RELIEF PAY CUT

Waipukurau Press, Volume XXVIII, Issue 31, 28 January 1933, Page 2

RELIEF PAY CUT

MARRIED MEN 9/- A DAY

BOARD SHORT OF FUNDS A cut of one shilling a day in the pay of a number of the men employed on relief works was made in Christchurch on Monday in accordance with instructions received from the Unemployment Board. Previously married men were paid 10s a day, but under the new arrangement they are to receive only nine shillings a day tor the same number of days as previously.

The Waimairi and Halswell County Councils are among the local bodies tb.at have made the cut, and it has also been applied to the men employed on the Summit Road works. Notice to Local- Bodies

The notifications received by the local bodies states that as the funds at the disposal of the. Unemployment Board are insufficient to provide a full ration of work to all eligible men the allocations have been reduced to provide full-time less 10 per cent. The City Council has not cut the pay of the men on its relief works, but its present intention is to reduce the amount of the time that the men are required of work. The council is on a different basis from the other local bodies as the married men on its relief works receive pay at the rate of 12s 6d a day for a shorter period of time. This amount is subsidised by the council to the extent of 2s a day, and brings the earnings of the men up to 14s. Pay Wages Tax Another difference between the position of the City Council and other local bodies is that the relief workers it employs are subject to the wages tax on account of the payment of the subsidy. Relief workers employed by other local bodies are not liable for the wages tax.

The allocation received by Iho council this week from the Unemployment Board amounted to £l4OO, which is 10 per cent less than the allocation for the previous week.