WAITAKI HYDRO WORKS

Poverty Bay Herald, Volume LXI, Issue 18500, 12 September 1934, Page 2

WAITAKI HYDRO WORKS

ABSORPTION OP MEN

TRANSFER TO OTHER PARTS

Successful efforts are being made by the Public Works Department to, place in other employment those men who will be paid oft' when the Waitaki hydro-electric works are completed. Other major public works, including the liingston-Queenstown road, the Milford Sound road, the Olenavy irrigation scheme, and the Falls dam in Otago Central, will absorb many mert, and the department, is at present engaged in minstigating, th° desirability of proceeding with other works, probably in Otago Central, irrigation. On August 1 last, 660 men were still employed «t Kurovv— since then the number had fallen to 507. Of the 149 who were paid off at Waitaki, 37 lfeft of their own accord, presumably because they had Other engagements in view. Of the remainder, 69 married 'men were offered andpiccepted work on the Wakatipu on the Te Anaiu-Milford road, and two on the irrigation work in Otago, 'Uus ,88.. mgrripd men were transferred* *to other works without the danger ofCfoss'of employment. Seventern married men refused work on the roads mentioned. The 607 Ipen “now on the Waitaki payroll include 40 men on transmission line erection, arid the 'number actually, working at the dam is 467. The Minister of Public Works, the Hon. J. Bitchener, said last wsek that if the riyer remained low it should not be necessary to pay off manv ftien for ffve or six weeks. The Minister added that’there were still 189 vacancies for men on the four main southern schemes. Every married man who was pajd off.at Waitaki last month because of shortage of work had been Offered further employment on other de-

partmental works, and there were enough vacancies oil these works to ab-j sorb all married men who were likely to be dispensed with at Ivurow during l the next few weeks.