MANY PROBLEMS

Evening Post, Volume C, Issue 40, 17 February 1942, Page 6

MANY PROBLEMS

MEN FOR SHELTER WORK

TRANSFER OF LABOUR

An outline of the machinery set up in Wellington to endeavour to arrange for the large number of men who will be required to carry out the shelter programme proposed was given a "Post" reporter today by an officer of the Department of National Service. This local advisory committee for emergency shelter is -the outcome of a national conference held on February" 3.' Its membership includes the | district Public Works Engineer, as i chairman, the Building Controller, and !the representatives of the building trades, the Man-power Office, and the ; Wellington E.P.S. Its- main duty is Ito determine the amount of manpower available in or near the city (or if necessary the man-power which can be made available from further distances), and to get the best and quickest rearrangement of man-power for civil defence needs, which rank very closely with' national defence. ! There is no margin of man-power at all* and'obviously men cannot be taken from essential defence work' to undertake essential civil' defence .work. It Iwill therefore be necessary to withdraw men from non-essential civil work in the metropolitan area, and to gc further afield i.' the needed numjbei.. cannot be, had. near Wellington. To'bring men. into Wellington will introduce still another problem, that of finding accommodation, for perhaps two or three hundred men. The work has to be done and the difficulties have to be overcome, he said. The men who are to do the work have shown the fullest spirit of co-operation and willingness to get on with the job immediately the first difficulties, including plans and equipment, of starting an entirely new programme of work in urgent hurry have been met.