RELIEF WORKS

Greymouth Evening Star, 13 February 1929, Page 10

RELIEF WORKS

NO SLACKING PERMITTED. WELLINGTON, February 11. That practically all the relief work under the Public Works Department was arranged on the co-operative contracts system, and that relief jobs should be regarded only as a stop-gap, were points emphasised by the Minister for Public Works (Hon. Mr Ransom) to-day, in reference to statements made at the meeting of the executive of the New Zealand Farmers’ Union recently, that the payment of full rates of pay to men on relief works was enticing men to join the ranks of the unemployed.

Mr Ransom pointed out that the position was not by any means as had been stated at the conference. It was a fact that standard rates of pay were now paid on relief jobs under his Department, but practically all the work was arranged on the co-operative contract system, the prices per yard for material handled being based on the standard rate of 14s per day. Only a very small proportion of the work was done by day wages. Under the system in force in the Department, which was really the piecework system, a man’s earnings depended entirely on his own efforts. The prices per yard were so arranged that a good man could earn good wages for a good day’s work. Mr Ransom further stated that in the few instances where men were engaged on straight-out day wages the work was very closely supervised, and it was only those men who rendered honest service who were selected for re-employment when the job on which they were engaged reached completion. From what he had seen he was satisfied that on the works under his Department’s control slacking was not tolerated. Under the co-operative contract system it was in a man’s own interest to labour industriously, and the closer supervision of the day wages jobs kept those works well up to the mark.

“While we are prepared to pay standard rates of pay for a reasonable day’s work,” the Minister added, “the men are encouraged to seek private employment as soon as possible, since the Department cannot be expected to employ men on relief work for lengthy periods. The relief jobs should only be regarded as a stop-gap until such time as the men can obtain employment at their usual occupations.”