WAGES OF BOOTMAKERS.

New Zealand Herald, Volume LIII, Issue 16169, 4 March 1916, Page 5

WAGES OF BOOTMAKERS.

EMPLOYER'S STATEMENT. SHORTAGE OF OPERATIVES. Some further particulars regarding the conditions in the boot trade were given. yesterday by a leading Auckland manu-j facturer. He stated that there were no' matters in dispute between the employee 1 and the men except wages, hours, and the: duration of the next award. If wages in the trade were too low the men should have brought their case before the Arbitration Court earlier. The last award expired in July last. Since then the men had been endeavouring to arrange for a local award and had not succeeded. The .minimum wago for boot-operatives in ilia Dominion workod out at 57s for a week of 45 hours, the lowest working week of any country in the world. Australia was the same for a 48-hour week. Figures for comparison, based on pro-war conditions, were as follows :—

England.. 28s 3d for 52J hours Prance .. 31a Od for GO „ 1 Germany 31s l}d ..for 651 i Belgium.. 32s lOd " for 56} „ Denmark 35& 3d for 60 Norway ~ 17s 10} d hrs. not available Japan .. 7s 9d „ „ Referring to the complaint of a union , official that men wero leaving the bootmaking trade for unskilled occupations,' j the manufacturer said that had always been the case, and always would be. A i number were unaole to work inside, others could not, or would not, adapt themselves j to modern. conditions of- machinery, and i left for more congenial employment. Again, , many men were leaving for the front at* present. The fact was that tho union could not supply employee \vith labour. | and there was a shortage, both of ineni and girls for the trade. As to the latter, he admitted tliat tho parents of many preferred the girls to be employed at. shirt or clothing making, seeing that those | trades prepared them for tlveir later life. I To say that girls wero. leaving the boot trade for tho sake of better else- i where was incc/rrect. He also denied tbat| the Auckland factories wero "speeding-, up" work. They were not getting the amount of military work tho Wellington factories wero getting.