OVERHAUL COMING.

Auckland Star, Volume LX, Issue 233, 2 October 1929, Page 10

OVERHAUL COMING.

»• THE LABOUR DEPARTMENT. r "LOST ITS PUNCH." t ' I MINISTER'S REPLY TO MEMBERS' s CHARGES. s „ * i (By Telegraph.—Parliamentary Reporter.) 5 ' WELLINGTON, this day. That an investigation of the Labour . Department is overdue, and that it will i be welcomed by most of its officers, was ' a statement made by Mr. M. J. Savage . (Auckland West) in the House of Re- :' presentatives last night. He assured the Minister of Labour that the officers were getting shots fired at them which they did not deserve, and he could promise him, if an inquiry were hold, he would get evidence which would astound him. The Minister should take the matter up seriously. Mr. McKecn (Wellington East) supported this' indictment, stating that the methods of the Head Office in dealing with breaches of awards was very unsatisfactory. He quoted, as an instance, a Christchurcli case where, he said, a woman cook was employed in an hotel lat £2 weekly, when the award rate was j £2 10/, and her employer forged the time and wages book. This was reported to the Inspector of Factories, who, in the usual course, had to submit particulars to the head office. They came back with an instruction not to prosecute, as it appeared to be a family quarrel. How,ever, the woman got a solicitor to prosecute, so glaring was the breach of the award, and judgment was given her for ' £14 18/6. He certainly agreed with the request for an investigation. Mr. Sullivan (Avon) declared that the Labour Department had lost its vision, punch, and capacity to se*ve. This was in marked contrast with the courage shown when Mr. Tregear was secretary. Ministers seemed to regard the Department as simply "part of the machine." There were rumours in regard to the trouble in Wellington over promotion and flagrant breaches of discipline in the Labour Department. These things-were not secret, but were widely discussed by trade unionists. There was just reason for the Minister taking a strong stand over this Department.

The Hon. W. A. Veitch, Minister of Labour, undertook to look i* l *** «.'ny complaint of which specific details were submitted. Some time ago he came to the conclusion that it was necessary to Reorganise some Labour laws and also the Department to a considerable extent, but he did not arrive at that conclusion for reasons given by the members. He was convinced that the head of the Department was a conscientious officer, who had done his best to hold the balanced scale of justice between the employer and the worker amid complicated laws. His reason for requiring reorganisation was that economic conditions had changed, because New Zealand was emerging into a new era of development of its secondary industries. He must defend his officers against any accusation of impropriety in connection with its administration.