No pay limit P.M.

Press, 15 August 1980, Page 1

No pay limit P.M.

PA Wellington The Government had not set any formal guidelines for wage rises in the present wage round, the Prime Minister (Mr Muldoon) told Parliament yesterday.

He denied Opposition assertions that the Minister of Labour (Mr Bolger) had told the Employers’ Federation that 13 per cent settlements would be acceptable to the Government. There had been reports that Mr Bolger mentioned the ■ figure to the Federation of Labour.

But no guideline was agreed to “of 13 per cent or any other percentage.” “As far as the tripartite talks between the Government, the Federation of Labour and the employers are concerned, it was made perfectly clear that there was no guideline,” Mr Muldoon said. The F.O.L. had assured the Government that the wage round would proceed at a “reasonable level.” “The Government has accepted that assurance,” he said. The Government’s record in industrial relations came under severe attack when Mr Bolger introduced a bill to repeal the Remuneration Act, 1979. The bill honours a commitment made by the Government in wages talks with the F.O.L. and employers earlier this month.

The Opposition shadow Minister of Labour (Mr Burke) said the bill represented a defeat for a Government outmanoeuvred by the F.O.L. “The so-called lurch to the Left at the Federation of Labour conference is now enshrined in National Government policy,” he said.

. The Opposition supported the aim of the bill, offering the Government every assistance in passing it under urgency when it is reported back from the Labour and Education Select Committee.

The accord reached in the tripartite wage talks on August 5 looked after the immediate concerns of the current wage round and paved the way for talks to continue on the wider issues of an overall wages package, Mr Bolger said.

The accord seemed to resolve three concerns — the F.O.L.’s concern about past cost-of-living compen-

sation, the Government’s concern about the level of the current wage round, and the F.O.L.’s concern about the Remuneration Act.

“The task confronting the F.O.L. is to see that unions do not jeopardise the accord, which includes the on-going' talks,” Mr Bolger said. He reminded Parliament that the accord reached in the tripartite talks included a sentence saying that the parties recognised that, the Government had a responsiiblity to .act where necessary in the interests of the economy.

“In no shape or form is the Government going to Xvalk away from the responsibility.” Mr Muldoon described

the repealing of the bill as “one side of a deal.” “The other side of the deal is that this year’s wage round will be reasonable.”

Referring to the part of the accord which allows the F.O.L. to take a cost of living case to the Arbitration Court, Mr Muldoon repeated that he did not believe the F.O.L.’s case, that, wages had fallen behind prices, stood up.

Since the Government had been in office wages had matched prices. But because the F.O.L. did not accept this, the Government had agreed to a special cost-of-living hearing before the Arbitration Court, he said. The case would be heard early next year.