LABOUR NOTES.

Auckland Star, Volume LXIV, Issue 237, 7 October 1933, Page 18

LABOUR NOTES.

UNION ACTIVITIES.

(By INDUSTRIAL TRAMP.) UNION MEETINGS FOR THE WEEK. Monday, October o.—Furniture Trades' Executive. Thursday, October 12.—Dairy Employees. Saturday, Octobcr 14.—Flourmillers.

DAY LABOUR V. CONTRACT.

This is a perennial question, and usually crops lip in connection with the : work undertaken by any local body ,It has lately cropped tip in conncctior with the remodelling of, and alterations to, tho Victoria Arcade in Queen Street tlio lease of which recently expired, anc came into the possession of the Auck land City Council. When the buildinj was erected over 30 years ago it win distinctly in advance of other building* in tho neighbourhood, but since then th< science of building has made grcastrides, and in order to enhance the value of the property from a letting standpoint the new owners have founc it necessary to undertake great altera tions involving tho shifting of the existing lift well, new verandahs, anc alteration of existing eliop fronts, etc. amounting to upwards of £8000, and tenders were called and accepted, and the work is now under way. There ;iro some organisations wlic consider that this work, being undei [ public ownership, should have been carried out by day labour by the City Council, tli ere by affording work to the largo number of unemployed, in which there are many members of skilled trades who would be able to givj of thci best instead of having to take on picl and shovel work as at present. Bu this is where the difficulty comes in This particular job requires a big plan and efficient supervision over some deli cate and difficult operations, and tli City Council is not in the same pcxsi tion as a contractor in a big way, wli carries a largo building plant am specialises in this class of work. A 1 along the council has conducted it operations in work involving unskillei labour such as road formation, drainag work and land clearing, under the da;

; labour principle, the plant required, sucli L as tools and shelters, being of a simple - character; and supervision of the ; workers has been carried out quite ■ easily, a 6 the men are in mass formai tion, so to speak; but tlio Victoria : Arcade is work of a totally different ■ character, and the contractor assumes all responsibility for getting value for his outlay. If the council had decided to carry out the job by day labour the further responsibilities of calling for tenders for the supply of materials, such as bricks, lime, cement, steel girders, ironmongery, materials for new lift, pipes and electrical work, would entail endless complications and work for the regular council staff; it must, therefore, be admitted that in letting this job iby tender to a contractor, who must take 011 extra labour in addition to his depleted regular staff, and provide his own overseers, the City Council

has acted in .the best interests of the ratepayers as their trustees. EXPLOITING DOMESTICS. Appalling exploitation of servant girls by employers who have capitalised the depression was revealed in a sensational report by the New York State Labour Department.

It declares that there is "overwhelming evidence" that only a minority of housewives are treating their help with any consideration whatever. In the majority of cases investigators report that girls 15 and 16 years old arc compelled to drudge from C.30 in the morning until eleven at night. I have more than a suspicion that a similar condition is not altogether absent from the condition of servant girls in some of our Auckland homes, where "evenings at home" and bridge parties are not uncommon. How can mistresses who move in society hope to retain for any length of time efficient house help where such conditions of service are allowed to obtain ? It is no wonder that the average girl who has to work for her living prefers to do so in factories, where she knows that at five o'clock her time is her own, instead of being in a well-ordered household, where her duties are a training that will stand her in good stead when elie becomes the mistress of her own little home, however humble it may be.

THE RECOVERY ACT. Ths most important matter for discussion those days seems to bo the application of the National Industrial Recovery Act in America. Tho interest taken in this subject is duo to the fact that America has been tlie place where private enterprise nnd private ownership has had freer play than in any other country in modern times. To apply the restrictions which arc contained in tho National Industrial Recovery Act into the economic system of such a country indicates to every thinker on economic problems that Capitalism is surely giving way to a more humane system, particularly when tho same kind of principles are being worked out in other indus- ! trialised countries.

Some of Its Principles. To explain the working of the Act to tho American people, President Boosevelt lias issued a bulletin called the reemployment programme. In this bulletin it states that industrial self-government must be aimed at by industries and trade associations; tliey must increase employment and improve labour conditions, wipe out unfair practices, discipline their members and stabilise operations. The principles which are to operate until a code is approved by the president are as follows: Young persons under sixteen years of age are. not to be employed in manufacturing or mechanical industries. Persons between the ages of fourteen and sixteen may bo employed in other trades for no more than three hours a day between 7 a.m. and 7 p.m., and such work is not to interfere with the hours of day school. The work of clerks and shop assistants must not excecd forty hours a week, an<l stores and offices must not reduce their operations below fifty-two hours a week unless such was in operation before July 1 last. The workers in factories, and mechanical or artisan workers must not bo employed beyond a maximum of thirtyfive hours a week until December 1, 1933. No worker must be employed for more j than eight hours on any one day. The wages for factory and mechanical workers must not be less than fifteen dollars a week in any city of over 500,000 population or in the immediate) trade area of such city, nor less than 14 dollars 50 cents in a city of between 250,000 and 500,000. In towns of less than 2500 population the wages are to be increased by 20 per cent above present i rates, provided that this shall not require ' wages in excess of 12 dollars a week. The minimum rate for factory workers is to be 40 cents per hour unless the minimum in 1320 was below 40 cents.