Wages Restoration

Hawke's Bay Tribune, Volume XXVI, Issue 158, 19 June 1936, Page 5

Wages Restoration

DATES FROM JULY 1 Prime Milnisfrr Repeats Intention REPLY TO DOUBTS By Telegraph—Press Association WELLINGTON, June 18. A reply to the doubts which have been expressed In certain quartern regarding the Government’s intentions to restore to the full all wages and salary cuts as from July 1, was made by the Prime Minister, the Bt. Hon. M. J, Savage, to-day. "Legislation will be passed as soon as Parliament meets, and it will be retrospective to July 1,” he said.

Mr Savage recalled the statement he had made in the House earlier this month, when he said that during the recess it was the Government’s intern tion to prepare legislation for the restoration of wages cuts, Publie Service salary cuts and pensions as from the beginning of July, "I said that deliberately so that employers of labour would know what to expect and would not have any reason for saying we ‘sprang’ something ou them,” he said.

It was the Government’s intention to restore all cuts made during the depression, he said, which, in effect, would bring the wage, salary and pension level up to that of 1931. "We are pledged to do more than that,” said Mr Savage. "We are pledged to make available to the people the benefit of every increase in production. If that is not done there is no reason for increasing production. It can only be done by increasing the incomes for the rank and file of the people—increasing wages, salaries and pensions. To say that we are going to restore the cuts and stop there is not tolling the whole story.” Mr Savage said that, had there been time, the wage-restoration legislation would have been passed before Parliament adjourned. The Government felt it was bound to pass the legislation as soon as it could be done. The next best thing was to make it retrospective.