N.Z. WOMEN’S INCOMES

Grey River Argus, 9 January 1941, Page 6

N.Z. WOMEN’S INCOMES

SOCIAL SECURITY RETURN. . AGGREGATE OF £23,057,370. WELLINGTON, January An aggregate income or £23,u07,370 for the year ended March 31, 1939, an average of £95 a head, was recorded by. 243,015 New Zealand women whose declarations under the Social Security Act, 1938, were complete. Returns were received from <±62,060 women as a result of the questionnaire under the Act. Of tnese, 12,390 were incomplete in respect of income, 228 were cases of uupacatc or amending returns, or returns for. the wrong year, 427 were cases of loss of income, and 206,000 reported no income In analysing the returns the Abstract of Statistics states that since the average relates to all women of 16 years and upward it obviously includes many married women not engaged in industry and only small incomes derived from divestments or savings accounts. Of the 427 cases of loss of income, 312 specified the amount, an aggreagte loss of £41,933. If the remaining 115 lost in the same degree, th e aggregate of 243,442 women of 16 years and over had a total income of £22,999,981, ov £94 a head.

In broad divisions and omitting persons with no income, or with net loss of income, the aggregate income of the sexes in the year ended March, 1939, wa s distributed a s follows:—

Although the degree of comparison is stated not to be good, since a much larger proportion of men are in gainful occupations, comparative figures of mal e earnings are: Number of returns, 433,329; aggregate income, £114,274,174; average per head, £264. The inclusion oi those without incomes (males 18,500, females, 206,000) reduces the average per head to: Males, £253; female £5l.

Percentage. Income Males. Females Under £50 0.6 7.0 £50-£90 2.9 18.0 £100-£149 5.0 20.0 £150-£199 7.9 13.2 £200-£249 13.2 8.4 £250-£299 16.9 5.6 £350-£349 12.3 4.2 £350-£399 7.6 3.2 £400-£499 8.3 3.8 , £500-£749 9.5 5.3 £750-£999 4.5 2.7 £1000-£1999 6.6 5.0 Over £2000 4.7 3.6