British Employers Pledge Support To Production Drive

Otago Daily Times, Issue 27271, 23 December 1949, Page 5

British Employers Pledge Support To Production Drive

N2PA—Copyright

Rec. 9 p.m. LONDON, Dec. 22. British employers yesterday pledged their full support to the Government in dealing with the country’s economic and financial difficulties. This was the outcome of the London meeting between the Foreign Secretary, Mr Ernest Bevin, the Labour Minister, Mr G. A. Isaacs, and representatives of the British Employers’ Confederation. A statement issued afterwards said that Mr Bevin asked for the employers’ co-operation in the necessary effort to secure wage stabilisation and increased production, and that Sir Greville Maginess, on behalf of the confederation, assured him of the employers’ full support. The confederation embraces all the main employers’ associations. The General Council of Trades Union Congress, representing 8,000,000 workers, yesterday approved the full statement on the wages policy, which will be discussed by executives of unions at a private conference on January 12. Trade union chiefs and representatives of the Employers’ Federation met yesterday in the role of a joint Consultative Committee, which advises Mr Isaacs on policy. They discussed hours of work in relation to output, and agreed that it was essentially a questipn to be settled industry by industry;

The three main organisations representing British industry, i the Federation of British Industries, the Association of British Chambers of Commerce and the National Union of Manufacturers, have jointly recommended to their members that the present policy of restricting dividends should be continued for a further -year. In making this recommendation, however, they urge that there should be “ drastic reduction in Government exEenditure so that British industry may e encouraged by reduced taxation.” Limitation of dividends was first voluntarily undertaken by British industrialists in the spring of 1948. Though some firms have refused to comply, the Federation of British Industries recently pointed out that during the March to August period of 1949 dividends had been unaltered or reduced in respect of more than 89 per cent, of the issued capital of all industrial and public companies.