BOYS STARTING WORK

New Zealand Herald, Volume LXIX, Issue 21349, 25 November 1932, Page 14

BOYS STARTING WORK

YOUTHS OVER 17 YEARS

NOT EXCLUDED IN TOWN

AMPLE COUNTRY OPENINGS;

Tim , statement by a sub-committee of the. Auckland Hoys' Employment, Committee, "lliat there are practically no openings for lads over 17 years of age anywhere in the city, and that, even in the country this ago is a most difficult one," is questioned or directly contradicted by employers of labour and others in' touch with the problem.

As far as tho country demand is concerned tho manager of a, cily registry office gave tho committee's statement a direct denial. He showed from his books that during the present month he had had 68 applications from the country for lads between tho ages of 15 and 20. Wages of £1 and 15s and found were quite commonly offered. Ho had not been able to fill more than about 50 per cent of the places on his books. Boys of 17 and 18, lie said, could bo placed without any difficulty in tho country, whether they had had any previous experience or not. No Bar to Older Boys The manager of a firm with over 500 employees stated that on tho averago 16 was usually the most satisfactory minimum age for starting work, but there was no bar whatever to the admission of boys of 17 or 18. As a matter- of fact, thero had been a definite tendency steadily to increase tho starting' age, which many years ago was as low as 13 or 14. It was recognised now that boys of 16 or 17, being more mature, took their work more seriously, and on the whole proved more satisfactory in the long run. They had a greater sense of responsibility by ttie time they came to be earning a large wage.

Another large employer pointed out that the wages scale under tho shop assistants' award favoured the youth joining at 16 as against one joining at 17 or 18. Tho lad starting later naturally did not roceivo o.s high a wago a s a lad of tho same ago who had started in the business a year or tjvo before him. On tho other hand, from tho employer's point of view, where awards were operative ho had to pay a higher wage to a beginner of 17 or 18 than to a beginner of 16, and this also was against tho older boy being taken on. Few Openings at Present The general secretary of the Young Men's Christian Association, Mr. V. T. Drew, commented that at present there were very few openings in the city for boys of any age, or even for men. A short time ago, however, ho had been able to place quite a number of boys over 17 y/.irs of age. He frequently had applica/ons for such boys, but lie had to ad'init that in most cases these positions were only temporary onos. General agreement with the committee's statement as far as town is concerned was expressed by Mr. F. W. Gamble, headmaster oi the Mount Albert Grammar School, who said ho found only a few special positions available for the senior boys. For that reason many boys were leaving school when they ought to be continuing. He felt that business men could relievo the position considerably by taking on older boys even for more menial work. They would find the boys prepared to apply themselves to anything in the way of steady occupation. As far as positions in the country were concerned tho boys would not go to them. Tho oilier day he made inquiry for boys to go on the land and did not get a single response, v