UNEMPLOYMENT FACTORS

Evening Star, Issue 20943, 6 November 1931, Page 2

UNEMPLOYMENT FACTORS

RELIEF WORKERS’ ORGANISATION ADDRESSES BY LABOUR CANDIDATES Addresses by Messrs I'’. Jones and P. Noilson, Labour candidates for Dunedin South and Dunedin Central, were given at tho general meeting of the _Unemployed Workers’ Association, which was well attended, in the Burns Hall last night. My W. Ballantyne presided. .Referring to tho General Election at Home, Mr Neilson said that the antiLabour Party and the Press in New Zealand would try to prove there was an analogy between the position in Britain and that in the dominion. The positions, however, were not analogous. Britain was a country which could not feed itself, whereas New Zealand could feed itself and was practically a self-contained community. ’That was the basic difference between tho two countries, and so far as New Zealand wits concerned ho wanted to know, under the circumstances, why they had over 50,000 unemployed in the dominion. The reason was that tho fundamental principle of society to-day was based on private ownership of the land, and that tho machinery qf production, distribution, and exchange was for private profit. The electors would have to decide whether they were in favour of

tho present system of doing things or whether they were going to vote for Labour.

Mr F. Jones said that they had to admit that the Labour votes recorded in the British elections had gone back. He would like to point out, however, that 11,879,088 votes had been recorded to fill 470 seats, whereas 6,617,108 Labour votes .had been recorded to fill 51 seats. He maintained that on a numerical representation, on a proper system of voting, Labour should hav.e obtained 180 seats. - The Coates and Forbes Governments had both failed. There were thousands of men, women, and-boys and girls out of work in New Zealand to-day, and there were no’ prospects for them. What had the Government, to offer to relievo the position? Mr Coates had said that they were going to place 20,000 men on the land, but he asked if men could work in the country and keep their wives and families in the town on £1 per week. The speaker criticised the proposal. There was more sickness in New Zealand today than in tho past, and this was brought about because the people were not being properly fed or cared for. The Government njas spending thousands of pounds on hospitals and gaou instead of looking after the unemployed workers of the dominion. He thought that was wrong. Mr Jones went on to criticise the Government for remitting taxation to an amount of £320,000, and said that if the electors put in a party that had their wellbeing at heart then that party would try to achieve what they desired. It, however, they wanted’ tho • financial interests to govern the country, then they would vote for the opposite side. The secretary (Mr.F, O’Rorke) submitted a programme which had been formulated by the committee. The matters in the programme related to payment on the job, successive days of work, the cutting off of gas and electric services of those unemployed who could not pay their accounts, wages to bo paid per week, organised mass demonstrations, if required, etc. The programme was adopted. Mr V. Cuff gave information regarding the present system orf payment on the job. If the council would pay the men on the job again, as soon as the men finished their week’s work, ho thought the men -would do their part. Mr E. W. Braithwaite dealt with the question of unemployed having their gas and electric, services cut off if they could not pay their accounts. He and Mr Cuff had called on Mr G. A. Lewin and Mr H. H. Henderson at the Town Hall. They had told Mr Lewin that there were many families trying to exist on £1 8s lid per week, and ho thought under these circumstances that gas and electric services should not bo cut off. Mr Lewin had said he would undertake that until they waited ns a deputation on the City Council no gas or electric services would be cut off. They would see therefore that they had achieved something. They had. nut cut off gas or electric services in Christchurch, and there was no reason why they should do so in Dunedin.

The Chairman stressed strongly the need of successive days of work. Ho held that there should bo no standdown week for the Christmas period. He spoke forcefully on the conditions and rates of pay on various relief works, and said he hoped the statement was not true that the men at Wharc Flat were working for Is 3d per hour, six days a week. This meant that the men wore working for a wage of £3 per week. 'A member of the audience said that on the Whnre Flat work the men wero being paid, a progress payment of 9s (Id per day. The actual rate was 12s 6d per day.