THE RETURNED MAN.

Lyttelton Times, Volume CXVII, Issue 17877, 24 August 1918, Page 10

THE RETURNED MAN.

HIS RE-ENTRY INTO INDUSTRY. POSITION IN CHRISTCHHROH. According, to a recent telegram from Wellington the employment of the returned discharged soldier is becoming a difficult problem in some parts of the North Island. In consequence of this statement a " Lyttelton Times" reporter made some inquiries yesterday as to the.position of affairs in Chratch'urch. '' Mr 0. W. Green, secretary of the Returned Soldiers' Association, was called upon, and he quickly stated that in this city there was a different tale to tell. One class of employment generally offered to the returned soldier that Mr Green did not at ail approve of, unless the man was absolutely unfitted for anything else, was the work of looking after a lift. "At this," he said, "they learn absolutely nothing. The Government at the present time is offering every facility for the returned men to learn useful occupations. We have at present several men following new work. For instance, some are engaged in vulcanising tyre ■ work, who prior to enlisting were farm labourers or horsebreakers, and their employers report verv favourably as to their progress. One in particular has done so well chat the firm has offered him £4 a week to go to another city where it has bought a plant, and this after only four months' experience. At the present time wo are able to cope with the number of men looking for work, and we think that in the case of one-armed men it should be able to place them in various businesses to look after machinery and so forth. The association wants to get these men rehabilitated. 11 will give you another instance of • the way in which returned men are ■proving their worthiness in new occupations, and this is the case of three men who are engaged in leather goods manufacturing and who previously were respectively a tailor's cutter, a farm labourer and an hotel porter. Their employers report, very favourably concerning them, and in six months they had reached a grade of work in the business which generally takes the ordinary apprentice three years." This was due greatly, in Mr Green's opinion, to the _fact that the men had been placed directly at the bench, which made the work more interesting. There might be a few men ;in Ohristchurch wanting work, but these men must como along and the association would do all it possibly could for them. The employers were meeting them very fairly, and with few exceptions they spoke highly of the men's efforts. It was foolish, though, to take on men who were unsettled. The opinion after experience, of one man was that, he would have absolutely no one but returned soldiers if he could possibly help it, as he haa found that all such men learning new occupations were interested and keen, knowing that the whole, of their future depended upon their own efforts. There were two cases of men seeking employment at present, both ploughmen, who, through .disablement, were unable to return to their former occupation. f There are a few men," said Mr Green, "who have never worked, and never will. ' We find that a good percentage of the grievances -among returned men are purely due to ignorance ; they do not know what the Government is prepared to do for them, and do not take the trouble to find out. Of course, there are a few men absolutely unfitted for any occupation, and to help tUese the Government allows a supplementary grant with the •pension, and in quite u number of cases ■men have been able to secure this grant from the Government. Also, when men are unable to resume their pre-enlist-rnent occupation, and have to take up new occupations, the Government suosidises their income to allow of a living wage, and the subsidy is exclusive of any war pension." ',,'„' Active service conditions, Mr Greeu pointed out, affect some men differently from others, and the time would arrive, in his opinion, wlien there would be numbers of men about who were unable to follow their pre-war occupations, or had bocomo of unsettled habits. la view of the coming of such a time, the suggestion was made that, conferences should be arranged by the Government in each centre, to which should be invited the representatives of every industry, to take the matter up, and if possible set up Bmall committees, including representatives of the Government, the various industries, the labour unions, and the Returned Soldiers' Association. "Such a committee," Mr Green said, " could be called together once a fortnight, or as occasion arose. The applicant' could appear personally, and alter inquiry could be advised as to what would be the most useful and profitable occupation for him to follow. Many men at the present time realJ> do, not know whuv thoy can do until they try. Let me tell you a case in point. There is a returned soldier, formerly a coachman, who has had his right leg shattered, and is now unable to lift any heavy weight. He is a cripple for life. He wanted to tak'i on motor driving. At this he would have to be out in all sorts of weather, and this naturally would not tend to improve "him physically. We got him placed in a boot factory, ami his employers speak very highly of him. The conditions under which he is working are pleasant, and he, is very . satisded.,r " The executive of the Returned Soldiers' Club advises men at present what class of work to undertake, and in no instance, Mr Green states, have the men turned back on the advke given. In other respects the club is proving of great utility, for the reason that undischarged men, and men receiving medical treatment, can obtain wholesome recreation there, which keeps them from roaming about the streets, and they are under the eye of the officers of the association, who are nble to note the various peculiarities > f the different men, and thereby," concluded Mr Green, "it is helping in the matter of repatriation.''