PR. IJE MINISTER'S INTERVIEW WITH JOURNALISTS AT BALLARAT 19 JULY 1978
Question: Well, what-do you say about the projected f igures?
Prime minister:. 1 haven't' seen any projection, Isve seen -the
newspaper report-but let m'e make a couple of points, because
this is a very serious matter. Emrployment in a number of
industries is very, difficult and Its very -difficult. for a
number ' of' factors. Slage. rates. in -a -two year period went up
by.. over. 50% and that priced imany Australian industries out of
business... N~ ow ' we've been arguing over the last* two years for
wage restraint to try. and get. bao1V to proper relativitie between
the -wageshare! and the prof it: share and over the last twelve months,
for. example, and in spite of. the policies which we've argued
before the. Arbitration Commiss; ion which have not buen-fully.
aacepted by. the'Commission, the share of wages wage inacases,
average earnings have-continued to riSc at a-greater rate than.
the Consumer Price index and that doesn't seem to indicate a
great deal. of restraint which is necessary if we are to
get back, to the levels of employment that we would-like. The
penalty rates in the tourist industry, which is something, which
I'.. referred to at lunchtime,. is something that:. is ' driving
tourists away: fromAustralia to places like Fiji. and Singapore
and-that also, doesn't help A couple of clays ago a major
building., operation in Mlbourne was shut. down., a $ 150 million
project* as 1lundcrutand it., relating to the State Saving. 2s
Ban)% and : it was shut downy as a . result of seven bans' or
so placed upon the construction, guerilla tactict. by. the
Builders Labourers. Federation and under thiese-circumstances
how -can you expect major buildings to be undertaken. in the City..
of: MelIbourne,. and -I ' would say it is a deliberate campaign -by
the; leaders in that-particular industry to prevent buildingtAzing,
place and a deliberate campaign therefore to prevent
expanded employment 4oppoxtunities occuring. In. the demonstration
today,, when.; I arrived in Ballarat, I understand that most. of
those outside the Town Hall were not out of jobas, that-they have.
got jbs, but. they've shut down-. the factory they were operating
in -today so that* they could' demonstrate as though they were.
unemployed. The particular firm for which they.-are working is
losing orders because they,' ve got bans on the f irm and will.
only..., work: 35 hours a week and because of that the firm' gJets.
orders but it can't fill'them -in time and therefore % 4ork is los
While-these. attitudes. Yemain in certain sections* of the union
movement within Australia,. it's going to make -the.-Job-of getting
back. to a level of employment that we all want to see very
difficult. And I make -no bones about it continuation of these
policics by. some-union leaders, by the guerilla tactics, the.
sort-of demonstration that there was; today making, putting
up costs. fo'r industry, unnecessarily, is almost one might think,
-an ef fort to f r'ustrate the of forts of the Government and
the. many. thousands of people throughout Australia to establish
more reasonable circumstances.
Queation: Just on that point, sir,. do you support your-
Ministers attack toclay-on Mr. H-amer and his stand over
wage indexation?
Prime Minister: Whatever M'r. Street saidl-and-whatever
Mr. L-ynch said, about quarterly wage hearings, of course I
support it, because that has been, Government pol icy. We have
argued in the Arbitration Conidssion that change-s in wacje
rate-s every, three months is v'ery unsettling to-business, they
don't know what-decisions are going to be Laken. in relation
to wages, tIherefore they can.' t counlt their costs; going further
into. the future there is an unknown elemnent icnd if' there was
greater stability, wage-rates being.. established every twelvc-
Ynonths, for ex~ ample, that; again would greatly assist i31
creating more employment. Let ne make another poipt in relation
to thiat: when rinflation was running at 16 percent, in the
times of our predecessors, I could understand how employees
would feel left behind if wages were only -adjusted every.
twelve months, but now that inflation is. seven or eight percent
ana-falling, thnt sepnse of injusti ce should not be there if
waget determinations were nuch -Icss frequent than. they now, areñ;
that would assist investment and assist re-establishing
unemploy * ment. at levels which I hope every Australian. wants to
see. But. agaiin, when-1 ; ee the attitudes, the decisions
and-actions of some industrial leaderst union. leader-,' I can
only believe that they. don't want greater employment in
their industry-and are deliberately. trying to subvert economic
recovery in Australia. 0 0 0