JUVENILE JOB PROSPECTS

Press, Volume CVII, Issue 31539, 29 November 1967, Page 1

JUVENILE JOB PROSPECTS

“Although there are fewer vacancies than last year, school-leavers can find jobs if they will hunt for them,” said the District Vocational Guidance Officer in Christchurch (Mr W. J. Boyd) when asked yesterday about prospects.

Mr Boyd said it seemed some school leavers might have difficulty but these would be chiefly young people without satisfactory educational qualifications and records.

A surprising number of young people did not show simple initiative, Mr Boyd said. They should make a careful study of vacancies advertised each day, buy every newspaper in their district, use the yellow pages of the telephone directory and seek personal interviews with the employment officers of firms which interested them, go to libraries and post offices to search directories for firms in fields of interest, and ask anyone in the business if they knew of places with jobs. Many failed to do any of these things and many failed to inform relatives, neighbours, and friends of their needs. For the first time for many years, Mr Boyd said, the Christchurch Vocational Guidance Centre was making “a serious search” for vacancies for young people. About 350 employers had been approached so far for immediate jobs or positions becoming available early next year. This “turned up quite a few possibilities including some even we had not considered." Not including this survey, the centre in October had half the number of vacancies for girls and less than half the number for boys it had in 1966, Mr Boyd said. Yet, also in October, 21 new positions for girls and 31 for boys were reported to the centre. Mr Boyd said that for girls, office junior positions were harder to find, there were few science technician places, and banks had filled their considerable needs with girls

holding university entrance qualifications. Clerical positions were still available for “better educated” boys and there were building cadetships for those suitably qualified. However, it was very difficult this year to find motor mechanic apprenticeships, draughting trainineeships, or field assistantships. Employers were able to pick and choose and qualifications counted, Mr Boyd said.