COST OF LIVING

New Zealand Times, Volume L, Issue 11657, 23 October 1923, Page 6

COST OF LIVING

SLIGHT INCREASE SHOWN

NO ALTER ATION MADE IN AWARD WAGES.

COURT’S PRONOUNCEMENT. Per Association. DUNEDIN, October 22. The Arbitration Court’s pronouncement cn the cost of living was made available to-day. The court has investigated the movement in the cost of living for the six-monthly period of April-September, 1923. As on former occasions, it worked on the .principle of a six-monthly “moving average,” and bafsed it& calculations on “all groups” statistics covering the whole field of the cost of living. The figures for clothing, footwear. fuel, light, and miscellaneous groups all show decreases, but the food figure® disclose a email increase, and the figures for all groups, with their proper weighting, show an increase of 1.3 per cent, for the period. INCREASES COMPARED. The following table indicates the movement of “all groups” figures', based on a six-monthly “moving average” during each half-yearly period since March, 1922: — Percentage increase Half-year ended over July, 1914. March, 1922 67.0 September, 1922 59.6 March, 1923 56.3 September, 1923 57.5 Measured in wagee, the increased 1 cost of living for' the half-year is equivalent to an increase of one farthing per hour, or one shilling per week, in the male adult wage. The statistical invebftigation for the half-yearly period ended March 31st, 1923, disclosed a fall in the cost of living that presented a reduction of one halfpenny per hour, or two shillings per week, in the male adult wages, but the court on that occasion, with the concurrence of the employers of the Dominion, decided that, in view of the rising tendency observable in rents, and the tendency to hardening prices in some of the other groups, not to make a general order reducing wages in accordance with the ascertained fall in the cost of living. The increase of one shilling per week now recorded reduces the fall of two shillings per week to one shilling per week. The court believes it to be desirable, in the interests of trade and industry, that wages should not fluctuate at short intervals more than Is necessary, and as rents have again increased it has decided not to alter the existing minimum rates.

TO OFFSET INCREASES. The effect of this decision is that workers still have one shilling per week in hand to offset any possible further increase in the cost of living. This is the last pronouncement of the court under the cost of living legislation, which expires on December 31st, 1923. The present bonuses and other cost of living additions to wages will, however, continue in force during the currency of all existing awards and industrial agreements. When new awards and industrial agreements are to be made, the rates of remuneration will be fixed in accordance with the conditions of trade and industry’ and other relevant circumstances, then prevailing, and will not be subject to variation in sympathy with any movement in the cost of living during their currency. FOOD PRICES UNALTERED. It is, in the opinion of tlie court, desirable to make some comments on sta tistical results that have been ascertained. Food groups have remained almost stationery for tlie past 18 months There have been seasonal fluctuations in commodities generally subject to such fluctuations, and there has been an increase in meat prices during the first few months, which may or may not be maintained. On the whole, however, food prices have tended to stabilise during the period mentioned. Fuel and light ha\e fallen slowly but steadily during the period, while clothing and footwear have fallen very considerably, and are still falling. The miscellaneous group, which comprises household furmailings, crockery and glassware, domestic ironmongery and hardware, newspapers, rail and tram fares, and numerous other small items, have very nearly paralleled the clothing and footwear group in the fall that has been recorded. INCREASE IN RENTS

Rents, on the other hand, have shown a steady increase since 1914. and now stand at 49.8 per cent, above the 1914 level. Since March, 1922, when the calculations on which the first downward adjustment of wages was barred were made, the effect of the increase in rents (12 per cent) has been to decrease the amount of tlie reductions justified by the cost of living statistics hy six shillings per week. To put it in another way, if tlie court had ignored rent figures since March. 1922, the reductions authorised to tne present date would have been 14 shillings per week, instead of eight shillings per week. APPLICATIONS FOR VARIATION. The decision of the court not to make a general order reducing wage* by one shilling per week (the balance of tho two shillings per week carried forward from our last half-yearly investigation) does not, of course, operate so as to prevent employers bound by any award or industrial agreement from making application to the court on special grounds for a variation of the rates of remuneration fixed by that award or industrial agreement. Such application may be made to the court in the ordinary way, and will be considered on ite merits.