MEN ON RELIEF

New Zealand Herald, Volume LXXV, Issue 23037, 14 May 1938, Page 18

MEN ON RELIEF

GOVERNMENT FIGURES DENIAL OF FALSE RETURNS EXPLANATION BY MINISTER ANSWER TO MR. HAMILTON [by TELEGRAPH—PHESS association] ' ; WELLINGTON, Friday A statement upon the method adopted by the Government in compiling' the unemployment figures was made by the Minister of Labour, Hon. 11. T. Armstrong, to-day. The Minister said it was vastly different in principle to class as unemployed a man who, having registered, was ccimpulsorily set to work from classing as unemployed "men who were placed in productive employment under conditions: the subject of an agreement between tho workers and their employers. "I have been accused of juggling with tho official unemployment figures," continued tho Minister, "because when we came office I included in the unemployment returns all those who were said to have been provided with fulltune employment with assistance from the Employment Fund, while to-day they are excluded from the official unemployment returns. Previous Government's Claims "Quite an amount of so-called fulltime employment was existing when we assumed office. It had been started only just prior to tho last elections, and at the date of tho elections 21,267 of the registered men had been excluded from the published figures by the previous Government on the grounds that the men had been absorbed in full-time employment. Now let us see whether this number should have been ex-, eluded or not. This is how they are made up. "Six hundred and twenty-seven were 6tyled 4A men," continued the Minister. "These were mostly young, virile men who were compelled either to go off relief' or accept work for farmers. The conditions of their employment, were that they still drew relief pay, 10s a week, personally from tho bureau and the farmer had to provide them with shelter and pay thorn at least 5s a week.

"Only a very few appear to have reported receiving more than this minimum, and 2800 were compelled to take contract- work on farms, scrub-cutting and other work. They had no say whatever' ill, the terms. 'lhe contract made for them was based on the assumption that they could, if they were good mei), earn £3 a week, which at that time was less than the recognised labourers' rate. If work were not accepted they were stood down from relief. Analysis of Figures "A total of 1003 men were in camps receiving either 17s 6d a week, with food, or 27s 6d a week and finding themselves in food. Nine hundred and seventeen were waterside workers receiving sustenance relief, because tnev were earning less than the recognised relief rate, /but these were classed as full-time engaged, because they had to attend daily at the waterfront. "If apy waterside worker is granted sustenance to-day he is included in the official return. A total of 787 men were in afforestation camps, and-had up to and just prior to the elections been in receipt of 17s'6d a week, but this had been raised to 9s a» day, an arbitrary relief rate, which differs entirely in principle from the present public works agreement, the rate_ being fixed after proper consultation with the union concerned. -- Approximately 4000 men were employed by the Public Works Department, but at relief rates of 9s or l~s a day without any of the other conditions applicable to permanent Public Works Department workers. The balance were scattered with other departments, or with local bodies, but all were exempt from participating in the iaward conditions by a clause inserted in the Industrial Conciliation and Arbitration Act which we removed at the first opportunity." Position Entirely Changed

It would be seen, said Mr. _ Armstrong, that there was every justification for continuing to show these men with the unemployment figures, but long before September, 1937, when the practice was discontinued, the position had entirely changed, as all full-time workers whether or not subsidised from the Employment Promotion Fund, were engaged under the recognised standard conditions determined in accordance ;with the laws of the country. ' From the speech of the Leader of the Opposition, Hon. Adam Hamilton, it was noticed that he was indulging in offering challenges to the Prime Minister, Rt. Hon. M. J. Savage. May I suggest a double challenge to Mr. Hamilton, said Mr. Armstrong. "1. That he cannot find pripof of a single person, classed as full-time employed assisted from the Employment Fund at the time of the elections who was ia receipt? of the full standard award conditions. "2. That it is impossible for him to show that there are any excluded from the unemployment 1 figures to-day who are not fully employed under the recognised trade union conditions. "It would be no more correct to show' these men, as unemployed to-day, merely on the ground that the finance in some degree has been provided for their • employment from the Employment Promotion Fund, which is a re-

venue account, than it would be to class all Highways Board men as unemployed, because their work is financed largely from the tax revenue account* ■ ". ■-;. System Now In Use "While, therefore, it is a fact that the figures relating to men in full-time employment subsidised from the Employment Promotion Fund have not been published with the figures of the registered unemployed since September, 1937, I' must emphasise that the present method of publication, which excludes the full-time figures, is tho same as that introduced by the previous administration in September, 1935.

"I have shown that the full-time figure of 21,267, which was excluded at that particular time, should not have been excluded, because those men ■were still 'essentially relief workers. ■ Regarding the expenditure of money from the Employment Promotion Fund the reduced number of men remaining without employment, I would emphasise that the Act, as drawn -up by the previous Government, anticipated th,e creation of employment as a first charge on the fund, and only to pay sustenance when employment could riot be created.

"Following that principle, which was laid down by the previous Government, but not acted upon *o any great extent, useful employ nent has been found on worthwhile work, financed partially from the Employment Promotion' Fund, with the Public Works Department and through the local opportunity for industry to absorb surplus labour."