UNEMPLOYMENT

Hawke's Bay Tribune, Volume XVIII, Issue 53, 14 February 1928, Page 7

UNEMPLOYMENT

ALLEVIATION MEASURES PROPOSED COMMITTEE. APPROVED BY HOSPITAL BOARD. An endeavour is being made by Mr. J. .Mason, M.P., to alleviate unempioymenwt during the coming winter. Yesterday the Hawke’s Bay Hospital Board received a letter from Mr. Mason, asking that two representatives be appointed to a committee which was being set up to deal with the problem. Mr. C. O. Morse thought that Mr. Mason should be congratulated in forming a committee to take steps to obviate unemployment. He disagreed with the statements made that it was a question which the Government should deal with. Mr. G. McKav maintained that the Government had a responsibility in endeavouring to get men out into the country to labour on productive works. It the work was to be. confined to municipalities, he said, men would never go out into the country' to work. Mr. H. Hill, in supporting Mr. Mason’s request, spoke at length on the dole system. He felt that with such a committee in operation they oould lo°k forward with some hope to the coming winter. He suggested that Messrs. Morse and Bedford be the Board’s representatives to the proposed committee. “It seems to m« that either Mr. Hill’s idea of the dole or mine is all to pot,” said Mr. Priest. “The dole is the damnation of England to-day. If it had not been far the dole the peopl e would be much more selfreliant than whot they are to-day. Many people gave up their work because the dole was better than wages.” Mr. G, A. Maddison. in supporting the proposal, said that 99 per cent, of the people did not want charity, but work. Efforts of local bodies were at the best spasmodic, and the question needed to be carried out on comprehensive lines. He was strongly opposed to the dole, and trusted that the representatives would approach the Government pointing out that the question was a National one He further believed that paying the men by results would greatly tend to quioken industry. Messrs Morse and Bedford were appointed the Board's representatives to the committee.