TRADE IN NAPIER.

Hawke's Bay Tribune, Volume XXII, Issue 271, 31 October 1932, Page 9

TRADE IN NAPIER.

(To the Editor.) Sir, — Notwithstanding that great building activity is going on in the town, conversations With quite a number of shopkeepers disclosed the faet that business was very quiet indeed. The explanation seems to be that a large quantity of foreign labour is being engaged, with the result that not only are a good many of our local tradesmen out of employment, but also that a big percentage of the weekly pay-roll is being sent out of the town to the wives and families of these foreign workmen. I should have thought the business people for whom shops, etc., are being erected would have insisted on all local labour being engaged, and that if such were not sufficient to stipulate that any surplus needed from outside should be required to reside in the borough with their wives and. families. Another point I gathered was that several contracts had been let at prices below a remunerative margin to the contractors. This is false economy, as business premises being in the natu.re of permanent assets, a few hundreds, or even a thousand or two in the case of the largest would hurt no one. On the hand, too low a price often

proves disastrous to contractors and those local shopkeepers and merchants who supply them, as well as often resulting in local sub-contractors being unable to compete fairly with larger outside firms. Perhaps our Commissioners could interest themselves in the matter to see whether- an improvement cannot be brought about.—Yourt faithfully, CIVIS. Napier, 31/10/32.