SYSTEM A FAILURE.

Auckland Star, Volume LXV, Issue 122, 25 May 1934, Page 10

SYSTEM A FAILURE.

UNEMPLOYED RELIEF.

WHAT CAN REPLACE IT?

MINISTER INVITES DISCUSSION

A round-table conference to go into various proposals to improve the unemployment position- will be held this evening at the suggestion of the Minister of Employment, the Hon. A. Hamilton. With the Minister there will be present Mr. W. Bromley, a member of the Unemployment Board, and the sub-committee appointed by the conference held some time ago and called by the Mayor of Auckland. Mr. G. W. Hutchison. Yesterday the Minister was waited upon by a deputation of Mayors, comprising Mr. G. W. Hutchison, Mayor of Auckland, Mr. T. McNab, Mayor of Mount Eden, Mi'. R. Ferner, Mayor of Mount Albert, and Mr. J. Guiniven, < Mayor of Takapuna. Also present were Mr. T. Bloodwortli and Mr. W. Slaughter, officer in charge of unemployment in Auckland.

These proceedings were not open to the Press, but at a second deputation representing the sub-committee of the conference of local bodies and other sections of the community, including the unemployed, the pressmen were admitted.

Mr. W. Holdsworth said the committee were anxious to impress upon the Unemployment Board that they believed the board had done its best with the money at its disposal, but the committee as citizens were firmly convinced that the system, after four years' trial, had failed. "It looks as though the system is to become a permanency, and we are afra;d its continuance is going to react upon the whole civic life of the Dominion," said Mr. Holdsworth. Rebuild Slum Areas ? "To-day we have some thousands of men who have been the backbone of the city thrown 11 pon relief, and it casts a reflection upon us when we allow these men to wear cast-off clothing while the warehouses are packed from basement to ceiling with goods the firms are anxious to sell. The time has arrived when something definite must be done to get these men back into their proper channels. We have our slum areas. Would it not be possible to rebuild these areas with decent homes? The position is desperate, and desperate measures must be taken. We arc behind you in anything you do to improve the position, but we are definite that the present system has outlived its usefulness, and allowing it to continue is only breaking the morale of the men. Men inave been exceedingly patient for four years, and are now reaching breakingpoint. Some people may think certain of the proposals we are putting forth are unorthodox — well, the orthodox system has failed, and surely we can try something else at least once." "Home Conditions Worse." The Rev. W. W. Averill, speaking as one in close touch with the women's and children's side of unemployment, said that the conflitions in many homes had become worse since the beginning of the unemployment schemes. Had the measure been a temporary one perhaps it would have sufficed, but now that it had continued four years there were homes which had been denuded of furniture. Unhappiness in homes was being' created. If the Government allowed the present position to continue it would be shelving its responsibilities and throwing them upon charitable institutions. Funds were short and charitable institutions were hard put to it to assist the needy cases.

It was proposed, said Mr. Averill, to force men into camps by putting them 011 sustenance and paying them an amount upon which they could not possibly provide lodgings and a reasonable standard of living. If camp -work was necessary then the men should be paid an adequate rate of pay, as in the old days, when men went to camps to work. Provision should also be made to enable them to take their wives and children. Such a camp was tried at Oringi and was proving a success. The present scheme had failed and other methods should be tried in order that the hideous nightmare of unemployment and destitution should be removed.

A Constructive Policy. "Some little time ago the! Unemployment Board said, 'The onus is on you, go hack and put up a constructive policy,'said Mr. F. E. Lark, president of the Auckland Provincial Unemployed Association. "Well, .we have now put up a policy for your consideration. I wish publicly to refute the statement that has gone forth that there are vacancies in the Public Works camps, and I suggest that a sympathetic committee be set up to act as a buffer between the Unemployment Board or its officers and the men. The citizens of Auckland do not know the condition? under which some of our men are living to-day. We ask you to do your job as Minister of Employment and find work for the men at? standard rates of pay." Mr. E. Gill, a member of the committee, traversed the sustenance payments being made, and said that men were being thrown into an impossible position when expected to maintain a wife and family on such amounts. During the war the nation could find money, and in a crisis such a's was being experienced at present similar measures were necessary. Loan Possibility. The Minister in reply said the board appreciated the efforts made to try to better the position of the unemployed, and it realised the men needed the fullest sympathy. "It looks a bit as though democracy is on trial, and a bit. as though some of our unemployment schemes are on" trial, too," said the Minister. It was thought at first that the schemes would be only tentative, but they now promised to continue for some time yet. "We are here to meet you and discuss the position to see if we can do something to better the position of the unemployed," he said. "We have to deal with a large fund, but I indicated the other day that the fund was being heavily taxed. I would suggest that Mr. Bromley and myself meet your committee to-morrow night and have a round-table conference. We are anxious to discuss details of your proposals. We get a lot of suggestions put to us arid our job is' to see if we can fit them in with the funds available. After all, \ts may have to find further funds. Wc maydecide to ask the Government to find us some loan, money to assist us with come of our proDiems. What we want to do is stimulate local bodies to get men on to full-time work at standard rates of pay.. It has been said No. 5 scheme is a failure. There is a good deal of truth in that, and nearly half of -tlio I men have gone off No. 5 scheme." The deputation ajrrced that a roundtable conference with the Minister and Mr. Bromley be hqld this evening to ; discuss the various proposals put forth by the committee.