WAITAKI HYDRO WORKS

Greymouth Evening Star, 13 September 1934, Page 5

WAITAKI HYDRO WORKS

ABSORPTION OF EMPLOYEES. Successful efforts are" being made by the Public Works Department to place in other employment those men who will be paid off when the Waitaki hydro-electric works are completed. Other major public works, including the Kingstown—Queenstown road, the Milford Sound road, the Glenavy irrigation scheme, and the Falls dam in. Otago Central, will absorb many men, and the department is at present engaged in investigating the desirability of proceeding with other works, particularly in Otago Central irrigation. On August 1 last, 656 men were still employed at Kurow —since then the number has fallen to 507. Of the 149 who were paid off at Waitaki, 37 left of their own accord, presumably because they had other employment in view. Of the remainder, 69 married men were offered and accepted work on the Wakatipu road, 17 on the .Te Anau-Milford road, and two on irrigation work in Otago. Thus 88 married men were transferred to other works without the danger of loss of employment. Seventeen married men refused work on the roads mentioned.

The 507 men. now on. the Waitakl pay-roll include 40 men on transmission line erection, and the ’number actually working at the dam is 467. The Minister of Public Works, Hon. J. Bitchener, said last week that if the river remained low it should not be necessary to pay off many men for five or six weeks. The Minister added that there were still 189 vacancies ,for men on the four main southern schemes, 70 at Glenavy, 58 at Lake Wakatipu, 31 at Milford, and 30 at the Falls dam. On the Queenstown road 69 men are already been placed, and on the Milford road 17. The .full complements for these jobs provided for 275 men.

Every married man who was paid off at Waitaki last month because of shortage of work had been offered further employment on other departmental and there were enough vacancies on these works to absorb all married men who were likely to be dispensed with at Kurow during the next few weeks.