'File 10/1 G BAPCO labour' [‎104r] (211/586)

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Police e.g. are given rations) • Mr.Waixl Anderson and Mr.Ohliger
urged that the wages given to their employees in the past left a
very considerable margin above a "living wage* i*e* the minimum
wage necessary to support a man and his family. MroOhliger said
that some years ago the daily wage of unskilled labour was 10
annas* This rate had gradually been raised until now it was
Re. 1/-^and Re. 1/2 for persons who had been in the Company's
employment for a year or more. He said that this rate, in spite
of the increase in the cost of living^ constituted still a living
wage and 9 while he admitted the responsibility of an employer to
see that employees received a living wage, he saw no reason why
higher wages should be paid gratuitously. J /j ^
At this point of the discussion Mr. Gunn showed the
recently
Conference a copy of a cable which he had/rece 1 ved from the
Directors of the Eastern Bank in London. The wording of the
cable was as followst*
The Directors wish me to emphasize to you, and through
you to the whole of the staff, that, the Bank cannot be ex
pected to provide them with full relief from the higher cost
of living and that under present circumstances a ft I in
the general standard of living must be accepted by every
body as part of the burden of war. "
Mr. Gunn took this ctible to mean that no help was to be given
to the Ban^s employees to enable them to meet the higher cost
of living, and it was necessary for me to point out that his
Directors had only taken objection to providing employees with
"full relief tt . The implication was, 1 said, that the employee
should be given some relief from the higher cost of living.
3. Mr .Ward Anderson denied strongly that his Company was
under any obligation to help its employees to meet the increased
cost of living. He pointed out that the wage given to the
Company^s employees had not been determined by consideration of
their living expanses and should not in any way be tied down to
this factor. He said that if for one mement the principle was
admitted that there existed a basic connection between wages and
living cost^ every increase in price would be reflected by a
/ demand