PAY ON RELIEF

Hawke's Bay Tribune, Volume XXVI, Issue 110, 22 April 1936, Page 9

PAY ON RELIEF

Minister Explains New Scale

to House

FINDING OF WORK Telegraph—Special to “Tribune.") WELLINGTON, April 21. Outlining the new scale (published yesterday) of unemployment payments in the House of Representatives this afternoon, Air Armstrong said : “It has not been possible to reach our ultimate goal in the one step ; indeed several important steps have already been taken since the Government took office, and there must, and will, be several more taken after the one which 1 am about to outline. “Payment of sustenance to the ablebodied on any scale whatever is not our objective. We shall not consider our work completed so long as the necessity exists lor any sustenance payments being made from this fund nor until every able-bodied worker is rendering that service to the community to which he is best adapted. That, of course, means expansion of productive industries, which takes time. While we organise for that objective, w@ are tailing advantage of the more < eady-to-haiid steps which will i.iake the transitory period less difficult lor displaced workers.

“The scale of payment Irom the Em ployment Promotion Fund applicable to intermittent work tor local bodies will, as Iroin the week commencing June 1, 1936, bo on a basis of maximum rates that appear in the Unemployment Act, I'JIM These rates provide 21/- a week for a single man, 38/6 a week lor a married man, then increasing in sums of 4/- a week for each dependent child, with a maximum of 66/6 a week in the case of a married man supporting a wile and seven or more children. Work will be determined by an hourly rate of pay applicable to public works under the Public Works Department That means that the new rates will be divided by public works standard rates in order to determine the actual number of hours to be worked in any week for the amount of weekly relief allocated to various classes whatever hourly rate of pay is determined upon. “It is certain the new scale of pay ment from the Employment Promotion Fund will not fit into complete days cf work. My department will be inviting local bodies who still carry out works under this intermittent scheme to provide from their own resources the difference in wages cost to enable all men to be given employment to the nearest full day above the time factor covered by the new scale. APPEAL FOR CO-OPERATION. “As local bodies are just at the commencement of a new financial year, thus placing them in a favourable position to respond to this request, 1 personally appeal for this co-operation. My department will further Be seeking the co-operation of local bodies with a view to replacing these intermittent works with works to be carried out under full-limo standard conditions.

“The present number of employed under Seheme No. 5 and affected by these new rates is 10,700. The above rates for relief work will apply to Maori and -European alike. Tho circumstances and living conditions of the Maoris in some parts <rt the Dominion have given the Government much concern, and the decision to pay equal rates is to enable Maoris to build up housing and home conditions equal to European. Work will be provided and the wages will enable the Maori to pay lor improvement in his conditons.”

SUSTENANCE. Referring to sustenance, the Minister said: “The present number in receipt of sustenance without performing any service is 14,400 Included in this number are a great many who could not be placed iu heavy manual employment and who cannot justifiably be permanently a charge on the Unemployment Fund. Others within this class are anxious for employment and many of them should soon bo absorbed in public works, or in other callings stimulated by the improved economic situation.

“In so far that sustenance is still a necessity, a further improvement in rates will apply at the same time as the amended rates for intermittent work. The new rates will be: 17/- a week in the case of a single man, 29/a week for a married man, then rising by 4/- a week in respect of each dependent child to a maximum of 57/- a week. This represents a further in■■lease ranging from 3/- a week to a single man to 13/-a week to a man supporting seven dependent children for a worker in the highest class and previously subject to the country scale. “The total increase since November last is 19/- a week, when country rates lor Europeans under Scheme No. 5 were adjusted to the city scale last mouth

“No adjustment wi.s made in rates applicable to Maoris living under pa conditions. This is being rectified by a retrospective payment based on a scale of 6/- a week in excess of existing Maori rates for married inen, and 4/6 a week for single men, and these payments will apply from March 2 until higher rates announced earlier in this statement come into operation in the week commencing June 1. GOLD PROSPECTOBB. "Regarding gold prospectors, ths above rates necessitate a variation m the subsidy paid to prospectors, and from the same date the subsidy will be £2 a week lor married men and £1 a week for single men.” Dealing with general works, the Minister said that there were several works throughout the Dominion where men are employed at special rates, and steps will also be taken to adjust these as from the week commencing June 1. 19’36. ADJUSTMENT OF PRIVATE INCOME. The Minister said that in eider to ef.Lr every encourag&ment to unemployed persons to seek casual private employment, it had been decided to adjust the amount of private income or earnings which a worker may receive before his relief allocation is adversely affected by allowing married men to have nn income from all sources (including re-

lief) on a scale rising according to the size of their families from £3 to £3 18/per week. The new rates allowable for income are: Single man £2; married, wife only £3; married, wife and one child £3; married, wife and two children £3; married, wife and three children, £3 2/-; married, wife and four children £3 6/-; married, wife and five children £3 10/-; married, wife and six children, £3 14/-; married, wife and seven or more children, £3 18/-. The following classes of income will be entirely ignored in calculating the total income of a relief applicant: (a') earnings of any child under 16 years of age; (b) first 17/6 a week of combirfed income from any war disability pension and/or any allowance grantedlunder the War Veterans Allowance Act; (<■) family allowances granted under the Family Allowances Act. Mr. Armstrong also stated that the new rate of pay covering public works will be announced by the Hon. It. Semple within a few days.