MORE WORKERS IN BUILDING TRADES

Grey River Argus, 21 February 1949, Page 7

MORE WORKERS IN BUILDING TRADES

“Building, construction, and supporting industries supplying building materials have again succeeded in making notable increases in their labour forces.” ' This comment is made in the National Employment Service’s halfyearly survey of employment, just issued.'Additional comment is that the figures are encouraging indications for home seekers.

For building and construction the latest stirvey figures show an increase of 1587 'men employed between April and October, 1948, as against 1392 over the same period in 1947. A total of 34,942 men were on builders’ and constructors’ pay rolls in October. 1945, as against 31,609 in 1946. The survey points out that the most marked gains had been made in that portion of the industry engaged on house construction. Male employees on house and flat construction numbered just over 11,100 in October, 1946, 12,600 a year later, and 13,600 in October, 1948. “In considering these figures it should be remembered that the surveys do not cover ‘own account’ workers not employing labour,” the survey adds. “There are known to be a number of ‘own account' workers in the building and construction industry, especially in private house construction, and in extension and maintenance work on dwellings.” The servey figures state that employees in the building materials and furnishings trades group increased from 15,329 in October 1946, to 17,219 in October, 1948. Bush sawmill employees numbered 5282 in 1946, 5805 in 1947, and 6370 in 1948, “an exceptional increase of more than onefifth in two years.”