TEACHING OF TRADES

Dominion, Volume 37, Issue 122, 18 February 1944, Page 3

TEACHING OF TRADES

Change In Control Of State Training Scheme CONSTRUCTION OF HOUSES An announcement that the control of the Government trade training schemes was being handed over by. the Department of Labour to the Rehabilitation Department wis made las( evening by the Miuister of Labour, Mr. Webb. He said that ihe early demands of New Zealand s war effort for skilled workmen in the war .industries led to The Government setting lip a Dominion Auxiliary Workers draining Council to organize and operate training- schemes. This provided workers to increase war production and to replace other workers going into the armed iorces. The administration of the council s measures was undertaken by the Department of Labour through the offices ot the organizer of eimergency training. The training scheme, said the Minister, had had a growing effect on the output of the Dominion war effort, and also the provision of much needed homes, •buv as its original purpose had now largely been fulfilled the scheme was being used to form the basis of a comprehensive rehabilitation measure for tlie training of" returned servicemen. Therefore it was felt that the time had arrived when the trade training organization could well be transferred to the Rehabilitation Department. ' Tn acknowledging the fine results ot the work of the Dominion Auxiliary Workers’ Training Council the Minister mentioned that actual State houses at the rate of approximately 150 a year were now being constructed by trainees- of the Government carpentry training centres during the course of their 12 months training. This rate would increase as further centres were established in other districts during the coming year. Government training centres had been established by the Department of Labour in con- . junction with the council .to provide training in carpentry, engineering, welding. And i footwear making. Carpentry training centres were now operating at Miramar, iPctone, Auckland, Christchurch, Rotorua, ■Dunedin and Napier, and there was a footwear and a welding centre in Auckland, while engineering and welding training had been given at the technical colleges at Auckland, Wellington, Christchurch and Dunedin. Number of Trainees.

At present there were 357 men in New Zealand undergoing carpentry training, while 241 men had already completed their training. Fifty-eight engineering and welding-trainees were undergoing training, with 448 already passed out. There were 15 footwear trainees in Auckland and 185 had completed this course. This made,a total of .430 men at present in. trade training, with 874 already trained, or 1311 all told. The number of ex-servicemen trained and training was as follows: Carpentry 389, engineering 103, welding 59, and footwear 32, making a total of 583. The proportion of ex-servicemen was expected to increase considerably infuture courses. The carpentry course that 'had recently .begun in Auckland comprised 25 exservicemen, while 20 out of the 25 trainees in the last class in Petonc were also ex-servicemen. The ingoing welding class ;n Christchurch also comprised all exservicemen. Returned soldiers had. displayed great keenness in their training and the general level of their work had been high. “The seven carpentry training, centres are each equipped to train 72 men a j car in three classes of 24, each class beginning four months after the previous one and each covering a course of 12 months,” said tlie Minister. “During the first four months trainees receive intensive basic workshop training and this is followed by eight months on the actual construction of State houses. Six men work on a bouse, and during the eight mouths two bouses are built-by each group of six men. Thus each centre is building 24 State house units a year, or approximately 150 units for the seven centres, hillside buildings taking somewhat longer to construct than houses on the flat.” The Minister said that proposals were under consideration for the extension of tlie carpentry training scheme to other districts and for the establishment of training centres in still further industries. The scheme should be a valuable adjunct to. the Rehabilitation Department’s facilities for the rehabilitation of ex-service-men.