MANPOWER CONTROL

Timaru Herald, Volume CLVIII, Issue 23282, 18 August 1945, Page 4

MANPOWER CONTROL

Many Revocations Proposed Some Effective At End Of September (N.Z.P.A.) WELLINGTON, Aug. 17. The Government's intention to make further substantial relaxations of manpower controls over a very wide field was announced tonight in a statement by the Minister of National Service and Industrial Manpower (the Hon. A. McLagan). These relaxations include exemption from liability for the future direction of all married women, irrespective of age, of all ether women 30 and over, and of all men of 45 and over. In addition. employers are being freed from the necessity to obtain consent for the engagement of labour within the exempted classes, provided they notify all such engagements to the manpower officer within seven days. Most declarations of essentiality arc to be removed by the end of lite year, and some large groups befcre the end of September. All married women will, on application, receive automatic consent to leave essential industries if they desire to take up home duties. “With the end of the war against Japan.” said the Minister, “the Government has given immediate consideration to the maximum extent to which manpower controls can at once be further relaxed. There are, of course, some industries and services which have a particularly vital part to play in giving effect to the rehabilitation programme and the production of food for export, and which will have to rely, though to a steadily decreasing extent, upon the assistance from manpower control and direction measures. These will include such industries as hydroelectric development, freezing works and dairy factories, sawmilling and housing, coalmining, hospitals and mental hospitals, certain public utility services, woollen mills, and possibly a few others.” “It is unlikely that we can remove control from these industries this year,” said Mr McLagan. -The removal of control, even in these cases, will however, be made as early as possible and the position will be kept under constant review, and further relaxations will be effected as indicated. It is the Government's Intention to have all other declarations of essentiality revoked by the end of the current year. In a number of cases revocation cannot be effected immediately, but, over the next few months, very’ laige numbers of men and women will be returning to industry from service in the Armed Forces, and their return will sufficiently ease the manpower position to enable these revocations to be effected. “There are, however, a number of industries in which consideration of the number engaged matters (such as the effect of ending w’ar contracts, the current manpower position in the industry. and the numbers of men and women likely to be returning to it from the Armed Forces) has convinced the Government that the declarations can be revoked by the end of September, if not sooner.” The Minister particularly mentioned the following industries in engineering (except ship repairs and the manufacture of housing requirements), motor garages, Public Service (except the Second Division of the Railways Department, mental hospitals, the Rehabilitation Department, the Housing and, possibly, one or two other departments), Reserve Bank, retail butchers, boot and shoe repairing, pastrycook establishments, radio servicing, refrigeration engineering concerns, shipping companies, shore staffs (except ship repair and maintenance), timber treatment concerns. University offices and perambulator manufacture. Employment Restriction Regarding the employment restriction relaxation, the Minister said the exempted classes, where the employers will not be required to make an application for consent to engage provided they notify the manpower officer withing seven days of engagement, were persons under 18 and widows of servicemen, women of 30 and over, married w’omen, returned servicemen of the present war, men of 45 and over. In the case of women aged 18 to 29 inclusive, and men aged 18 to 44 inclusive, application for consent to engage must still be made unless they came within anv of the exempted groups. The Minister emphasised that in respect of the exempted classes, notification of engagement was still required of the employed. He added that it would not be possible to avoid directions for some time yet, but. in future, directions would not be given to persons in the classes now exempted from the Employment Restriction Order. Directions would be restricted to only the highest priority industries, and other Industries would be expected to reply upon voluntary sources of obtaining staff. All the facilities of the National Service Department, including its Servicemen’s Placement Division, would be available to employers seeking labour, and it was proposed to set up a National employment Service as soon as possible to replace the present activities of the National Service Department.

Essential Industries Persons at present working in a limited number of vitally important industries, which would continue to be covered by declarations of essentiality, could not, however, be given any wide exemption at the present stage. Certain persons were already receiving automatic consent to leave employment in essential industries (persons under 18, wives and widows of servicemen, married women over 40 if taking up home duties, and returned servicemen of the present war). The only further relaxation possible in this direction at present, apart from the progressive revocation of declarations, was the extension of this automatic consent to all married women, irrespective of age if they desired to take up home duties. In all other cases of applications to terminate essential employment, the applications would be dealt with on their individual merits as in the past. Further relaxations of manpower control would be made from time to time, and the Minister said he would indicate now that Category A men. who were held in appeal by reason of the essential nature of their employment, would be the last group to receive complete exemption. Referring to the proposed National Employment Service to provide for voluntary placement or reorganisation of labour, the Minister said the Government had for some time had in view the establishment of such a service to exercise the following main functions:— , „ 11) To give effect to the Government's policy of full employment. <2) By co-operation with eemplovers and emplovees to anticipate and plan to meet labour requirements or retrenchments and to assist in any decentralisation of industry which might be necessary and afford special facilities for‘the placement of disabled persons. , , . . (3) To develop a special higher appointments service to work in cooperation on the one hand with technical colleges, universities, Government training schemes, etc., and on the other hand with employers requiring specially trained or professional or supervisory’ staff. (4> To provide a general employment service, and with this to couple a special service to assist persons becoming incapacitated for their normal work, or otherwise requiring retraining or to be put in touch with established vocational guidance centres ~ .. In conclusion the Minister said the sudden collapse of Japan made an early consideration of these employment service proposals necessary, and : the Government intended to introduce i legislation immediately to give effect to I the uronosals.