IMMIGRATION.

Dominion, Volume 1, Issue 2631, 5 August 1908, Page 7

IMMIGRATION.

VIEW ZEALAND LABOUR MARKET

LETTER TO ENGLISH NEWSPAPERS. WARNING BY THE CANTERBURY . TRADES COUNCIL. (BY TELEGRAPH—ntESS ASSOCIATION.) 1 ' ~ Chi istchurch, August 4.. Tho following is tho letter addressed to a ■ lumber of npwspapors in Great Britain by tho Canterbury Trades and Labour Council warning intending emigrants that New Zealand can absorb only a limited number,of workers:— -, . ' 'Sir,—Tho desire to, if possible, prevent a ropetition of tho disappointment and misery which'-has fallen on hundreds of our British brethren who, misguided by alluring advertisements,' emigrated to Canada, is ono of ths principal reasons , for the Canterbury Trades and Labour Council, New Zealand, empowering the undersigned to forward for tho instruction of' our fellow-workers in tho Home Land a'truo account of the condition of the labpur market, in -Canterbury, New Zealand. ' Further, it is. considered necessary to do so owing .to the fact that various employers, looking apparently with envious eyes on tho crowded laoour market of Canada, and realising that a glutted market is a cheap market,: aro making an: organised movoment' in tho direction of having the stream of that most desirable commodity, British labour, directed to, the shores'of New Zealand. In malsing this statement we desiro to acknowledge that ,at : stated periods during each year a few industries employ all. the workers procurable,.but thosoporiods.only last for an average term of six weeks, and are chiefly l confined to tho girls' departments of. tho bootmaking and clothing industries; but during the ; 'rest of, the year the wage-tooks ofthoso in'the clothing industries, in particular show workers receiving ' extended holidays, and- being worked three-quarter timo ."ana lesS. ■ Regarding agricultural labourers, the position is worse, owing to tho almost universal use of I ,agricultural machinery/and the, . accumulation of small farms, which are, as; a ..;-'rule, wrought by . members of. tho farmer's farhily. . Little agricultural labour is, • therefore, required other than during harvesting operations when the -surplus labour of tho' towns is drawn! upon. . The weather in the early autumn, is usually : dry, so that harvesting operations are quickly over,, and tho man is lucky, who ; gets a two-months' cheque, after which you may cither go back to tho towns, and stand your clianco in the labour market there, ■ or shoulder olankets and tramp from districtsto district picking iip an.odd job where you can. During the lost year (1907), according to evidence given by » farmer boforo the, Conciliation Board of Canterbury (at present' taking evidence on • tho agricultural labour question), 500 inen visited his place, which is sis miles from the main road, last year. Another farmer, slated that "900 had visited him last ygar. In the opinion of :the farmers! 50 por.:cent. (700) of those were employable and looking for it." * : While that is a small number compared with the unemployed in Britain, still it shows there are sufficient men here for the. needs of the cotintry. In tho cities, there is always/an abundance of men anxious and willing, to take "anything that turns up." In many : instances tradesmen who wore receiving- steady employment a few months ago are experiencing the uncertainty, of not being any. longer required, which-is ono'of tho curses of our present wage system. Iu the saddlery trade, which was reported in Homo ?apers as busy, men Are being dismissed, n'tho tanneries, " staffs , have been reduced, and those who. are retained have been put on short "time,--i.e., four days a week. As is generally the,' case towards the close of the' summer the building, trades me fuiiiy busy, yet even hero there is no great demand for artisans, and ,as for labourers there are many times nio'ro than enough. In alriiost 'all trades work is'more intermittent in New Zealand than at Home, and as a. set-back to a slight incrcaso in wages there % on tho_ necessaries of life and the houselold: an increase of from 50 per cent, to, n many instances, over 100 per cent, on ; orices paid by consumers at Homo. In subnitting this statement, which we liavo enloavoured to make fair and impartial,. we have no desire to depreciate our country for which we believe, -thore is a great future in store, nor do wo desiro to-conserve this country to -those who: at-present inhabit it, as has. been suggested.by some of those who are opposed-to us in the fiold of industrial warfare. , Instead, we idbsiro'to, accord a hearty welcome to overy fellow worker from the Homeland who may come to New Zealand, whether he is impejled hither by the desiro to. better his material conditions, or is simply satisfying, that. roving inclination inherent in so. many, of the British race. Our sole ddsire is to prevent, if possible, that misery. to all which would be sure to follow a sudden rush of workers to a country which, owing to its limited'area compared with other British dominions, can only absorb a comparatively limited number. Wo also desire to make it clear to our-fellow worker's at Home that the same keen strugglo for existence goes on. iu New Zealand and elsewhere, and that in our labour, market there is always a surfeit of men willing to do anything. ■ 'James Thorn . (President), R. T. Bailey (secretary), Canterbury Trades and Lab- , ' our Council. '

THE OTHER SIDE. VIEWS OF EMPLOYERS. ' (bt telegraph.—special correspondent.) Christohuroh, August 4. Tho opinion of employers does not support the statements which Messrs. Thorn, and Bailey have sent to tho English papers regarding tho lack of, ompioymont in Now Zealand.' Tho representative of a large building and contracting firm said that the. publication of tho letter in Groat Britain would have a damaging effect upon tho industrial reputation ox Now Zealand. In his trado generally an average number of men had been kept going throughout tho; winter. Despite tho tact that many tradesmen had flocked to tho city from all parts of tho Dominion and outside countrios, very • fow builders' labourers were out of work. In the depth of winter, of course, many trades experienced considerable broken time.- That occurred overywhero; but tho work was there to bo dono, and in about a month there should be ample employment for all,' despite the fact that many men - from Hoino were seeking engagements here.. For tho week July 18-25 of 1807 his> firm paid away £125 in wages, whereas during tho same period this year £234 16s. 2d. was paid. Builders'labourers wenr not present in oxcessivo numbers, and the bulk' of those competent could find plenty

tho secretary of the Employers' Association, said: Thero aro a number of trades * , ■,? r 1 ° , P rosen t handicapped for want of skilled labour. Speaking generally, the employers find" great difficulty in obtaining labour,- and many, particularly thoso engaged in industrial pursuits, are handicapped by want of skilled labour. It is, in my opinion, .tho .life arid .soul of the Dominion to havo a properly equipped immigration scheme. Employers do not so much complain of having to pay high wages to. competent men, as they do at'having to. pay a high wage to those who aro incompetent; Tho labour unions, and particularly the "agitator leaders, of course, like to hear the cry of shortness of employment-, whether truo or not."

On tho question'of general farm labour, B gentleman who has considerable experienco in tho matter said: "There'is by no means a superabundanco of labour available. ■ At times- tho demand is quiet. But talio tho present time. Thero is a shortage of general farm hands, good, ploughmen, etc. During June, admittedly the worst month so far as work is concerned, somo of tho agencies in town wore'unable to fill orders for ploughmen and general farm hands at wages varying from £1 to £1 10s. per week. As many as twenty or thirty men havo been wanted at timos, hut tho agencies were unable to obtain thorn. So far as this month has gone, too, .thero aro orders for general farm hands awaiting filling."