Employment in Winter

Manawatu Times, Volume 64, Issue 145, 22 June 1939, Page 10

Employment in Winter

FLAN FOR SEASONAL WORKERS MINISTER VISITS PALMERSTON NORTH Plans for the employment of seasonal workers who are idle in the winter months were laid before a meeting of local body representatives and stock and station agency executives in Palmerston North on Tuesday afternoon, by the Minister of Employment (Hon. P. C. Webb) this being his final calling place in a hurried trip he made to include also Napier, Hastings, Dannevirke and Woodville. The Minister travelled direct to Wellington by car after the conference. Those present included the Mayor of Palmerston North (Mr. A. E. Mansford), and Messrs. W. H. Hall (representing Messrs. Dalgety and Co., Ltd.), L. H. Atkins (New Zealand Loan and Mercantile Agency Co., Ltd.), L. H. Spencer (dairy companies), H. J. Rees (farming community), L. I. Plimmer (secretary of the Manawatu executive of the Farmers’ Union), W. R. Hopcroft (chairman of the Kairanga County Council), L. C. Pickering (engineer of the Kairanga County Council), A. K. Drew (clerk of the Manawatu County Council), L. W. Cozens (district clerk of the Social Security Department) and D. Donovan (registrar of Social Security for Palmerston North). In an interview following the conference, the Minister said the tour was undertaken in order to ascertain the number of seasonal workers who have become unemployed. 11 The Government *s plan,” he said, “is to provide work in the off-season for seasonal workers. Even in the most prosperous years many thousands of shearers, farm labourers, freezing-works employees, dairyfarm workers and others, find themselves out of employment, and in many cases they are reduced to a state of want because of difficulty in finding work during winter months. The purpose of my hurried visit is to arrange work through local bodies, where possible, and State departments, to make quite sure that any man able to work will not be without it. Land Improvement. ‘ ‘The work arranged consists of road and drainage undertakings and land or scrub clearing. The Government has extended the 4b scheme (involving a 50 per cent, wage subsidy) to a 75 per cent, wage subsidy on approved jobs. This scheme will enable many farmers to bring much more land into production. The State Advances Corporation is advancing money to approved farmers to clear more land and, in some cases, where drainage works will bring land into production subsidies are arranged accordingly. “It is pleasing to me to find that many of the farmers are availing themselves of the opportunity of getting scrub land cleared and thus employing labour at the same time. After visiting the Hawke’s Bay area, I am pleased to say that work has been arranged to absorb all the unemployed men there.

‘ ‘ Single men will be obliged to go wherever the job may be located, and this may apply to some married mjen, but as far as possible we are arranging the work for the married men in a way that will enable them to remain with their families.

“All the employing authorities havo responded magnificently, and I am confident that this winter will be a great contrast to anything that has previously existed as far as the employment of our seasonal workers is concerned. “It is further understood, of course, that when seasonal work again commences the men so assisted by the Government will be obliged to return to their former occupations. Classes of Unemployed. “Tho great bulk of the unemployed throughout New Zealand at the present moment, ’ ’ the Minister added, * 1 consists of men between the ages of 40 and GO, a considerable number of whom were previously employed as travellers and clerks, and who lost their jobs through adding machines and the like, and the depression. This class of labour is very difficult to place because of its lack of experience, but the Government feels that every man should have the opportunity of earning sufficient income to provide for his responsibilities. “ Subdivisional fencing will be provided for under land clearing, and where land has been cleared arrangements are made for considering this type of fencing. “The State Advances Corporation has arranged to advance to approved clients money to clear land and bring it into production and, as stated; farmers who receive accommodation through mercantile firms to clear scrub land could participate on the same ground as the others, and in some cases the mercantile firms are arranging to advance money to do this work.

‘ ‘ The reason why I came without publicity was to enable me to get right down to the job, whereas an organised itinerary would bring forward so many other deputations that would make it impossible to deal quickly an.d effective-, lv with the situation engaging my attention,” the Minister concluded.