The Hawaiian gazette., 1895-12-17
COOPERATIVE Works System in
New Zealand.
SOLUTION OF ALL DIFFICULTIES,
Plan Explained in Detail 10 Attorney
General SmIth-wage Rates Fixed
by Government Engineer Labor
Bureau Furnish Laborers, Etc.

The Premier of New Zealand il
an interview with Attorney-Gen
eral W. o. Smith made the follow
ing explanations of the system
which is well worth ponderin!
over. 1t shows how much thought
and care the government give tC
the governed. The Premier said
in reply TO question from Mr.
Smith:
We have another system which
might prove useful to you, and that is
in connection with the carrying on OF
our public works. We call IL ''the
cooperative works system" We
found here, after many years in the
construction Of our railways and large
public works, that We got a certain
class Of contractor, who, when sue
cessful in his tender, naturally EN-.
ployed only the strongest and ablest
workmen he could engage. Conse-
quently the older and weaker class OF
men could not get an hours work on
ourcontracts, and they became knock
abouts on the stations or in the towns,
or had TO compete in the towns in the
labor market. This, OF course, was
very undesirable state of things.
Well, in 1891 We abolished the old
contract system altogether, and inau-
gurated the system of cooperative
works. We get our engineer to fix
the value of the work, and how much
It will take 10 pay expert laborers SIS.
per day, and the amount is fixed per
mile or per yard on that basis.
Then We allow little over that for
what was originally the contractors
profits. Each mile is then divided |
into four or five sections, and in allot- |
ting the work the married men In the |
particular locality where the work is
going on have the preference. Some
OF them may never have hsL died
pick or shovel before. These m en- Ap-
ply through what is called the -'lsbor
bureau" All men out Of work in q
district 90 10 the agent of the labor
bureau and have their names en- tered
upon the list as being IN want Of en-
ployment. When the officer in ch arge
of the work requires some men be
sends down to the labor bureau az enk,
md says: "Send me up fifty men for
his particular work" The men who
ire selected then form their own par
les. At the inception of the scherneI
he idea had WAS TO get the strong
nen TO work with the weaker labor
rs, but found that human nature
vas, as usual, selfish. A section of
ailwsy was in course Of construction
Il Westport, ON which some four hun
lred men were working, and the en- 4.
,ineer was instructed 20 divide the .
arnings equally among the number, !
ut was not long in finding out that :
he young men did net care 70 work .
With tie Older men. / lad therefore TO ;
amend the system, and allow the
parties 10 form themselves. The
young and strong men get together, !
and the older men form parties
amongst themselves by mutual agree
ment. You will find that the first
class men will make S.. per day, and,
perhaps, a fraction over. The engineer,
Of course, fixes the vaiue at fair
value 10 the state and 10 the men.
Second class men will make So. per
iay, and third. class men IL. per day. 1
the latter were class OF
workmen who could get no employ
ment AZ all, and they are satisfied with
the wages, as they know tina, is all
they are worth. The inferior labor
does not cost the state any more, al
though it takes the men longer to do
the work. The rate of pay for the
work is fixed at what is called "liv-
ing wage" Before this syst-m was
started the men congregated in the
big cities, where there wss no work Of
any kind for them to do. They be
came disorgsnized and dissolute, and
often committed breaches of the law
We have stopped all that now. The
men apply to the Labor Bureau, and
are sent away into the country. |
have known men who never handled
a pick or shovel before they went on
10 the cooperative works earn %. Cd.
per day or ls. per day for start, and,
after q couple of months work, made
their IS. per day. They are then able
to send little toward the support OF
their wives snd families.