APPLICATIONS FOR EXEMPTION

Wanganui Chronicle, Volume 84, Issue 189, 13 August 1940, Page 10

APPLICATIONS FOR EXEMPTION

. WAGES INCREASE ORDER TO BE HEARD AS SOON AS POSSIBLE [ Per Press Association. ] CHRISTCHURCH, Aug. 12. An indication that the Arbitration Court would hear as soon as possible employers’ applications for exemption from the general 5 per cent, wages increase order was given by Mr. Justice Tyndall, president of the Arbitration Court, to-day. Mr. Justice Tyndall said the Court had made no definiate fixtures for its visit to Auckland and there would be an opportunity in Wellington to deal with any applications for exemption within the next two weeks. The Court would do its utmost to finish the hearings as soon as possible. At the end of the hearing of the Otago-Southland Butter Factory Managers’ dispute, Mr. D. I. MacDonald (employers) ask<il that any clause relating to wage increase in this or other awards shortly to be issued should be worded in such a way that it would not prevent the parties from applying for exemption if they wished to. Labour View. Commenting on the wage rise Mr. F. D. Cornwell, secretary of the Federation of Labour, said the amount of the increase granted was disappointing. The increase was not as great as had been hoped for. It was considered that the circumstances justified an increase of at least 7a per cent. The Federation of Labour had been approached by business people raising the question of whether workers receiving more than the rates prescribed by awards should also be paid the cost of living bonus. A reply had been given that if these workers had been worth, say 10s a week above award rates in the past there was no reason why they should not continue to be worth the extra plus bonus. The president of the Wellington Chamber of Commerce, Mr. R. H. Nimmo, said there was no denying that the cost of living had risen, and on that basis it would appear that the Court had little difficulty in justifying some increase, but the subject went deeper. The people of this country were living beyond their means and unless and until the vicious spiral of increasing costs and increasing wages were arrested the average citizen was fully justified in asking bluntly where this was going to lead the country and when action was likely to be taken to put an effective stop to it. Employers’ Attitude.

"Employers and all who are carrying the responsibility for the Dominion’s economic maintenance will be concerned at the Court’s decision to grant an all-round increase of 5 per cent, on present wage rates from today,” said Mr. W. Machin, president of the New Zealand Employers’ Association. in criticising tne Arbitration Court wage increase. "I have examined most carefully the Court's stated grounds for this decision and am surprisca that much material evidence—not contraverted at the’hearing—should have been ignored by the Court, a-.d further, that assumptions concerning the future which witnesses would not accept, were used in part by the Court to justify the increases awarded.

“There are very many employers and others who will be discouraged in their struggle to make ends meet under the present difficult conditions and I will say that this discouragement will be a factor in dulling the enthusiasm for more production. The wage-earners have succeeded in getting others to pay their shilling in the pound of extra taxation and many who will sadly help to pay this, in addition to their own extra tax, are people with small fixed incomes who have been wage earners in the past.”