AFTER A JOB.

Auckland Star, Volume LIII, Issue 70, 3 April 1922, Page 7

AFTER A JOB.

FTVE HUNDRED APPLICANTS. SIGNS OF A HARD WINTER. Some idea of the amount of unemployment existing in the city at the present time is indicated by the fact that a response of just on ST)O applications were received last week for a labouring job advertised by a local sporting club, the wages being announced at fo a week. The previous week the City Council advertised for a man to do clerical work at £3 10/ a week, and there were 158 applicants, ranging from youths to elderly men with family responsibilities. So apparent was it that the aspect of helping some needy family had to be considered as much as the suitability of the applicants that the Council appointed a man vho was married and had dependents, and at the same time raised the salary to £4 a week.

At the same meeting the secretary of the New Zealand Labour Party miiQe a plea to the council to awaken public interest in the need for a special effort to alleviate distress in the city from unemployment, backing the plea with a list of over 300 worKless people, and this matter will be considered by the council this week.

A prominent trades union secretary and social worker informed a "Star" representative to-day that unemployment is more acute in Auckland just now than it has ever previously been. Skilled as well as unskilled workers were included among the idle, and he had never oefore experienced so much ' hardship and distress among the working people. There was a very large proportion of the timber-workers, carpenters and engineers idle. In one union alone, the engineers, almost 200 men were out of work. He knew that most philanthropic bodies were doing their best with the funds at their disposal, but these were totally inadequate for the present crisis, while the Trades Hall officials encountered dozens of men, -women and girls who were in dire need, but declined to accept charity. The story of wide-spread unemployment was corroborated by inquiry at the relief division of the Hospital and Charitable Aid Board, where the applications for relief have gone up very largely of late. One feature of the situation which was mentioned by Mr. Phelan, secretary of the Timber" Workers' Union, was the lar»e number of girls and other women -who are seeking employment. He had recently come across several cases, he said, in which both the husband and wife of immigrant families were in work, and he thought that employers might ease the situation a litf/i by a policy of not employing women whose husbands had ■work, "to enable widows with families and young girls who were self-dependent to find a living. Another matter that has been under discussion at the Trades Hall is the Government's policy of relief to workless returned soldiers by offering them jobs on Public Works contracts. The Government offers the men 12/ per day and require/5 that they should pay their own fares to the job and purchase pick and shovel for the work. It is felt that the Government might make arrangements to advance, under a guarantee, the fare and cost of outfit to married men who go on the public works jobs to keep their families going, but the argument centres chiefly on why returned soldiers of all men should be asked, just because they are temporarily out of work, to go and work for a wage' which is 2/ a day less than other workers on the same job are getting.