UNEMPLOYMENT

Evening Star, Issue 21638, 6 February 1934, Page 10

UNEMPLOYMENT

GROUP ALLOCATIONS The following groups are to commence at 8 a.m. to-morrow: — WORKS DEPARTMENT. 301— Leith Valley road, one-quarter mile above Patmos avenue. 302 Woodhaugh street, at quarry. 303 North road, at Upper Junction School (meet water trough, three-quar-ters mile above tram terminus, at 8 a.m.). ' 305 Ross Creek Reservoir. 306 Somerville street, at Abbotsford road. 307 Dean street, at Taien road. 309 Malvern street, at old saw-mill. 310— Midland street, at sanitary stables. 311— Lindsay road, at Thomson street. 312 Caversham Valley road, at Aberfeldy street. 313 Preston crescent, at Harcourt 322—Leven street, at City road. 325 Green Island aerodrome site (meet Caversham Railway Station, at 7.55 a.m.). 326 Pitcairn street, at sanitary stables. 328—North road, at Upper Junction School (meet water trough, three-quar-ters mile above tram terminus, at 8 a.m.). 338—Neidpath road, at Dairy street. 3,000, 3,001, 3,002, Water of Leith, between Leith street and Union street. RESERVES DEPARTMENT. 265, 294, 314, 333, 512, 710, at Opoho Football Ground. 324, 343, at Tonga Park. 315, 511, 704, at Mornington Football Ground. 318, at the Gardens. MAYOR'S RELIEF ORGANISATION The Advisory Finance Committee of the above organisation has now received the audited accounts of the mayor’s relief fund for the thirteen months ended July 31, 1933, from the honorary auditors (Messrs J. W. Smeaton and Co. and Messrs W. E. C. Reid and Co.), and the statement of receipts and expenditure for that period shows that the money received totalled £9,723 12s sd, made up of the following amounts: —Cash from district depots, outside districts, and camps, £5,542 6s 7d; donations (1932 appeal), sundry donations, “ Come to Dunedin ” week, and art unions, £4,079 10s lOd; interest on deposits, £35 19s; sales of old clothes, £65 16s. As against these, the payments were as follow: —Purchases for depots and including stock in hand, £8,633 11s sd; cash grants to district depots and 1 committees, ‘ £602 6s sd; sales tax, £ll7 17s 7d; office expenses and rent, £156 8s sd; leaving a credit balance of £213 12s sd. PUBLIC MEETING OF PROTEST A public meeting of protest against the conditions of the unemployed, convened and to be presided over by the Mayor of Dunedin, will be held in the Concert Chamber of the Town Hall on Thursday evening. Arrangements have been made for the mayors of surrounding districts to be present to put the case of the different treatment meted out to the districts adjacent to Dunedin. Local bodies, the Otago Labour Representation Committee, the Alliance of Labour, and the unemployed will be represented. RELIEF STRIKE “ FIZZLE " BIGGEST RESPONSE ON WEST COAST [Per United Pkees Association.] GRETMOUTH, February 5. Approximately 300 in the Grey district joined the unemployed strike, the response to the call equalling 95 per cent., including men of Greymouth, Blackball, Cobden, and Brunner, and a proportion of those in the Grey County. The strikers are organising their own relief measures during the stoppage of work. INVERCARGILL, February 5. Relief workers in Southland are continuing their work in normal manner, and are taking no part in the strike. Southland did not participate iii the national strike ballot, and so far as the men are concerned they have no connection with this course of action, though they consider that an improvement in the hoard’s allocations is necessary. ROTORUA, February 5. A stop-work meeting of relief workers was held here this morning to discuss the strike position. It was decided by a large majority that the organisation at Rotorua was too weak to participate in a strike, although it was in sympathy with the protest. It was decided to try to help the Gisborne men financially. , WAIROA, February 5. The strike has not affected Wairoa. Inquiries show that 232 men were allocated work to-day, and all have accepted employment. It is not anticipated that the decision of the New Zealand Executive will be taken seriously in this district. WHITTLED RELIEF PAY ATTACK ON GOVERNMENT, BOARD, AND PRtSS [Pee United Press Association.) STRATFORD. February 6. A strong attack on the Government, the Unemployment Board, and a majority of the New Zealand Press regarding their attitude to unemployment relief was made by the mayor (Mr J. W. M'Millan) at a meeting of the Unemployment Committee, when, a motion was carried protesting against the small payments to relief workers and the general administration of the fund. The Mayor said that no doubt the whittling down of relief pay was attributable to the insane policy of building subsidies and payments to Government departments for so-called services in connection with relief administration. He presumed that the latter was for extra work entailed, but he understood that, in the case of the Postal Department, the officers got no extra pay for the extra work, so why debit the fund? The Government departments should give their services free, the same as local bodies. The Government was backed in the matter by the majority of the Press. Was this because the newspapers received concessions from the Government? “ It would be dreadful to think so, but is the Press bought asd gagged?,’! said Mr; •aMMsStj’**.

Jan, who stated that newspapers did not pay a duty on imported newspaper, while almost everything else was dutiable up to the hilt. A slnall duty on newsprint would produce thousands of pounds. Then the newspapers received substantial concessions in telegraph charges, in addition to which not one word which might he construed as advertising was permitted to be sent out over the wireless—a valuable sop to the Press. “ In spite of the attitude of the Government and a majority of the Press, 1 am satisfied that the bulk of the people are dissatisfied with the administration of the unemployment fund.” LAGK OF CO-OPERATION A COMMITTEE'S COMPLAINT fi*Bß United Press Association,] ASHBURTON, February 6. A complaint of lack of co-operation between the Unemployment Board and the local committee was ventilated at a conference of the latter with the unemployment commissioner, Mr Godfrey. Members complained that the allocations had been cut down without an explanation. The conference resolved that the board should give reasons for its changes in the allocations and generally take the committee more into its confidence. The commissioner, in reply, said he was hopeful of an adjustment of the trouble, the committee having previously expressed its determination not to meet again unless in extraordinary circumstances while the present system continued..