BOYS SEEK EMPLOYMENT

Poverty Bay Herald, Volume LXIV, Issue 19313, 1 May 1937, Page 15

BOYS SEEK EMPLOYMENT

PREFERRED TO SCHOOL NEW. PROBLEMS CREATED EFFECT OF LEGISLATION (Por Press Association.) DUNEDIN, this day. Reporting to his association last evening, the vocational guidance officer, Mr. Conly, stated that a noticeable feature in December, January, and February was the large number of mothers who sought work for children of immature years, and often of poor physique. With prosperous times this seemed to be wrong.

Already, a tabulation of school figures showed that more young people after standard six had gone to work in preference to secondary schools, while in many eases boys accepted jobs which would later handicap them when seeking entry into skilled occupation, for, in effect, the recent. Factories Act amendment provided that if a girl or boy spent any time in n factory such time must be paid for by any subsequent factory employer, this also applying to ol'tiee and shop workers. Recently an employer interviewed over 50 applicants for the foundry trade. More than three-fourths had had a year or more previous factory experience, and so were not even considered.

A further report from Mr. Conly showed that of 13d boys over 14 years, only 44 were continuing education at secondary schools, while 58 were unable to obtain work through having previous experience.