UNEMPLOYMENT.

Press, Volume LXVIII, Issue 20736, 22 December 1932, Page 7

UNEMPLOYMENT.

CONSTRUCTIVE WORK. I'HE PROBLEM OF FINANCE. 'taess ASSOCIATION T£L£l>JlAJi ) AUCKLAND/ December 21. -The Mayor (Mr G. W. Hutchison), on his return to-day from Wellington, where he discussed with the Unemploy- ! went Board the Auckland City Council's schema to provide constructive work for the unemployed at current wage rates, said:— It seems to me that the problem ias resolved itself into two major considerations, either still more .taxation w i 1 need to be imposed to provide the necessary funds to enable more adequate ra ♦)! *° k 0 P f° r unemployment work, or the Government must g-o to the'eounry for 'an internal loan for the resumption of both national and local public works of an essential nature, the interest and sinking fund to come out > f unemployment taxation." As taxation had reached the limit, he thought the loan proposal should be considered. The resumption of useful work would react for the benefit of the whole community. For this reason he heartily disagreed with the recommendation by the National Economy Commission that future capital works mubt be carried on out of revenue. j CHRISTMAS PAY. RELIEF WAGES REDUCED. Complaining that their "Christmas box" of two weeks' pay had been reduced at short notice, a deputation consisting of 108 relief workers employed by the North Canterbury Hospital Board at the Bottle Lake Hospital waited on the Mayor (Mr 1). G. Sulli- ! van, M.P. • yesterday. It was stated that married men had beeu cut down from 25s a week to l-3s. and single men from 15s to 7s. After verifying the statement from | the Hospital Board, the Mayor told | the men that the Board had been forced to make such a cut owing to "the decreased allocation it had received from the Unemployment Board. He promised to make further representations to the i authorities in Wellington, the Hospital Board being unable to help the men because it had over-spent its funds by some thousands of pounds. The Mayor congratulated the members of the deputation on the restrained way in which they had put their case, and said that should increase public sympathy for them in their almost impossible effort to pay their way. The Unemployment Board paid £.100,000 annually to other Government Departments for work done for the Board; that seemed unreasonable, and was contrary to the declaration made by the Government at the time of the passing of the Unemployment Act. This particular cut seemed an outrageous cruelty. The Mayor (Mr D.-G. Sullivan. M.P.) has received a letter from Miss ii. Ixjvell-Smith thauking him on behalt of the Christchureh Women's Unemployment Committee tor a cheque ot £2O from the Mayor's Distress Fund for distribution among necessitous cases of girls.