Strong call for wage, price curbs to continue

Press, 18 March 1983, Page 1

Strong call for wage, price curbs to continue

PA Wellington Farmers, manufacturers, retailers, employers, and business leaders have joined forces to urge that restraints continue beyond the scheduled June 21 end to the wage and price freeze.

After a meeting representing all these groups, the president of the New Zealand Chambers of Commerce, Mr Allan Williams, said that it was imperative for all groups, including the Government, to recognise the need for restraint. Mr Williams said that representatives of the groups believed the Government should examine the position of lower-income earners and, if necessary, offer some financial relief through the taxation system. Trade unions are pushing for a $2O a week wage rise. The Employers’ Federation has said that if this were granted it would cost New Zealand $1 billion and lead to further redundancies and higher prices. These claims were yesterday described as extremist by the president of the Public Service Association, Mr Colin Hicks. He reiterated the argument put forward by the Federation of Labour and the Combined State Unions in pursuit of the claim.

“The facts are that people are being laid off because spending by workers is not keeping up with prices, stocks are rising, and for-

ward orders are falling.” said Mr Hicks. Mr Williams said the over-all effect of the freeze had been good, but the process of adjustment must be allowed to continue for some time yet. “Only when the adjustment process is complete can we look forward to a soundly-based economic recovery,” he said.

Presidents and executive directors of Federated Fanners, the New Zealand Chambers of Commerce, the Employers’ Federation, the Manufacturers’ Federation, and the Retailers’ Federation attended the meeting, Mr Williams said.

Earlier yesterday, the Prime Minister, Mr Muldoon, said that very moderate, if any, wage increases were expected after the scheduled end of the freeze. He said that retailers’ representatives had informed him they and their staff preferred the freeze to continue beyond the planned 12 months (See page 3). The F.O.L. president, Mr W. J. Knox, last evening accused the Employers’ Federation of attempting to harpoon deliberations of the transitional tripartite wage-

fixing committee. Mr Knox said he was angry and dismayed at comments made by the Employers’ Federation executive director, Mr J. W. Rowe, on Wednesday concerning the F.0.L.-Combined State Union $2O across-the-board interim wage claim.

Mr Rowe said the implementation of such a claim would cost employers $1 billion annually. “The statement appears to be a deliberate attempt to break up the tripartite committee concerned with the transitional wage freeze arrangement,” Mr Knox said.

He called on Mr Muldoon to recognise publicly that the F.O.L. was playing its part in seeing that the wage talks continued. “Mr Rowe’s statements place in doubt whether the Employers’ Federation is fully committed to these talks,” he said. Commenting on Mr Rowe’s assertion that a $1 billion wage increase would result in increased prices and unemployment Mr Knox said, “The wage-price freeze has been in effect for the past eight months and not only have prices risen but there has also been a dramatic rise in the number of workers unemployed and made redundant during that time.” Mr Knox said that if the talks involving the transitional tripartite committee broke up (its first meeting is scheduled to be held in Wellington next Friday) Mr Rowe would have to be held responsible by making such negative comments. He accused Employers’ Federation representatives of lobbying members of Parliament in an attempt to discredit the $2O claim.

Mr Knox said his organisation was prepared to go along with the transitional talks in a serious attempt to reach agreement on different aspects of wages policy, including a $2O interim across-the-board increase. The increase was badly needed by working families in New Zealand. Mr Rowe said last evening that he found it incredible the F.O.L. should accuse employers of frustrating wage talks while trade unionists had engaged in a premeditated series of stopwork meetings and strikes over the wage-fixing issues.

“While this is going on, employers have little option but to argue against the F.0.L.-C.S.U. claims,” Mr Rowe said.

Employers were committed to making the wage talks a success, but it was not very encouraging when some unions persisted with industrial action, Mr Rowe said.