RURAL LABOUR

Te Awamutu Courier, Volume 63, Issue 4491, 17 October 1941, Page 5

RURAL LABOUR

ACUTE SHORTAGE. \ ATTITUDE OF GOVERNMENT. A statement that the Government would be prepared to consider calling a special conference of interested parties to go into the question of the grave shortage of rural labour, but would prefer that the organisations concerned should first submit any new proposals in writing, was made by the Prime Minister, the Rt. Hon. P. Fraser, in reply to an urgent question by Mr W. S. Goosman in the House of Representatives yesterday. Mr Goosman asked whether, in view of the shortage of labour in the rural areas, not only on dairy farms and in dairy factories but generally, the Government had any plans for dealing with the situation. If it had not, he asked whether the Prime Minister would be prepared to convene a conference of employers and employees and all organisations interested, including women’s organisations, to discuss future action with the Government. Mr Fraser said the Government was aware that, as was the case last year, there was a shortage of acceptable labour for seasonal work in rural areas and that the position -was likely to be even more difficult this year because of the increased number of men withdrawn from the industry for general war purposes. All known practicable steps had again been taken this year in an effort to meet the position and the Government was prepared to consider any suggestions from the industry itself or from any other quarter which would help to alleviate the difficulty in any way. Although the Primary Production Council and the National Service Department were giving their continued attention to the whole matter and were constantly in touch with all sections of the industry concerned, the Government would be prepared to consider calling a special conference as suggested, but would prefer that in the first place the organisations interested should submit in writing any new proposals they might be able to make as a contribution toward solving the problem. The Government would then be in a better position to decide whether any good purpose would be served by a conference.