EMPLOYEES OF STATE

Southland Times, Issue 23142, 8 March 1937, Page 9

EMPLOYEES OF STATE

“ALARMING INCREASE” MORE LAWS MEAN MORE MEN To what extent is the Public Service in New Zealand being expanded in company with the accelerated and extended activities of State? (asks the Associated Chambers of Commerce .of New Zealand in a statement just issued). How many more salaries are the taxpayers being called on to pay for the administration of all the new Acts that recently have poured out of Parliament Buildings? More laws mean more men. The following comparison gives some indication of the increase in the number of persons employed by the State in the different Government departments for the financial year now current, as compared with the year 193 -

Total net increase, 3691. It is to be noted that the salaries and wages of employees formerly chargeable on the Unemployment Fund are now chargeable under the Labour Department vote. The decrease and increase respectively in the number of persons under these two votes practically balance each other, although certain of the additional employees of the Land and Income Tax Department are engaged on unemployment taxation business. The additional employees of the Census and Statistics Department include temporary staff in connection with the recent census.

However, the Primary Products Marketing Department is a new department, while the staff previously engaged by the New Zealand Broadcasting Board has become public servants. The former Mortgage Corporation of New Zealand, into which the State Advances Department was merged in August 1935 has now been brought under State control under the title of the State Advances Corporation of New Zealand, and its employees have again become public servants. The number of employees of the corporation is very much larger than the number employed by the old State Advances Department, because of the wider activities of the corporation, and the fact that it has taken over discharged soldier settlement mortgages from the Lands Department, and is doing valuation work for the Valuation Department For that matter, reasons could be mentioned for all the increases—particularly in ‘ the really basic services of justice, law and order, and defence. However, even when the 361 additional employees in these latter services are deducted, the remaining additions are equal to one-fourth of the total increase in New Zealand’s population for the twelve months ended March 31, 1936. Allowing for their dependants, it means that the equivalent of approximately 58 per cent of that increase in population has become directly dependent on the State. Of course, a number of the services in the above table, such as the railways, post and telegraph, and others is practically self-supporting; nevertheless the staffs are all State employees. On the other hand, no account has been taken of the five thousand additional workmen engaged on public works, or of their dependents,’ so that the number of additional persons who have become dependent on the State in one year is distinctly alarming.

36:— Additional State Employees More Fewer than than Department 1935-36 1935-36 Legislative o Prime Minister’s 12 Treasury 6 Customs 24 — Land and Income Tax 65 Stamp Duties —— 5 Audit Public Service Com7 2 missioner Internal Affairs — 12 External Affairs —- — Printing and Stationery 4 Marine 12 —- Labour 894 •MW Native 42 W— Valuation 9 - —— Electoral 1 — Census and Statistics 97 Justice and Prisons 11 —* Crown Law Office — Police 55 — Naval 166 — Defence Maintenance of Public 129 — Works — — Lands and Survey 53 — Agriculture 33 — Industries and Commerce 50 Scientific and Industrial — Research 61 Mines 2 — Transport 2 — Health 71 — Mental Hospitals 65 —— Education 84 — Pensions 53 National Provident —— 5 Lands for Settlement —— — State Coal Mines 2 — State Forests 1 Unemployment Fund — 864 Working Railways 1000 —- Post Office 790 — Public Trust 19 —— Native Trust Government Life In- — - 36 surance 4 Public Service Superannuation — — State Fire Insurance 3 •— Primary Products Marketing Dept. 78 — , State Advances Cor496 poration Broadcasting Service 132 •— Public Works 97 — 4624 933