A Sidelight on Unemployment

Dominion, Volume 25, Issue 232, 27 June 1932, Page 11

A Sidelight on Unemployment

Sir, May I draw attention to an insidious practice which has been £°ins , OTI since our unemployment got acute. Being a guest at a large private hotel, I was told about the practice, and on investigating, found the following to be correct:— I find that a large percentage of the staff are married women, and their husbands, who are on relief work, must stay at the hotel, the wife’s wages, going to pay for the husband’s board, and in. some cases he has to give some of his relief wages up to make up the board money. If the husband does not come and stay at the hotel the wife is dismissed, and someone taken on who will comply with the hotelkeeper’s wishes. I think it»is wrong that anyone should be running a business on these lines, taking advantage of the unemployed ami their dependents, to help keep the hotel full and to get cheap "'abour. I do not know what the law is as regards private hotel* but I do think it »

time the inspector Inquired Into this sort of business. ~ The relief worker’s wife deserves ail credit for going out to help her husband while he is on relief, and these are the ones that need helping—those.that try to heln themselves. But in this case the employer does not give them a chanee to get a home together. A few days ago a single girl in the hotel got notice to leave, but was told she could stop ou it she -it married and brought her husband to the hotel to board. The girl decided to get married. Her husband is also on relief. —I am. etc., .. FAIR PLAY. [Mr. H. O’Malley, secretary of the Wellington Hotel Workers’ Union, to whom the above letter was referred yesterday, made the following statement: —“The letter refers to one hotel only, and is true in every respect. They pay these women their wages, and the women pay them back for the board and lodging of their husbands. There was a married woman working there who was paying hoard and lodging for her single son. M hen the son went to a relief camp the mother was dismissed. The practice is obviously a bad one. They are taking advantage of the depression.”]