FINDING WORK:

Auckland Star, Volume LXIX, Issue 138, 14 June 1938, Page 6

FINDING WORK:

Once again we have an instance of the Hon, R. Semple acting- contrary to the avowed policy of his Government and also issuing a misleading statement, as shown by your report on the lltli inst. of 3)is speech at The Government has asked local bodies to find as much work as possible for the unemployed,, but when the Wellington City Council wants an exhibition ground it lias to prepare it with the Minister's much exalted machines, thus depriving quite a number of men of jobs. And then he takes credit for having saved the council £5000. Admittedly he has saved the council this money, but my contention is that the £000 stated is not the true cost of the work when the matter of who actually pays for it is disregarded. Xow, sir, the men who would have done the job must either have turned to sustenance or gone back on to it, this merely according to their status when the Minister's imported machinery came along to displace them. That being so, I maintain that the sustenance paid to these men for the duration of the job had they been doing it must be added to the actual cost stated, namely, £600. before the true figure for the clearing of the ground is reached. From this it will readily be seen that the real saving must have been very small indeed, and therefore the credit to the Minister must be correspondingly reduced. F.W.