WAGE CUT

Evening Star, Issue 20995, 8 January 1932, Page 8

WAGE CUT

POSITION OF SHOP ASSISTANTS PROTEST TO GOVERNMENT The following letter has been forwarded to the Minister of Labour (Hon* A. Hamilton) by the Amalgamated Society of Shop Assistants. " On behalf of the above society, I wish to voice a complaint with Reference to the non-action of the Labour, Department regarding breaches of the,. Shops and Offices Act. When the Arbitration Court made the general order; for a cut in the wages of workers fixed by awards and industrial agreements, it was specifically stated that the court had no power to reduce wages fixed by statute, and, as the wages of shop assistants are fixed by the Shops and Offices Act until the wage of 30s is reached, we are of the opinion that a breach is committed if the said wagesfare reduced. “ As several firms have reduced the said wages the matter was reported to the local department, whose opinion:' agreed with ours. The matter was also referred to the head office at Wellington, and this office also agreed that a - breach had been committed. The head: office informed our agent in Wellington:j that a prosecution would, follow, but we 5 have since had information that no ac-.j tion would be taken. We desire to) know why this decision has been reached and under whose instructions. ‘i Shop assistants in Dunedin have been ’ robbed of thousands of pounds since the illegal reductions have been, made, and we, on behalf of these workers, demand that some action be taken' whereby they receive justice. W., W. Batchelor, secretary.”-