WORKERS AND WAGES.

Mataura Ensign, 21 April 1913, Page 5

WORKERS AND WAGES.

COST OF LIVING IN AUSTRALIA

BY ELECTRIC TELEGRAPH. —COC I'MGHT PEK CJNITJSD PRESS ASSOCIATION. Received April 21, 8 a.m. SYDNEY, April 21.

The Commonwealth statist::'.* report shows that at the end of 1912 there were 621 trades unions in Australia with a membership of 433,224, whereof 17,670 wore females. The unemployed represented C>-J per centum of the community. Compared with 1891 the normal rate of wages at the end <;f 1.912 an increase of 12.7 per centum in Victoria, where the advance was greatest, and 10.0 in Queensland, where it. was lowest.

Particulars of the cost of living show that in the six capital cities the weighted average cost was just over 10 per of "iturn higher in 1912 than in 1911, wile the wholesale prices were 17 per c< itum higher. The results generally show that siiue 1 6 there has been no materia.] improvement in effective wages while the productive activity per head of population has increased at a greater rate than the. effective wage.