DEMAND FOR SKILLED WORKERS

Dominion, Volume 21, Issue 10, 6 October 1927, Page 8

DEMAND FOR SKILLED WORKERS

SUPPLY OF APPRENTICES

IMPROVEMENTS IN SYSTEM NEEDED .

In the opinion of the Minister of Labour, the Dominion may require to reconstruct the technical school system, to enable lads to be taught the rudiments of trades to meet the demand for skilled workmen.

Speaking in the House of Representatives'after midnight on Tuesday, in closing the debate on the Apprentices Bill, the Minister of Labour (Hou. G. J. Anderson) said tbe Bill had been unanimously agreed to by representatives of the employers, employees, and the Education Department. It was a good Bill, and verydrastic in many ways. She Court might require any employer to employ the number’ ol apprentices it deemed necessary to ensure the proper working of the industry. The power of the apprenticeship committees was not curtailed in any way, but they would have a wider scope, and the' Act would be made more workable by the district quota being repealed’ in favour of the individual quota. At one time, said the Minister, there was an over-supply of apprentices offering for engineering, everything connected with electricity, motor mechanics, and a large number of other important trades, such as bricklaying and plastering. The demands of the plastering trade in respect to apprentices had really not been kept up, nor had those of tailoring. Ju fact, in Dunedin some employers in the tailoring trade had come to him and asked for what he believed would have to be done in every part of the Dominion in a very short time, owing to the advance in machinery; that was, the starting of “trade schools” to teach apprentices the trade. It was a common tiling in America, where there were schools where boys were taught almost any trade to carry them along/ until they were fit to take positions as journeymen or improvers. Something of the kind would have to be done in New Zealand. He believed, however, that they would have to go further . than enabling trade schools to be started by the industries themselves, and eventually they would have so to reconstruct the technical school system that boys would be taught the rudiments of trades, in which they would probably eventually become proficient. There was no other way in which they could secure that lads would be taught their trade. Machinery wag' in vogue now, and especially in' the trades connected with woodwork. There a boy could not get the manual instruction that was so important to fit him to become an efficient worker; the only way he could obtain it to-day was at the technical schools aud at woodwork classes. Conference to be Called. In further reference to the working of the present Act, the Minister stated that the inspection of apprentices was a difficult matter for the committees’ to carry out, but he thought it could be overcome. He intended during the recess to call a conference of representatives of the Dominion committees, when the Act would be reviewed to ascertain where Hie machinery was not running smoothly. A questionaire had been set cut to the committees, but not in one case had an answer been received adverse to the principles of the Act. Suggestions were sent in for improvement, and in nearly every case he believed the difficulties could be got over without the need for much amendment of the law. The Minister added that he did not intend to refer to the question of the secondary industries. They ought to have more industries and more avenues of employment, but the difficulty was to get them. They had been told that unemployment had been caused bv the Government. That was good partv tactics, but it did not carry any weight with thoughtful men. .