UNEMPLOYMENT.

Otago Daily Times, Issue 21010, 26 April 1930, Page 3

UNEMPLOYMENT.

DEPUTATION TO CHARITABLE AID BOARD. FURTHER ASSISTANCE SOUGHT. MAYOR’S STATEMENTS CRITICISED. With, the object of asking for increased financial assistance a deputation consist ing of about 30 unemployed men waitec on the Otago Hospital and Charitabh Aid Board at its meeting on Thursday night. Mr Brian. O’Donnell, who was the depu tation’s chief spokesman, made an appea lor assistance for the men whom he led He stated that at a meeting which ha< been held that afternoon and which ha< been attended by 175 men, Mr Palmer am he had been appointed to lay before th board some of the outstanding facte ii regard to the necessity of providing fooi for the people who were out of work. The; were on the eve of the anniversary of i great event, and he would like to tak members of the board back to 1914 whei these men* had been heroes in khaki am when they had fought for the freedor of the Dominion and the Empire, Noi they- walked the streets through no faul of their own and were termed “ the dow and outs.” ■ In the past they had bee heroes. It was very hard when abb

bodied men—returned soldiers with wives i and families to keep—had to come to the i board to seek charity. This had been i given out in the form of three halfdays’ ( work a week, for which a man received i £l. It was barely enough to pay the < rent. There ,was one man in the deputn- 1 tion who owed rent amounting to £l3 1 10s, and had a notice to quit in his pocket. There was also a single man who had not had a bite of food for two days and a-half, and a second who had . had only 1 a cup of tea in two days. This occurred in a land flowing with milk' and honey. These men had given part of their blood in Flanders. There were 700 men out of work in Dunedin, and the majority had wives and children. He hoped that the board would uphold the traditions of the British Empire and see that each individual, whether married or single, obtained the means of living to make him fit for the day when, they hoped, they would find work. When, a deputation had waited on the Mayor he had told them to see the Charitable Aid Board, because it had the money to support them. It had £60,000 contributed by local bodies, and this was subsidised by £30,000 from the Government. He had once been a member of a dotation to Mr J. G. Coates, who had said: “There is no need for any man to starve while the Charitable Aid Board exists, because the Government will see that- it has returned to it every penny that it spends.” If that were true _ the unemployed were looking to the board to see that they had firing and food and that their rent was paid. The Government had made an effort to relieve unemployment, but it had failed. Men had been sent to Lake Hawea and Te Anau, but he knew these men had spent nine days there and had had only 2s 6d each left after paying their fare. If a man could make only 2s Cd in nine days and had a wife and family to support he might just as well starve in the city as in the country.' * Mr Palmer stated that at the meeting which had been held that afternoon it had been unanimously agreed that- the Charitable Aid Board had not been doing its duty. _ The men wanted sufficient to meet their needs. A prominent man in the city had spoken at the meeting, and had stated that men in the town were starving, and' had no place to go to. Men should be provided with their needs before they became destitute. It had been suggested that a house should be opened up so that men would not have to sleep out. . It bad also been decided to suggest that picture theatres in the city should nut an extra 2d or 3d on their prices for one night a week, to provide funds, and that all men in work should he asked to pay a levy. The chairman (Mr W. E. S. Knight), J in reply, said that the board sympathised with the men, but knew that they needed something more than sympathy. The board was prepared to assist, and would treat each case on its merits. It was not the function of the board to provide work. It was at present spending £3O- - week in giving work to men for three half-days a week. The men did ' not work in the mornings because they then had an opportunity to look for something better. The figures which the Mayor had given them were quite erroneous. The. board had placed a certain sum on its estimates'for outdoor relief. Of this, the City Council found only three-fifths of one-half, and the Government found onehalf. It would be remembered that some time ago the Government had subsidised money spent by the Auckland Board, but the Otago Board had received nothing in the way of subsidy. The board would take tint© consideration all that had been aa,id. ‘ The secretary (Mr J. Jacobs) later read a minute in which, he stated that he had been out of the office on the morning during which the Mayor had received a deputation from the unemployed. The chief clerk had answered the telephone, and had told the Mayor that the board was unable to employ the men. The 1 Mayor had replied that if that were the case the board would have to give them some relief, as that was what the public was paying rates ior. He further stated that he was sending the men down to the board’s office. That afternoon from 20 to 25 men had assembled at the office. The relief officer had been in attendance, and they had been unable to decide what to do. With the assistance of Mr J. Robinson, 14 men had been interviewed, and in the case of 11 assistance had been granted. The total amount to which the board had been copamitted had been £7 3s. The secretary suggested that the board should decide on a definite policy. The chairman expressed resentment of the statement of the Mayor in describing - officers of the board as “understrappers.” j The board’s officers were'doing their best. ! The board had spent £432 13s 4d in find- : ing work for 105 men, and during the ; past eight weeks had been spending £3O a week. It could not find more work, because it did not have the necessary tools ! or supervision. He thought that the matter should be considered in committee. Mr J. W. Dove described the statement made to the unemployed by the j Mayor as “ shocking.” The chairman added that the men had been led to believe that the council provided £30,000 for relief. _ Members: That is putting it mildly. The hoard had set aside £9OOO for outdoor relief, the chairman continued, and the council was merely acting as collector of the money. The men had been led to believe. that enormous sums were available to provide them with work. He took the greatest exception to the statement of the Mayor in describing the staff as “ understrappers,” and he did not believe the statements of the men at the deputation to the Mayor for one moment. None of them had been insulted as had been suggested. Mrs Marshall Macdonald suggested that the Mayor might call together his Emergency Committee. The chairman: The council is doing remarkably well, but it should give us the credit that is due to us. Mr 'J. W. Scurr said that it seemed a remarkable thing that the Chief Magistrate of the city should have made the statement he did. He should be sure of his facts before making such statements. To the speaker’s mind the Mayor had let the board and the unemployed down. He knew perfectly well that the amount which the board had for relief purposes was a mere bagatelle when it came to unemployment. It was the duty of the board to relieve distress, and not find work for able-bodied men. It appeared to him that the Mayor had shuffled it is duty and pushed it on to the board. — {“ Hear, hear.”) Before the board went into committee Mr Scurr stated that he did not want it to be understood that he was not in sympathy with the unemployed. Some of them were “ up against it.” Mr Dove said that he knew of the case ■ .if a man in Broad Bay who did not have the fare to come to town to look for work. Afterlengthy discussion it was decided :o continue the board’s present policy, jiving work where possible and immediate relief where necessary. It was further decided t<j ask the chairman to call a meeting of social workers and representatives of institutions in order that the board could attempt to coordinate the efforts of the various relief societies >” the city.