WORK FOR BOYS.

Star (Christchurch), Volume LXVI, Issue 20363, 21 July 1934, Page 18

WORK FOR BOYS.

Activities of Bureau for Half-Year.

AN INTERESTING REPORT. Less than 4 per cent of the boys selected by the Y.M.C.A. Employment Bureau for permanent positions during the half-year ended on June 30 have not proved satisfactory to employers. This information was contained in a report to the meeting of the Boys’ Employment Committee yesterday afternoon by the secretary (Mr G. M. Keys). The report covered Ijie activities for the first six months of this year. The total registrations for the six months were 1289, compared with 1104 for the corresponding period of last year, an increase cf ISS. Enrolled boys at present seeking work, and including those placed m temporary positions, numbered 893. Boys to the number of 726 were placed in work, compared with 539 for the first half of 1933. Of those, 307 were found permanent work and 419 temporary jobs, representing an increase of 187 in the latter case, while the number of permanent jobs in each instance w r as the same. A summary of the placements was given as follows: Per- Tem-

Many Industrial Openings. “ The most marked improvement,” stated the report, “is in industrial positions, and the majority of these are of a good type with prospects indicated. Such positions were very difficult to obtain during the last few years. This is rather offset by a decrease in the number of farming positions offering, but we feel convinced that this represents merely a temporary fluctuation. The number of boys who have obtained jobs through their own efforts and in Government service will, when obtained, prove considerable. Reports disclosed that seven temporary positions had so Jar become permanent, eleven boys had left permanent jobs to better themselves, seven had lost positions on account of slackness of trade, two had lost positions on account of the business closing down, one boy had returned to school, twelve placed in permanent positions had been discharged through their own fault for various reasons, nine V>oys had left positions on account of unsatisfactory employers, one boy ran away from his employer and had not been traced by the bureau, and one boy left to go to Wellington with his parents. All other placements has been satisfactory to all concerned. '

It was pleasing to report that very few complaints came to hand regarding the treatment the boys on farms received. In many cases the boys spoke highly of the conditions under which they are working and of the interest the farmer took in them. Recently one boy who was in the employ of a for only six months had learnt enough to enable him to take another position at 20s a week. The co-operation of the Women’s Division of the Farmers’ Union had been invaluable in enabling the bureau to ascertain the conditions existing on farms z£nd to keep in touch with those actually placed.

* manent. porary. Total. ari 1934 .... 108 23 131 1933 158 — 158 Commercial— 1934 72 40 112 1933 .... 69 60 129 Industrial—1934 .... 90 69 159 1933 61 27 88 Miscellaneous—. * 1934 37 287 324 1933 19 145 164 Totals— 1934 307 419 726 1933 307 232 539