MR ARMSTRONG AND FARM LABOUR

Otago Daily Times, Issue 23044, 21 November 1936, Page 21

MR ARMSTRONG AND FARM LABOUR

Sir,—Mr Armstrong’s broadcast over the air on Thursday night on farm labour was a “ scream.” First, he laid himself out to show that there was no scarcity of farm workers, and that the farmer had or could get all the experienced farm hands that he required. All Mr Armstrong's officers and inspectors had said so. Then he went on to say that all the criticism which was seen in the papers was all bunkum and was a put-up job by some party. In the next breath he told us that one of his officers had spent a fortnight in the Waikato and , that there was a genuine scarcity of farm hands up there. Then he went on to tell us that the farmers need not expect to be able to get experienced farm hands, as most of them had left the farms during the slump and had got better jobs in the towns and public works, with both better wages and nicer conditions. In the next breath he tells the'farmers that they will have to pay the wages that were recently brought in by law to the farm hands. But here is where the joke is on the farmers; the new wage laws were brought in fay the Labour Government for the farm hands that have left and forsaken their old love for pastures new, and the farmer will have to take on the apprentices and leach them their trade and at the same time pay them a journeyman’s wage. Mr Armstrong said they would have to. Now here comes the “ gem ” of the broadcast. Mr Armstrong said he wanted strongly to advise all the unemployed men to take on the farm work, as they would be far better paid by doing so than by working in the towns or on the public works! By the way, some of the men are making up to 30s per day on the public works. Sir. all I can say is that they talked themselves on to the Treasury benches at the last election, and if they are allowed to talk enough over the air they will talk themselves off the benches at the next election.—l am,, etc.. Attaboy.