The Press WEDNESDAY,SEPTEMBER 16, 1942. Child Labour

Press, Volume LXXVIII, Issue 23744, 16 September 1942, Page 4

The Press WEDNESDAY,SEPTEMBER 16, 1942. Child Labour

The Christchurch Technical College Board, at a recent meeting, discussed thoroughly and usefully the bearing of the school-leaving age on post-war rehabilitation and recommended to the Government “that “the school-leaving age should be “raised to 15 years immediately at “ the end of the war and that chil- “ dren should be excluded by law “ from gainful occupation up to that “age.” But although it is impossible to contemplate any upward revision of the leaving age during the war, it seems necessary to emphasise that there are some aspects of the problem which can and should be dealt with now. In the course of its discussion the board drew attention to figures prepared by the local vocational guidance authorities showing that in Christchurch alone 700 children under 16 years of age entered employment. The figures for New Zealand as a whole are given in the latest report of the Labour Department; they show that for the year ended March 31, 1942. 4298 -children (2153 boys and 2145 girls) were granted certificates enabling them to work in factories. Of these, 196 boys and 284 girls were under 14 years of age. In the present situation the employment of child labour on a large scale is perhaps unavoidable; but that is not an excuse for ignoring the dangers of child labour or for making only halfhearted efforts to minimise them. The first and most serious danger is to the health of the children. In the interests of employers and of the community, not less than of the children themselves, permits to work in factories should in no cases be given without a preliminary medical examination. Moreover, there should be some extension of the school medical service to ensure that the physique of children in factories is not being adversely affected by the nature of their work. The second danger is that some children, released suddenly from the restraints of school life and earning wages which seem to them liko wealth, will become difficult to control and will fall into bad company. If the Government has any doubts about the reality of this danger, it should consult social workers in any of the large centres. There is an obvious need for better recreational facilities for young factory workers. The third danger is that, after a few years, many of these child workers will discover that they are in blind-alley occupations and that their industrial skill amounts to the mastery of a few elementary processes. If a tragic wastage is to be avoided, some attempt must be made to bring education into the factories.