MEN WANTED

Otago Daily Times, Issue 22751, 11 December 1935, Page 6

MEN WANTED

SHORTAGE OF FARM LABOUR SUSTENANCE PREFERRED While queues of able-bodied men wait outside the unemployment bureaux in the city to receive their sustenance payments work on the farms is being delayed for lack of the labour necessary to get through the work of the busiest season of the year. From all parts of Otago and as far north as Timaru urgent requests for shearers, musterers, milkers and'rouseabouts. are being received at the labour, agencies. But men :Eor the jobs are not to be found. " The position is absolutely demoralising. The farmers are crying out for men, and they can't get them. I have jobs available for from 30 to 40 men if I could get them, but I don't know where to find them," said the manager of one labour agency yesterday morning, when commenting on the shortage of labour. "I think I know the attitude of the men pretty well, and it seems that they would rather accept the dole than take on farm work. The farmers have been wondering why we can't get men for them, but they are beginning to understand the reason now."

It was stated that the wages which were being offered were high. Up to 25s per week, with keep, was being offered for boys on farms, and the positions which were available could not be filled. For teamsters the • wages ranged from 30s upwards. Shearersj shed hands and musterers were wanted on all sides, but the men were not coming forward. One station, it was stated, had been held up for a week waiting for a fleece roller. In another case a farmer was offering 21s per hundred to shearers and could not get the men. " They simply won't take the work," said one person closely in touch with the position. "For one thing, many of the young men who used to do this class of work are now in the relief camps, and they would sooner stay there than go on the fjarms. Those that are on sustenance seem to be quite content to remain as they are. The farmers simply won't get the men, and they will have to offer higher wages to attract them." While the difficulty of securing farm labour was great, it was generally agreed that the difficulty in respect to domestic employment was much greater. Both for positions in the town and country there was a demand for domestics which could not be supplied. "I have 50 or 60 positions available on my books now," stated the manager of an agency, " but the women and girls simply will not take the work. Even wages up to 30s per week fail to attract them. The whole trouble is that they are being supported by the Government, and they don't need the work which we can offer them."

When the Unemployment Act was framed provision was made to refuse relief payments to those who had declined to accept offers of employment without adequate reason! The provision has, however, become ineffective' owing to the fact that unless the employer who makes the offer of work informs the local unemployment office there is no method by which the Unemployment Board can discover that a man has refused to accept work. The position, therefore, is that, while farming operations are being seriously delayed for lack of labour, the board is left to presure that no work is available for the thousands of men who are receiving relief and sustenance payments.