BUILDING BOOM

Otago Daily Times, Issue 24633, 14 June 1941, Page 2

BUILDING BOOM

LABOUR SCARCE IN AUSTRALIA BIG DEFENCE CONTRACTS (Air Mail) SYDNEY. June 8. Early action will be taken by the Federal Government to rationalise employment in the Australian building industry—which is handling record contracts valued at more than £61,500,000, including urgent defence works valued at £14,000,000 —to avert the labour crisis threatening it. Because of enlistments among workers in the building trade, estimated by master builders at 25 per cent., a severe shortage of labour exists, and poaching ” is rife among private contractors. Vital defence building protects are so undermanned because of the shortage of skilled building trade labour that delays are becoming increasingly serious. The Federal Government will tighten up the existing building restrictions, which prohibit by regulation all new building contracts over £3OOO, except with the approval of the Capital Issues Board. Government’s Aims The Government’s immediate aims are to reduce the unnecessary expenditure of labour and materials on the erection of luxury flats, remove fric-» tion, which has led to strikes and goslow tactics among builders engaged on vital defence projects, and to divert available labour to the construction of homes for munitions and other war workers. Figures released by the Minister of Labour (Mr Holt) show the phenomenal growth of building activity in Australia in the first 18 months of the war In 1939-40 the estimated value of all building operations t in Australia was £53,600,000, including £47,700,000 private contracts and £6,100,000 public works. Early this year the total had soared to £61,400,000. including £47,400,000 private and £14,000,000 public contracts. Because of the labour shortage, defence contractors have in many cases asked the men to work continual overtime, This has led to a series of small but dislocating strikes. Non-essential Building The official reason given for the lew men offering for defence jobs is that contractors tendering for defence work cut their estimates to the measure of old awards and conditions. Competing against them for workmen are builders engaged in civil work who, because they are engaged on “luxury” jobs with a quick turnover, can pay workers better than the award rates. / Skilled workers have gravitated to the work in which they get the most pay. Despite the limit on new building contracts, there are known to be many evasions of the regulation. Officials are also convinced that there is still much non-essential building going on in Australia.