WAGES QUESTIONS

Grey River Argus, 5 October 1934, Page 7

WAGES QUESTIONS

LOCAL BODIES Support Improvement At its meeting last evening the Grey Countv Council received from the Greyinuuth Unemployed Workers’ Movement a copy of a letter sent to the I'm iiiphymenc Board by the organisation pr testing against the cut of 2s <»d per week imposed on single and nmrried unemployed men, without dependents, and requesting that the Council support the protest. The C’-erk (Mr Al. Keating) said that that cut had been one of the mat. ter brought before the Unemp’oyment Board members on their revemt visit to Grevmouth.

Cr Ryall: They are only asking the si.ppirt of The Council, and I move that we support the protest. The motion was seconded by Cr Blair ami carried.

The Greymouth Borough Council also received at last night’s meeting a copy of the same re ohition. The Mayor said the a’location for the district had n t been reduced, Lut certain single men. and with one dependent had thei r races of pay reduced by 2s fid a week. This money had been given to other unemployed workers with more dependents. It was inequitable as the men could hardly live, on the pay they had been getting. It was unfortunate tha* single man only got 7s 6d a day for one day each week, and he considered they should get the same rate as the married men for this one day, namely IDs. It was decided to support the protest to the Government. and also ito request that pay for single men be brought up to 10s per day. ALEXANDER TERRACE RATES. At last night’s meeting the Borough U -uncil adopted a Finance Committee resolution that an amount not exceeding £5O be allocated from t>he £2OO relief expenditure provided fcr in the estimates, to subsidise wages of such employed under No. 5 Scheme as may be required to work in the excavation of the cutting in A’exander Terrace. The subsidy will operate as from Monday. September 17. The Mayor (Mr J. W. Greensla.de) recalled that a deputation had waited upon tie Council regarding the matter. It was dirty woik and hard on clothes. While no provision had been made on the estima es for subsidising this work, there had been £2OO al’ocated for the Mayor’s •elief of distress fund. HOSPITAL SALARIES. GOVERNMENT “CUTS’’ POLICY.

The Grey County Council which en, tered a protest against the action in reducing the Grey Hospital subsidy because of the Board not cutting down salaries, received from the Minister of Finance. Air J. G. Contes, the following reply at last evening’s meeting:—“I am in receipt of v our letter of the 13th imtant. notifying that the Grey County Council wish to lodge a protest against ths'reduction of rate of subsidy to the Grey Hospital Board. In reply, I have to inform you that the Estimates of the Grey Hospital Board showed that the present scale of salaries paid by the Beard is, generally speaking, the highest in the Dominion. the Board not having applied either the first or second “cuts”, and in some respects the Grey Hospital was more liberal!-.- staffed than similar intitutions under -other Boards. During the past few years other hospitals have practised considerable economies bv cutting salaries and otherwise reducing expenditure. The Grey Hospital Boa r d «’though asked to do so. definitely refused to reduce its scale of salaries and wages. The fixing of the rate of subsidy on maintenance levies at 22a 7d pe r £. was decided on as a n effective method of ensuring that the Government subsidy should be no greater than the subsidies to other hos. pitals boards which treated their staffs in the same manner ih regard to “cuts” as t«he Government treated the Public Service. With reference to your remarks regarding the non-payment of levy by the State coal mines. I desire to point out that this has no bearing on the question of reduction of subsidy to the Hospital Board, as this reduction was decided on. as stated above, owing to the excessive sca’e of salaries and wages paid by the Board.” The letter was received. Cr Ryall: We did not get much satisfaction. The Clerk: No. You knew what you wculd get when you slanted.