FARM WORKERS

Grey River Argus, 31 July 1940, Page 3

FARM WORKERS

Experienced Men NEARLY 1500 AWAIT JOBS. WELLINGTON, July 29. “There are si ill a large number of experienced farm workers awaiting engagement,” said the Minister for Labour (the Hon. P. C. Webb), in uh interview to-day. He said that apart from nearly 1500 experienced men enrolled with the State Placement Service, there were nearly 1750 experi - enced workers at present employed on various State works who were ready to transfer to farm jobs as soon as required. More than 1600 inexperienced State employees were also available if wanted.

“In every instance these men on State undertakings ;who are shown a s available for farm work have volunteered to take it up because they are eager to assist the farmer and th o Government in carrying out , New Zealand’s part in the war effort,’’ the Minister said. He also emphasised met advantages attached to engaging married men. There was a marked tendency on the part of farmers to apply for young single inexperienced men, whose wages could be subsidised under the 4F subsidy scheme. Already in July 135 men had been p aced under this scheme, and the bulk of them had been young and single, a type that was becoming much more dimcult to provide. On the other hand, the Minister said, departmental sta " tistics showed that at July 19 there were available 2213 experienced and 2438 inexperienced married men, taking into account State employees who had volunteered for farm work. There were also 969 single experienced men available at the same date; but a large proportion of them lived in the South Island, where the demand was not yet so great. Mr Webb urged farmers to take single or- married experienced men wherever possible. There would be no objection to farmers expressing a preference for experiened youths and young single inexperienced men in their applications; but they would greatly help placement officers if they would agree to take married men when others were not available. Many of the married men, both experienced and inexperienced, were prepared with the accommodation allowance being paid by the Government, to g" on farms without their families, ano be regarded from the point of view of farmers as single employees. The Minister said that since the beginning oi July the Placement Service had filled 488 farm positions, and 42 of the men placed had been State employees.