MINERS DEFENDED

Hauraki Plains Gazette, Volume 53, Issue 32413, 29 March 1944, Page 3

MINERS DEFENDED

STATEMENT BY MR THORN INCREASED PRODUCTION CRITICISM NOT JUSTIFIED 1 “You publish in your edition of . March V last a solution ■ the Thames Sub-Piovmcwi tive of the Farmers’ Unwn cntaal of ; the coal miners, and calling Government to take ‘strong action to see that they are compelled to play their part in the nation s W ‘dfort’ I have no intention of defendino’ stoppages of work by miners or X Other section of the community ■because in the prevalent cmeumstances these are dep orab e, but n the interests of fair play it * desnable to say some things about the coalminers as an offset to the ill-dis-position of some people who make a specialty of condemning them, writes Mr J. Thom, M.P. for Thames in a letter to the Gazette. The letter continues:— “The first thing I wish to say .is that in every year since the beginning of the war the coalminers have increased production. I will add that in each of the war years the coal output has beaten all previous records of production. Prior to the war the record production of coal from the Dominion’s mines took place m 19 when the output was 2;227,799 tons. The production of coal in the war years has been: 1939 .. - 2,342,639 Imo : - 2 ’ 5i6 - fl " - 2,639,507 2,680,041 1943 2 ■- - 2,788,175 Output Per Man Up ' “Not only has total production increased during the war, but with the exception of 1943, the output per man employed in the mines has increased. Here are the figu res: -- 1939 ■■- ■ ■ 1940 ■ - - ■ 1942 -■ -- -■ - - 1943 — —-• 617 “The 1943 output per man is the third highest figure during the whole period from 1932. It was lower than in 1941 and 1942 mainly because nearly 400 inexperienced men were put into the coal-raining industry. The per man production in 1941 and 1942 was by far the highest m the history of coal-mining in New Zealand. “With the production of coal last year 340,000 tons more than it was m the first year of the war, the question is naturally asked as to the reason for the coal shortage. The answer is simple. It is that under the pressure of the war —and this is the case everywhere—the demand for coal has exceeded the increased rate of its production. Higher Consumption “For instance, coal consumption in factories (gas-works, butter and cheese factories, freezing works, lime and cement works, electric supply and sundry industries) in 1938-39 was 782,316 tons; in 1942-43 in was 1,044,G00 tons, or an increase of 262,090 tons. In the year 1936 the railways consumed 417,655 tons; last year the railway consumption of coal ’ was 648,000 tons. Further, there is now a demand of 100,000 tons annually for military camps, hospitals and institutions. “To further complicate matters coal imports from Australia that are needed specially for our gas-works 106,000 tons were imported annually from Australia. In the early part of last year (1943) only 37,000 tons could be imported, and in the second six months of the year, only 3000 tons. So far in the months of 1944 not a ton has -been brought in from Australia. Criticism Dangerous “In face of these facts, to lay all the blame on the miners is ridiculous, and in view of their steadily-increas-ing production, to make them the target for abuse and jnsult is not only unfair but dangerous, seeing that miners are not exactly fools and can easily be provoked. “Remembering events on the coalfields in Australia, U.S.A, and Great Britain, it can be said justly that, comparatively speaking, our miners have a good record. And as it is 1 coal we need’, provocative language should foe avoided; indeed it will pay to recall the very restained language used by Mr Churchill only a few days ago when over 106,000 miners were on strike in Wales, Lancashire and Scotland.”