ireland, 2,854,- 1 790 (2,662,842) ; Netherlands, 157,933 (81,204). From trade union statistics: Australia, 118,732 (104,952); Canada, 35,206 ( 28,266); Hungary 31,146 (25,583); Sweden, 76,212 (56,273): From unemployment exchange statistics and various estimates: Estonia, 7554 (5675); Finland, 16,144 (3336); France, 278,683 (44,711) ; Irish F’ree ! State, 30,918 (26,167); Italy, 1,015,270 (663,957); Latvia, 21,682 (10,022); New Zealand 46,191 (7596); Norway, 34,636 (28,796); Poland, 325,782 (340,718); Rumania, 49,393 (36,212). In the United States, according to the trade union returns, the percentage of unemployed has gone up from 16.6 at the end of December, 1930, to 21.8 at the end of December, 1931 (the ; latest estimate reported by the American Federation of Labour being 8,300,CQO unemployed. The percentage increase in number of unemployed between the winters of 1930-31 and 193132, according to the statistics, is: France. 523: New Zealand. 508; Latvia, 116; Belgium. 98; Netherlands, 94 ; v Finland, 73; Czecho- Slovakia, 57; Italy, 53; Denmark, 49; Rumania, 36; Sweden. 35; Estonia, 33; Hungary, 30; Canada, 25; Germany, 24; Norwav, 21; Irish Free State, 18; Australia.'l3: Austria. 7; Great Britain, 7, Poland a reduction of 4 per cent.