Greymouth Evening Star. AND BRUNNERTON ADVOCATE. TUESDAY, DECEMBER 14th, 1920. A VITAL PROBLEM.

Greymouth Evening Star, 14 December 1920, Page 4

Greymouth Evening Star. AND BRUNNERTON ADVOCATE. TUESDAY, DECEMBER 14th, 1920. A VITAL PROBLEM.

ALE sections of the population are Vli~a_lly'.interested in the problem of 111c:1'easing‘_t11e output of coal which was discussed by/she Presi(_lellt of the. COlll Uil.le Uwners’ Associat‘io~ll (Mr WV. R.eeCe.)eill an a»dcll'es.s delivered at.'l:l_le 11111111111 nle.etillg of that body at‘ \Vellillg'ton on Friday a11(1.11-ublislxed by ‘us last evening. Vvage-ea_l'nelfs in pal'ticlllar o~ugllt. i to_l'eallse that 1110 present decline in, the output of'Coa.l, as. it contilllles, o-Inatic:'llly o.‘llttillgf doW11«' real -Wages in all ind_us’tl'ies, and is lxeiwily illtellsifyillg- the dallg*el" of :1" more ol*:lesLs sel'ious- spre-.ld of _u_llelllploynlellt . I‘v]le-111.. the; full econolllic leli’fec'i's of ' tllev_'wal2.:ll'eu felt, as. tll‘ey7Allalve 11.ot’yeAt: been felt; in 1 1111s’ _ ('olllltl‘y.‘2‘-‘"011 ‘the o.t'h,el'_lla.lld, -.1 sllVbs__tzllltiu.l illcrea'se-‘ [.lll ' the’ output of ' _qoal:.- wjQ_ll_ldl7loWel' ,woll*l;illg"'.co'sts 111_*;111a11y'_5 jlldlls-‘ 1:1-iesf pnd the-,g‘enei‘alNCllost 05f liv]'.ll,Q‘,‘ and ‘so’ wéolll<l.ltend é:lt«nll§'ce. to g I::.li.sje..l:e3.l»wages 111 fill iudills‘tl7ie3 1 111111 ‘to ‘lfl."él'tA BNI ’Cilll9s_ :111d 1111-elllplol’Sfllient.-_A }i?llllet]l_i;ll;:‘«;Vfo*§?l3;".a>hoilt,EVtllé ‘lle‘ceE£- .- .;.*.a .m I’

eiiective machinery for the settle=- 1 ment of dispute-s, but What is ' actually needed——doubly needed now that the ])om-inion 1s inotving 1 into less favourable economic con-‘ ditions thanit has experienced for years past.—-is a. practical inclination on the part of both workers‘ and employers to concentrate 0-n_ the real pl'o7blelns of production. VVe may apply 11I11‘eSe1'Ved1y~ toour own case an obsewatioii made recently by an Australian. writer ill reference. to industl'ial conditions in the Commonwealth: VVc spend too much time in discussing how the things which are in being shall be distributed, and not nearly enough in considering how they are to lie added to in accordance with the pressing needs of theday, and replaced when consumed. It is, of course, right that systeinatic measures should beitaken’ to-, ensure a fair distribution of the product of industry, but eternal wl'allgli.llg over the process of dis-. tribution side by side with neglect of measures that inight easily be taken to increase the product,’ and so increase the share of each party to the distribution, is an exhibition of folly and incompe-tellce. The bitterness that marks industrial relatio-nships is fully explained by the fact that instead of co-operating intelligently to increase the. "volume of produced wealth, employers and \vol'l:el's too often waste tiln“'e- and energy ill Wl‘-angliiig over the division of a stationary or'declining output. Any group of men discussing the divisizm of 21 “treasure which I 1. 1 1 I 1 I __,_.,

melted I-Iwa,\' before theireyes would naturally fall illto disagreement, and this is almost the position to which employers and workers here and elsewhere are reduced as n.result of their failure to concentratei unit-edly, asltheir joint interests demand, on the vital problem of increasing production. These truths are nowhere better exemplified than in the present state of the coal industry. A diminisliing output of coal means in the first place that for Want of an amicable undel'stallding with their employers, miners are cutting down their own prosperity. At the same time, however, thisretluctioii in the supplies of an essential commodity imposes an increasing‘ handicap, on practically all other industries, and, besides bringing unemployment into prospect, reduces the purchasing‘ power of Wages ;>;ellel‘ally. Talilllg‘ as a ,9;uirle the figures of coal-produc-tion for tlle,ten months to- the end of October, the output from the mines of the Dominion this year will be only 63 per cent. of the output in 1914. Looking‘ only at I___l' _--.-,1--..;:,... -‘~1\'::1 mnans n

local production, this means a sllorta,<re- of considerably more than 800,000 tons of coal as com-" pa:red with 1014, but this does not cover all the g'round. In1po1‘»tations of coal i11«1914 amounted to 518,000 tons, and this, added to the local production, made up a. ,9;ross supply of nearly 2,800,000 tons. Allowing; for at reduced supply of bunker coal in the Dominioll——in itself a factor which raises transport. charges and the cost of living'—abo~ut a million and a quarter tons of coal would have had to be imported this year to make the: same supplies available. for local use as’ in 1914. The effect of the reduction in local output becomes apparent when it. is considered that ‘imported coal costs at least half as much again as the output of our own mines, and sometimes a. great deal more. Detail results of the shortage and of the heavy outlay on imported coal are seen and felt on all sides in burtlenso-me charges for transport, and ‘for municipal services, and in excessive. Working costs in many industries which, of course, are reflected in prices to the consumer. Some industries, of which cement manufacture, with its vital bearing on housing, is a conspicuous example, have been brought almost to a standstill by -‘vl-\r\ nlll'\lv+n 11-1) -1111] 111.011 TH"l(‘.(-¥

the shortage and mgn price 01. ; coal. These. are niatters of com- . . mon l:no~wledg‘e upon which it is. I i hardly necessary-' to enlarge, but it 1 . certainly ought to be emphasised i that no more. hopeful step could = be taken towards bettering industrial conditions generally and pre- ' paring for the unfavoul'able« 3 economic conditions in prospect: than in securill__q' an increased outputvof coal. It is on the question of production that practical f efforts must be concentrated, and 1 * due heed ought to be given in this j ; connection to the hopeful experi- 3 ment lately ill-aug‘ul'at‘ed in Great ‘ J Britain. The essential feature. of 7 the settlement ‘which followed the '.- recent nlinel's’ strike in the United « Kingdont is the payn_lent.o~f _a. E bonus in conside'l'ation of, and. ]n'opo‘l'tioncd to, increased output. ; TheAla.test I‘e}l;ol'ted figures of out- ‘ nut sllg‘g'est that this alTallg'elnent is'sllotwing- admirable i'es_ults, and i that already good pl'og;l‘ess is'be-" in g: made Vton7al"ds I'e-establi,shing' the pl'e.-war rate of‘ output. More A time is needed for-a conclusivei test, but available figures imply that the new pl*ineip~le introduced ’ is effectively sel'\7'ing~«its intended purpose in stinl'ula.ting* output. ‘ ' This is the: more no-tewortlly since- ' ]n*evions Wage-increases ,rrranted' in recent years to the British - 111l1191'S were followed in each case * * by a I‘eduction of the- output per. 7 man. ’l‘his is true of the foul‘ 4 wage incl'eases graiitecl from 1917 ] onward to ‘May, 1920. - The ex-». tent of the decline is shown in the followin table, in ,V\'lll'C‘ll the fig'lll'es of output are reduced to a 1 common aritlinletical ratio :‘ V . " ' 3 Output - 4 - per man. 31m-ch, 1915 Sépt.,*l9l7 (first war wage) June, 1918 (second war-wage) l\[al:cllp,il9l9 (Sankey Aw:u'd) -l\l‘a_\_', 1920 (20 per cent. incfease) ' 77.4 ‘ If_al_l- effective» ~l'elnetly . for this 1111110118‘ i’:vlll.ll‘lg'—O-fii in pi'oduct.ion . ‘has been_. and in Great Bl‘ita"in, its adoption‘, 01' I*athel" 'a’da'ptat-ion, in tllisfl’countl‘y ought. to. be well, xvorth ‘cOflSl(leTil}.g', The circiim-.» stances coal In'oclllction_.in'l\l_eWA ‘

markedly distinguished from t_llose_tll-at obtain 111 the United limgdoni, notably» in the great scope that exists in this country ‘ tor the de-velopment of new worK- 0 ings. There 1s an evident need at’ present of increasing the number reducing t-he factors of absenteeism and slack working which partly account for the reduction In output. The determination of an output bonus thus raises more colnplicated_issues in this country than in the United Kingdom; but the principle commends itself as sound. The Wages ofminers, as matters stand, ‘compare very - favourably with those of Workers in other industries, but so much depends on all increased supply of coal that ‘it might prove Well worth While to obtain’ it by ofi'er‘ing a further inducement fairly adjusted to increasing -output. 1“NEW ZEALAND EXPECTS.” -THE last day for receiving voluntary subscriptions to the £6,000,000 Discllarged ‘Soldiers"_ Settlement Loan is Thursday, December 16th, and the attention of those persons who have not as yet heard ' the call is drawn to this fact. The ’ object of the loan should be sufii-N, ' cient to ensure it being fully sub- ’ scribed,‘ and‘ there will surely be I’ few people with so short memories : that they will forget their obliga- . tions to the boys who fought New ‘ Zealand’s battle in the recent '5 Great War. But for those gallant '~ lads, and their brothels’-In-a.l'ms,. E New Zealand to-day would in all

probability he a. German colony, and German methods of floating * loans would hardly take the form ' of voluntary subscriptions in at conquered country. ‘I“1'O111‘(: the standpoint of duty alone, there- . fore, everyone should do- his or her part in ensuring‘. the success of the present loan, and thereby ex-V pressiiig in some measure the gratitude of the people to the returned soldiers of New Zealand.’_Voluntary subscriptions to the loan bear interest at the rate of Engper cent. If necessary, the provisions of the Discharged Soldiers’ Settlement Act, 1920, Will‘ be applied to» those who fail to" reco-gnise theirobligations. Under . these provisions persons. can be compelled to contribute to 'the. loan an amount equal’ to the _V'e{u'ly aV'el‘ag“e of the. land-taxiand income-tax paid or payable by them for the three: years ended on _ the 31st March, 1920. All moneys invested under the compulsory clauses of the Act will bear interest at the rate of 3 per cent. only. Subscribers ‘to. previous loans are not relieved from obliga- ’ tion to subscribe to the present‘

loan. The voluntary subscrlpiions close on Thursday, and it is up to everyo-nev to do their duty to the I'etul‘ned men, to: Whom New Zealand owes a great and lasting debt. ‘’ ‘ ' " ’»"