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1913. NEW ZEALAND.

WORKERS' DWELLINGS (REPORT ON). BY THE HON. THE MINISTER OF LABOUR.

Presented to both Houses of the General Assemhh/ pursuant to Section 18 of the Workers' Dwellings Act, 1910.

In accordance with section 18 of the Workers' Dwellings Act, 1910, 1 have the honour to present herewith report of the Superintendent, Workers' Dwellings, on the work done under the Act for the year ending 31st March, 1913. W. F. Massey, Minister of Labour. Sir,— 19th May, 1913. I have the honour to report on the working of the Workers' Dwellings Act during the year ending 31st March, 1913. Probably the principal feature of the operation of the Act during the year has been the decision of the Government to extend its benefits to farming and other employees in the country districts, for whom it is proposed to purchase or set apart suitable blocks of land to be subdivided into sections of about 5 acres each upon which to erect workers' dwellings. It is expected that the workers resident thereon will be enabled to carry out farming in a small way on their own account, in addition to performing their ordinary duties as employees in the respective districts. In this way continuity of employment should be ensured to them, while at the same time they will be more regularly available for the somewhat intermittent work on which they are now engaged. Iv response to this decision several blocks of land have been offered for the purpose of workers' dwellings, but as it is of the utmost importance that close inquiries lie made as to the actual needs of the workers concerned for such workers' dwellings in the respective localities, and also as to their ability to carry out the responsibilities that would be entailed upon them by the Act, negotiations have not yet in any case been quite completed. When these steps have been taken no doubt arrangements will be made without further delay for the purchase of suitable blocks of land, and the erection of dwellings thereon will then be proceeded with. The decision of the Government some two years ago, as outlined in the 1911 Report on Workers' Dwellings, to extend the operations of the Act from the four main centres to the smaller towns has proved successful, as during the past year land has been purchased or set apart and thirtyseven dwellings have been erected in such towns, while arrangements are also well in hand for the erection of fourteen dwellings at Greymouth and twelve at Invercargill. With regard to the four centres, six dwellings have been erected in Christchurch, thirty-six are in course of erection in Auckland, and two are in course of erection in Dunedin. Following upon notices sent to the tenants and lessees of the 126 dwellings erected under the previous Act (of 1905), thirty-four of the occupants have availed themselves of the opportunity to purchase their dwellings under the scale set out in the 1910 Act. The land purchased or set apart for workers' dwellings during the year comprised the following : — Crown land set apart : Ngaruawahia (eleven sections), Waitara (twelve sections), and Westport (5 acres). Land purchased: Island Bay, Wellington (two sections); Nelson (fourteen sections); Cobden, Greymouth (twenty sections); North Richmond, Christchurch (seven sections); T.imaru (ten sections); Seaward Bush, Invercargill (sixteen sections). Land is being purchased at Stratford, Te Puke, Masterton, Frankton, and Gisborne while negotiations for the purchase of land are pending at Eltham, Hawera, Manaia, Wanganui Wairoa, Hastings, Wellington, Lyttelton, Willowbridge (Waimate), Ashburton, Oamaru, and Balclutha.

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