Sharing the Burden

Dominion, Volume 24, Issue 50, 22 November 1930, Page 13

Sharing the Burden

Sir, —In your leader of Tuesday you quote Mr. Coates in order to prove that sacrifice on the part of the community is necessary in order to overcome the present economic depression. You then <r o on to say that while the farmers and capitalists have made the necessary sacrifice, Labour has made none. . I beg to correct you on this point, because Labour has sacrificed more than any other class. In my own case. I have been out of work since July, and have thus sacrificed all my savings, aud also a good slice of my future, as I am now in debt. My experience is that of thousands at the present time, and so it seems to me that the worker is more than carrying his share of the. burden. ... I intend to assert my God-given right to the necessities'of life. lam a firm believer in the two great economic truths, namely: (1) Every man is entitled to a share of the Ssentials of production; (2) every man is entitled to the full fruits of his labour. Both Mr. Coates and yourself neglected to state the benefits that would accrue to the worker in return for his sacrifice. I am anxious to know, because having sacrificed all on the altar of Mammon, I desire guidance as to what to. do next. 1 ® tC ” ' H. J. EGAN

Ohakune, November 19 [Mr. Egan appears to overlook the fact that in the leader to which he refers and in comment on previous and subsequent occasions, we have argued that artificially high wages are a direct cause of unemployment because they add to the cost of production, and make it difficult to sell at competitive prices, thus decreasing the demand for labour. Mr. Egan s unfortunate' personal experience goes to prove our contention. In the article of which he speaks there occur these sentences: “Labour, the third agent in production, has not yet been seriously affected, although the prevalence of unemployment is a sign that the day of reckoning is at hand. The Arbitration Court can fix wages, but it cannot make jobs. Mr, Egan’s case seems to be an. illustration of that point. Perhaps he will agree to our conclusion: “It is unjust and intolerable that certain sections of the community should feel the pinch while others dependent on them go along as well or better than before. Such an unbalanced condition cannot persist. If it is not corrected, then it will correct itself, but with much more pain and travail. It will be much better if the readjustment is made-voluntarily, and much more, reasonable.” In other words, if everyone took a little less there would be enough to go round. At present some are getting a large slice of the national cake and some none, at all—in short, they are unemployed.] ’■ - "■ ' ■