THE "ALL-IN" EFFORT

Otago Daily Times, Issue 24783, 6 December 1941, Page 13

THE "ALL-IN" EFFORT

TO THE EDITOR

Sir, —Your article in this morning's Daily Times was timely, but, in the writer's opinion, did not go far enough. Mr Churchill, in his speech to the House of Commons, certainly conveyed a call to the nation's manpower, but that call should not be interpreted to mean England alone, but to the whole Eihpire. Can we in New Zealand conscientiously think that ours is an " all-in " effort? That we have a few who are endeavouring to help with a 100 per, cent, effort cannot be denied, but as a New Zealander I aril forced to admit that, the apathy of the majority, including the powers that be, causes our efforts to fall far short of any genuineness. Unfortunately, the national spirit is being forsaken for a more self-centring attitude. Such an attitude in these critical times is deplorable. We read of the valour and deeds of oUr boys in Libya. Midst the heat and thirst theirs is a hard battle, but they bravely carry on. We then; read of a section of the workers of New Zealand threatening the. Government with industrial strife if certain demands are not granted. . Sir, the irony of the fact cannot be too strongly emphasised. Under army discipline, the man entering the forces receives a rate of pay that' is fixed by law—and he has no say as to what it should be., He has no 40-hour week. He does not complain of these matters, but recognises that he is giving his best for his country and willingly puts up with minor inconveniences. , It is admitted that this is an "allin" war,' in which the civ ..an must pay his part equally with the soldier; It is definitely unfair to the soldier if the civilian fighter should profit by the fact that: he has not to don the uniform. It is unfair, .therefore, that the/civilian .should be less patriotic than his comrade in the army. That we lack leadership in New Zealand cannot be denied. The fact that a Government can be challenged at pistol point by an industrial organisation is lamentaLle. The Govern-: ment showed weakness in not taking immediate disciplinary action. This would have shown the people that the Government's repeated request for an " alWn". effort was not the mere lip service that ; it is. ■ The time, Sir, is overdue for a complete facing up.to our responsibilities. The Government must act in the nation's interests and not for any particular section of the community, iPatriotism means-more than lip service or the mere reiteration of loyalty to one's country. Verbal patriotism, even if blown off in a hot air speech, means nothing. The time has arrived when we should all emulate the spirit of our boys-, overseas and forgo I*m-<-porarily the privileges that have been granted in peace time. This. can only be achieved by the temporary lengthening of working hours. This would give the workers, the extra money they require at present and would lower prices by making more production available. It would also, release more men for active, service. The Government has the power to vary the working hours, and I am sure .that the workers themselves are not opposed to the move. Unfortunately, these workers do not receive the encouragement from the union secretaries or the Government. Yet the Government has not failed to use these powers against other sections of the community. It has been estimated.that for every soldier in the.firing line there should be at least six civilians to assist them on the production line on the home front. This is where the development of man-power can greatly assist. That we have too many idle hours is apparent to all. There are.hundreds of part-time workers-who would willingly devote their idle hours as their war effort if the avenue Was only open. The idle Saturday morning could be utilised in packing munitions and supplies to the troops by these part-time workers. , There need be no union secretaries demanding full union rates, etc., thus hindering the effort. A new spirit is needed in industry;, whether State control or private. There should be" definite restrictions on the rights of industrial unions to curtail production that is in! the interests of j the nation as a whole. Increased production is essential, and we must not let up.—l. am, etc., All-in. Dunedin, Dec. 4.