THE INDUSTRIAL WORLD

Otago Daily Times, Issue 22195, 23 February 1934, Page 3

THE INDUSTRIAL WORLD

NEWS AND NOTES By J. T. Paul. It is only when men rise above the profit motive and learn to subordinate profit to service that social, economic, and political order begin to come within sight of a firm foundation and a continuing existence, with peace and happiness assured to the great ma'ss of mankind. If helpful service to one's fellowmen be the | dominant motive, then the greater the legitimate profit one 1 makes, the more will he be applauded. Criticism and resistance come, when the service motive disappears from sight, and the Srofit motive dominates all. —Dr Ticholas Murray Butter. HOUSING SHORTAGE IN AUCKLAND. There is ample evidence in Auckland at present that the housing shortage is steadily becoming more acute, says the New Zealand Herald. Even the stimulus given to the erection of homes last year by the building subsidy did not remedy the position to any great extent, and, although there may be a large number of vacant houses in the city to-day, there is a very real shortage of modern homes within easy reach of Queen street. Last year 311 new houses were built, in 1932 171, and in 1931 185. It is stated that the normal rate of replacement of obsolete dwellings and provision for growth of population should average approximately 400 houses a year. The last three years, therefore, have seen Auckland under, built to the extent of at least 500 homes, and an early period of marked activity in the building trade is predicted as a result. "A building boom is bound to come," a leading agent said. "We do not want any of those speculative schemes which were operated a few years ago, but the keenness of the demand tor modern five-roomed houses at rentals up U> fl 15s a week makes it essential that old houses close to the city and poorlybuilt houses further out should be replaced as soon as possible. There has. been evidence recently of a feeling of greater optimism in the city. When that optimism is translated into terms of active business builders should be among the first to benefit." SELLING STATE ENTERPRISES. The New South Wales State Government, having decided to sell the State Brickworks and the State Metal Quarries, has called for tenders for the purchase of the assets of these enterprises. The brickworks comprise those at Homebush of three working pits, complete brick-making machinery, and 25 kilns, and manager's cottage. The metal quarries include those at Kiama and Bombo, leasehold property at Woolloomooloo Bay. and the steamer Bombo, of a deadweight capacity of 650 tons. The conditions and terms.of sale include "intention to introduce legislation to prevent the successful tenderer from charging unreasonable prices for commodities manufactured," and "requiring the successful tenderer to undertake to give preference in employment/ to employees engaged by the undertaking at the date of the completion of the sale, other conditions and things being equal." FEDERAL BASIC WAGE. The Commonwealth Statistician (Mr E. T. MThee) issued the "A " and " D " series of retail pri'ce numbers upon 'which wages governed by Federal awards have been adjusted as "from February 1. The " A " series is for the fourth quarter of 1933, and represents the variations in prices of food, groceries, and rent of ail houses since 1911. The series is applicable chiefly to workers who have not suffered the full 10 per cent, cut imposed by the Commonwealth Court early in 1931, The " D " series represents for each town the variations in prices of all household expenditure from the fourth quarter of 1929 to the third quarter of 1933, and is used by the Court for the adjustment of wages which suffered the full 10 per cent, cut. The "A" series is thus a quarter ahead of the "D" series, and wages under the two series, although operative on the same date, are consequently differently affected. The present rates and the new rates which will operate from February 1. under both series are shown in the .'following tables: — i

*Rate after 10 per cent, cut has been deducted. The (inferences are on the basis of the relative value of ! the index numbers to the nearest 6d a week, but where awards are adjusted by means of points to the nearest Is a week these differences would be somewhat enhanced.'

PLANNED CAPITALISM. " Rationalism, in its essence, is nothing but' the idea of a planned capitalism," says Professor Gregory; " and, though little has been heard of it since the world depression began, it is instructive to investigate the secret of its comparative failure. The essential fact of a market economy was discovered in the earliest days of the industrial revolution by Adam Smith; it is that the division of labour is limited by the extent of the market. The appropriate scale of production and therefore the appropriate scale of organisation, is not a matter to be decided upon by considering merely the technical possibilities of the situation. In other words, what has caused so many rationalisation projects to fail, that is, to disappiont from the financial point of view, has been the neglect of the distinction between the technical optimum and the economic optimum; and the neglect of this distinction is peculiarly liable to occur when the direction of economic enterprise passes out of the hands of those trained to think in terms of the process subsidiary to the ;outnut of a certain product or service,"

DEMOCRACY AND THE EXPERT. "While the tide of democracy has swept away many of the strongholds of ignorance where the value of education used to be derided, and while it is a stark platitude that the future of democracy is closely bound up with education —much more closely than with the forms of parliamentary government —yet it is not in the least a platitude that the future of democracy is quite as closely bound up with specialised education,"' says a writer in Public Administration. " People who would not dream of belittling education per se will cheerfully belittle specialised education and its product, the expert. For, after all,- democracy owes everything to people who have had a specialised education. The experts of the great municipal corporations carry our commercial life in their hands, and experts in the science of transportation make their life tolerable by enabling us to get out of it. The Council of the League of Nations is the mouth-piece of experts. The colonies of the various Powers owe their development to exocrts, the development varying with the intelligence which selects and supports them. But if democracy is to make the fullest use of the expert and his specialised equipment, it will be necessary to take far more seriously than has yet been done the necessity for administrative education. . . . The sources of administrative wisdom are not readily uncovered, and balanced development will not be practicable until they are. . . . If the specialist is to be adequately equipped for administrative work, then one of the first necessities is the reduction of administrative principle to a form in which it can be assimilated."

THE WORKING WEEK IN FRANCE. A number of declarations relating to the 40-hour week were made in France during the last months of 1033. In October it was supposed that the Government of M. Daladier intended to introduce the 40-hour week in the undertakings which were to work for the National Equipment Plan; but this Government fell before the plans in question were published. In November M. Sarraut, the new President of the Council, stated before the Finance Committee of the Chamber of Deputies that in his view a recovery in finance should be stimulated, and that once budgetary equilibrium had been re-established a national equipment plan could be financed; all the questions connected with the execution of such a plan would then be studied, above all, that of a 40-hour week. A few days later M. Sarraut, in answer to questions in the Chamber concerning the 40-hour week, declared that he would base his attitude of that of his party, which was of the opinion, like the late Albert Thomas, that the problem of the 40-hour week arose internationally, and could only be solved on international lines; while realising that a 40-hour week might help to reduce unemployment, ho believed that it could also caur.e all sorts of disputes which might lead, in certain cases, to the employment of foreign labour. A number of employers' organisations, including the Union of Economic Interests and the Assembly of Presidents of Chambers of Commerce, voted resolutions urging that the contemplated execution of the National Equipment Plan should not be accompanied by new labour regulations incompatible with tho state of the country. The South-Eastern Federation of Agricultural Unions also protested against any attempt to introduce the 40-hour week in France. Eight Chambers of Agriculture drew attention to the appalling effects which the introduction of the 40-hour week in industry would have on French agriculture. The General Confederation of Labour issued an appeal reminding the public of the need for the introduction of the 40-hour week as a means of combating the depression. At the first congress of the new. Socialist Party of France, several speakers called for strict enforcement of the Eight Hour Day Act, prohibition of overtime, and the execution of large-scale international public works on the basis of the 40-hour week.

An article by M. Jacques Duboin criticises the attitude of the Chambers of Commerce on this question, and points out that business recovery can only come from an increase in the purchasing power of the masses of consumers, and such an increase is only posible as a result of the introduction of the 40-hour week.

Finally, mention should be made of a provision included by the Mayor of Montlucon in a municipal contract for canal work; the contractor is obliged to apply the 40-hour week with wages as for 48 hours.

" 1 V" SERIES. Present New. wage. wage. City. • £ S. (1. £ s. d. Sydney .. .. 3 12 6 3 12 0 Melbourne .. ..370 3 7 6 Brisbane .. .. 3 1 C 3 2 0 Adelaide .. 3 3 0 3 3 0 Perth .. .. 3 4 0 3 4 0 Hobart .. 3 10 6 3 10 0 Six capitals .. ..380 3 8 0 "B" SERIES. Present New wage.. wage. City. £ . a. d. £ S. d. Sydney .. 3 6 11 3 6 1) Melbourne .. ..3 2 10 • 3 3 4 Brisbane .. '.. 2 19 4 2 19 4 Adelaide .. 2 19 7 3 0 2 Perth .. ..•3 0 3 2 19 '3 Hobart* .. 3 3 11 3 4 10 Six capitals .. ..334 3 3 9