PROMISE OF INCREASES

Taranaki Daily News, 14 March 1935, Page 7

PROMISE OF INCREASES

RATIONS OF UNEMPLOYED RISE IN SCALE FOR CERTAIN MEN. IMPROVEMENTS FOR THE WINTER. MINISTER ANSWERS DEPUTATION. By Telegraph—Press Association. Wellington, Last Night. Promises of a 50 per cent, increase in the ration system and of a rise in the scale for certain relief Workers were made by the Minister of Employment, the Hon. J. A. Young this afternoon when a deputation representing Christchurch, Wellington and national organisations of unemployed waited on him. A crowd of 300 accompanied the deputation, but it was entirely orderly. Parliament House was well picketed by police. Speakers in the deputation advocated an increase in relief allocations, criticised the Unemployment Board as hiding the true financial position and urged an improvement in the position of single unemployed women. The Minister explained that the £l,250,000 stated to be in the reserve fund of the board was subject to certain liabilities, and the real reserve was only £648,000, which would be sufficient for only 8A weeks on the present basis of expenditure. The board had considered the whole question, the Minister announced, and from May 1 those workers who were on scale D would be raised to scale C. The ration system during the coming Winter Would be improved by 50 per cent, on what it was last winter. Dealing with the 10s increase asked for by the deputation he said that on the basis Of 52,000 unemployed it Would involve an additional expenditure of £1,300,000 a year. The board would Seriously consider the representations made with a view to assisting where it could. Tile deputation was not satisfied with the Minister’s reply and refused to leave the room until it was persuaded to by the police. REQUESTS FROM CHRISTCHURCH. REPRESENTATIVE MEETING HELD. Christchurch, Last Night. A conference of representatives of relief organisations, the churches and local bodies received a deputation from the Canterbury Unemployed Relief Workers’ Association in the city council chambers this afternoon and later passed a motion as follows:— That this conference of representative of local bodies, church organisations, the Metropolitan Relief Association, the Citizens’ llnemployment Committee, the Returned Soldiers’ Association and others is strongly of the opinion that the present policy of dealing with unemployed in New Zealand should be changed. It therefore urges on the Government, pending changes, that all No. 5 scheme relief workers receive an additional payment of 10s a week, with a- corresponding increase for those on sustenance, that the No. 5 scheme be gradually withdrawn, that the Government commence without delay suitable public works on a reproductive nature, such as the completion of railway lines, highway construction, irrigration and drainage, and that the payment of this class of work should be at standard rates. The Christchurch presbytery passed a motion declaring that responsibility for the full maintenance of unemployed should be undertaken by the State.