UNEMPLOYMENT

Press, Volume LXXI, Issue 21377, 21 January 1935, Page 9

UNEMPLOYMENT

GRIEVANCES OF RELIEF WORKERS - ; PEPUTATION INTERVIEWED BY MAYOR More than 100 relief,' workers gathered outside the City Council chambers on Saturday morning, some with a grievance that they had not been treated with the same consideration as others of their .class in the granting of relief and others with toe complaint that they had not been fairly treated by the Waimakariri River Trust, which employed them on 4ask work. The views of the men were placed before the Mayor, Mr D.- G. Sullivan, M.P., who agreed to allow the Waimakariri River Trust employees a special additional ration in the event of no arrangement being made with the trust for payment of wages that morning. Mtt Sullivan ralso authorised the issue of rations to the other men so that they should be treated in the same way asothers who' had received help from the Central Relief Depot About 80 men, it is said, are affected by the Biver Trust's refusal to pay wages on Friday. It was stated by one of the men that one afternoon recently, when it began -to rain, the men on task work left the job, as the ganger was about half a mile away, and went home. At the same time the day labourers, of whom there were about a dozen, left, the job. Their" action meant that they stopped work three-quarters of an h(sr earlier than they should. Nothing was said about the incident then, but, it is stated, when the task workers went for their pay on Friday they were, told that they would have to work an extra day on Monday before payment would b e made. The day labourers, however,, had been paid on Friday without demur. Those on task work had not received any wages since December 19. Makirig a statement about the men's claims, Mr Sullivan said that it had been represented to him that half of the relief workers had received help from the Metropolitan Belief Association and half had not He recognised, he said, that one could not make a distinction between the one and the other, and he had accordingly made a small additional sum available to Mr A. B. Macintosh, who is in charge of the Central Relief Depot to enable him to treat those who had not re-ceived-help Jn the same way as those who had.

"It was also represented to me that the men employed by the Wairoakartrfc River Trust had had no wages since December 19," said Mr Sullivan, "and owing to the dispute between the trust and the men they had inadequate wages to see them over the week-end. I have accordingly authorised a special additional ration for the Waimakariri men in the event of no arrangement being made with the River Trust to pay out this morning."

A MASS MEETING DEPUTATION TO WAIT ON PRIME MINISTER "That this mass meeting of relief workers, held under the auspices of the Canterbury Unemployed Workers' Association, endorses the proposal of an increase of 10s weekly all round in relief workers' wages without working any extra time, and that it instructs the deputation to place this demand before the Prime Minister," was passed unanimously at a mass meeting of unemployed in Latimer square yesterday afternoon. The chairman was Mr J. J. Porter, and the speakers were Messrs H. Macdonald, C. Cole, E. W. Braithwaite, and Cr. A- E. Armstrong. The deputation which will wait on the Prime Minister at the United Service Hotel at 4 p.m. to-day, will be introduced by Mr H. Holland, M.P. The deputation at present consists of Messrs J. Young, C. Cole, E. W. Braithwaite, and S. Fournier v There may be some additions later. "-- The speakers at the meeting yesterday criticised generally the amount of money that was being spent on decorations for the tour of the Dominion of his Royal Highness the Duke of Gloucester. Mr Foiirnier mentioned also thjat there would'be a gathering

of unemployed at Sandilands to-day < when the Duke of Gloucester laid the foundation stone. MAYOR EXPLAINS HIS • ABSENCE THREE DEPUTATIONS FROM RELIEF WORKERS Three deputations from relief [workers which approached the Mayor, Mr D. G. Sullivan, MP., last week failed to interview aim, and Mr Sullivan was criticised .because he was not present to receive the deputations. Oil (Saturday Mr Sullivan issued a statement explaining . the circumstances, denying that he "had avoided* or refused to meet the deputations. - "In no single case was I notified of the coming of the deputations," Mr Sullivan said. "It is true that • last Wednesday morning, after I had gone with my wife into the country, where there was no telephone, and had arranged to meet her at 4 pjn. at the place where I left her, I was approached at 10.30 by Mr Cole, who is president of the Unemployed Workers' Association. Mr Cole asked me if I could meet a deputation at 4.15 that day, and I explained to him that that was but I told him that if he commuracated next morning I would notify thim when the deputation could be received. . ;■ "That was the only communication, of any kind I received about the deputations," Mr Sullivan went on. . "On Thursday I did not leave Christchurch until 1050, and Tip to that time I had received no communication from the Unemployed • Workers' Association about a deputation. Yesterday I was in the office until 2 pjn., and before I left I asked: the Town Clerk if there was any more information about deputations from t»e unemployed. I was assured that there had been no fur-, , ther representations, and that the matter was settled, I left at 3 p.m. td go out, of town. , j - "It will thus be seen that the deputations have come without any intimation to me except that of this morning, when I was advised by telephone. Mr Sullivan, went on; to discuss statements by some of the men that he had expressed himself as being opposed to .the granting of any additional relief. There was no title of truth in such- statements, be said. The arrangement he made with the Metropolitan Belief Association before he left for Australia was thatthe association should itake full control of relief in the city, bat he made a proviso that he should be allowed to appoint a ton. of auditors who would report to him. ■'••■ "No such instruction* and no statements suchas are imputed to me "were made by me," declared Mr Sulhyan«T wish to take this opportunity of sincerely thanking the Deputy-Mayor, assistance given during my foir nation of my attitude-said Mr SuUivan in conclusion. "I am very' muca distressed that he has not been treated with more courtesy."