TROUBLE AHEAD

Wanganui Chronicle, Volume 80, Issue 134, 8 June 1937, Page 7

TROUBLE AHEAD

Strain of Present Wage Bill NEW ZEALAND’S INDEBTEDNESS POSITION OF MAN ON LAND [ Per PresswAsaociatlon. J * DUNEDIN, June T. Declaring that the country va* unable to stand the strain of i.i resent wage bill considering too amount of work done by me.i who seemed to regard ide as “one long smoko,” Mr R. J. E. Smith (president of the Otago Provincial Council of the Farmers’ Union) in lae cour.e of an address to the annual conference to-night, said that New Zealand would eventually have to face a very serious position which would react very unfavourably on primary inczistry and the man on the land.

“Some months ago,” said Mr Smith “an Empire conference was held ii New Zealand and one of the delegates, a prominent visitor from Great Britain, is reported to have made the following remarks: ‘New Zealand it a young country. Your national and local body inaebceuness is just about the highest in the world. If I ever got. into debt I think 1 would take my coat off and work hard in an endeavour to put things right. How do you expect, >n a young country like yours, that you are ever going to get out of the position you are in when you pay your unemployed 15s a day and you introduce a 40-hour week?’ “I cannot let this occasion pass without expressing grave concern at the tremendous amount of unproductive expenditure which is going on in this country. I know that a lot of the expenditure will ultimately lead to improvements in main highways, etc., but I question if this country can, at this stage, stand the strain of its present wage bill for the very small amount of work which is being accomplished in return. As a motorist, I am glad to see certain bad corners eliminated, but as a Nev< Zealander I fell concerned when 1 see thousands of pounds being spent in straightening perfectly saie portions of a main road when there is so much developmental work still to be none in this country.” “On many jobs,” Mr Smith continued, “it is the exception to see men exerting themselves. With some, life is one long ‘smoko.’ Surely it is not beyond the intelligence of our Government to devise some scheme whereby the men would have to accomplish a definite amount of work before receiving a day’s pay. You may well say, ‘What would happen to those who are not fit for hard work?’ Obviously such unemploy* ables would have to be weeded out. I say candidly that if something is not done soon then the majority of men working in unemployment camps in this country will have to face a serious position.” So far as he could see, there were only three ways of raising money: First, by taxation; second, by borrowing; and third, by inflation. All three courses seriously reacted upon the man on the land, and when all was said and done the land was the only asset which was most likely to suffer if increased taxation, borrowing or inflation were resorted to. Anything which further raised farming costs must inevitably lead to a falling off in production.