SMALL EARNINGS

Timaru Herald, Volume CXLIII, Issue 20680, 19 March 1937, Page 8

SMALL EARNINGS

INTERMITTENT WORKERS HOURLY BASIC WAGE SUGGESTED By telegraph—Press Association WELLINGTON, March 18. The plight of intermittent workers whose rates of pay do not enable them to earn the basic wage was the subject of comment to-day by the Minister of Labour, who suggested that the difficulty might be overcome if an hourly basis of remuneration similar to that applying to waterside workers were fixed. ‘Representations have been made to me from time to time from all parts of the Dominion concerning the earnings of Intermittent workers, particularly builders and other classes of labourers.” said Mr Armstrong. “Figures supplied to me show that the average weekly earnings of these workers are considerably less than the basic wage of £3/16/- a week,., the low rate of earnings being due to loss of time on account of wet weather, lack of continuity of employment and other causes. It was the Intention 01 the Legislature when the Industrial Conciliation and Arbitration Amendment Act, 1936, was enacted that the basic rate of wages for adult male workers should be such a rate as would be sufficient to enable the recipient to maintain a wife and three children in a fair ar.d reasonable standard of comfort. It was thought at the same time that an hourly basic rate would have been fixed which would have had regard to the earning power of intermittent workers. However, the only basic wage fixed was the weekly one, possibly because no representations were made to the Court for the fixation of any other basic wage than the weekly one. Power is contained in the Act for the General Order to be amended ir. not less than six months, and It will therefore shortly be possible for workers in question to ask the Court to declare an hourly basic wage. “Waterside workers who are paid on an hourly basis have always received a considerably higher hourly rate than the average unsKllled worker on account of the Intenn itency of employment, and it appears to me that there Is no reason why other workers engaged in irregular employment should not receive similar consideration.”