THE BASIC WAGE

Evening Star, Issue 18050, 18 August 1922, Page 4

THE BASIC WAGE

DISCUSSED BY AUSTRALIAN EMPLOYERS. NECESSITY FOR REVISION. Press Association—By Telegraph—Copyright. Australian and N.Z. Press Association. BRISBANE, August 17. (Received August 18, at 9.15 a.m.) At a conference of tho Australian Employers’ Council William Brooks, of Sydney, in an address on tho basic wage, said tho amount paid in wages throughout the Commonwealth os a direct result of the assumed increase in tiro cost of maintaining the worker, his wife, and dependent children, showed an increase between the years 1914 and 1920 of a hundred millions sterling per annum. Of this, forty millions was paid to unmarried adult males, and a further twelve millions to married adults without children. This proved that not only had tho wages of such workers been unwarrantably inflated, hut an miwarran table burden had been placed on tho shoulders of men with largo families. Ho urged the need' for basing tho living wage upon tho cost of maintaining a husband and wife only, with an additional provision for recording tho number of dependent children. \ The conference adopted resolutions in favor of fixing the basic wage along the above lines, instead of the present twoohildren standard; condemning tire reduction of tho forty-eight to a forty-four hours’ week; favoring an amendment of the .Arbitration Act restricting its function to specified industries; and providing for declaration of the basic wage for periods not exceeding six months.—A, and N.Z. Cable.