Foreign. Labour “Restricted”

Press, Volume CVI, Issue 31235, 6 December 1966, Page 3

Foreign. Labour “Restricted”

(New Zealand Press Association)

WELLINGTON, December 5. Overseas labour in New Zealand is sometimes working under conditions of employ-ment-conditions set by their own countries —which restricts their freedom of action as individuals, says the annual report of the Labourers’ Federation.

To meet the shortage of certain skilled labour in New Zealand, particularly for underground work and large civil engineering undertakings, it has been the practice to import labour, says the report. “It has been noted that in countries where there is a preponderance of labour, the authorities and private individuals are exporting labour to other countries on conditions determined in their own countries. “The workers in the cases are merely chattels. “They are exported just like machinery. The language difficulty in some instances makes it hard for them to understand the conditions imposed upon them in their own country with the result that their freedom of action as individuals is restricted, and they are torn between legal considerations in New Zealand and the conditions imposed upon them at the point of engagement.”. The report says that there does not seem to be any international law to prevent this. Assurances had been received from Italian representaties that no restrictions would be placed on Italian workmen at Tongariro to limit their freedom of action, and should they desire, they could make

application to become naturalised New Zealand citizens. “It is refreshing to hear this as some countries do not regard the freedom of action of individual workers as a paramount consideration,” the report says. It was resolved at the association’s annual conference to discuss the problem with the Minister of, Labour (Mr Shand) with a view to cooperation between the Government and the industrial labour movement in an attempt to overcome "unfair impositions” placed on foreign workers.