The potters herald. [volume] (East Liverpool, Ohio) 1899-1982, 1939-04-20
Cost-of-Living
Bdsic Wage Hits
Foreign Workers
Australian Employees Suffer
Through Minimum
Wage Boards

Sydney, Australia-The widespread
policy Of minimum wage boards to de-
termine wages based on prices far be-
low those which dealers impose on the
workers is strongly pictured by the re-
cent action Of the Arbitration Court
Of Australia in refusing to make any
variations in the basic wage on the
ground that the figures in the cost of
living index compiled by the Common
wealth Government did not justify it.
This action was taken despite the fact
that every housewife knew from prac-
| tical experience in purchasing house
hold supplies that the real cost of liv-
ing had increased
In commenting on this anomaly an
article entitled "a Basic Wage Mys-
terry" published in the Australian
Worker, says:
what has always been a mystery
| 70 the average Wage-earner is the
method adopted in compiling the cost
of-living index figure upon which the
basic wage is computed.
''In regard to foodstuffs and groc-
cries, the retail prices Of list of COM
modities, constituting what is known
as the composite unit are ascertain
ed, and the ost-of-living index figure
is adjusted according to the rise or
fall in commodity prices. But no de-
tails are furnished as to what COM
modltles constitute the composite unit,
nor are the prices of commodities, as
collected by the Statistician, made
public, so that they can be checked up
as to price and quality.
During the last few months there
have been substantial increases in the
prices of many everyday commodities
Yet the astounding announcement was
made by the Federal Arbitration Court
last week that there would be little or
no variation in the basic wage, as the
cost-of-living index figure did not war
rant it,
at will come as a surprise to most
people to learn that, with the exception
OF potatoes and onions, vegetables
are completely omitted from. the list
Of foodstuffs in the composite unit
upon which the cost-of-living index
figure is computed. All kinds of fruit
and fish are also omitted. And the
official explanation why fruit, vege-
tables and fish do not appear in the
price index is because of the difficulty
in obtaining standard values
Nov, fruit and vegetables par
ticularly the latter-constitute import
ant items in the everyday household
food budget. And, as everybody
knows, the prices of these connmodi-
ties have been at famine level during
recent months. The top prices paid
for fruit and vegetables have been a
decided factor in increasing the cost
of living, but because these articles
are not included in the retail price in
deX there has been no compensating
increase in the basic wage for the ex-
ira outlay in the weekly food bill.
"All this centers attention on the
fact that the standard upon which the
living wage is based is totally made
quate for present-day purposes.
What is needed is a complete revi-
sion of the foodstuff commodities con-
stituting the composite unit The list
should comprise all the articles of diet
now in everyday use, and they should
be standardized to present-day needs,
both as regards quantity and quality.
There should also be revision Of the
other units in the cost-of- living index,
so that they too, should conform to
present-day requirements.
! L i Il. L
ness of compiling the ost-of-living in
dex should be to lift up the standard
Of living of the masses, and not to
force it to lower levels by the omission
of important and necessary commodi-
ties from the index list