EMPLOYMENT

Hokitika Guardian, 21 September 1937, Page 3

EMPLOYMENT

_ ; —...- SKILLED WORKERS NEEDED. (Per Press Association—Copyright). AUCKLAND, Sept. 20. 5 “Quite definitely, the unemployment j problem in New' Zealand has its back broken, and if we can get sufficient * skilled men, it will not .be long before we have employment for every man 1 capable of accepting it,’’ said the Act-ing-Minister of Labour and Employ* j ment, Hon P. C. Webb, to-night. The Minister said the scheme of training the young men, from 18 to 25 years., of" age, who had missed their opportunity during- the depression, was well under way, and a considerable number of apprenticeships have already been registered. The Government would spare no efforts to have tliese young men trained. “We are badly in need of more carpenters and builders,” the Minister' added. “In fact, the work wo have planned ont will require at least 10,000 additional tradesmen. We have dozens of big public buildings ready/po be built, if labour can be found.. There are contracts let for the building of houses in over 40 towns, and in many instances, a shortage of sk.lled men ha s impeded operation’s. “Unless we can get skilled tradesmen, it will be very much more difficult to solve the unemployment problem,” said the Minister. . “Given sufficient skilled artisans, the unemployed army will be those who are unemployable.” The Minister added that in nCnv parts of New' Zealand at the present time, there w r ere no unemployed w’hp w T ere able t.o work. It wms only in the cities and the big towns that the problem was still in evidence, ~ -