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1930. NEW ZEALAND

UNEMPLOYMENT IN NEW ZEALAND. SECOND SECTION OF REPORT OF COMMITTEE APPOINTED BY THE GOVERNMENT ON 17th OCTOBER, 1928, AND 26th FEBRUARY, 1929.

Laid on the Table by Leave of the House.

MEMBERS OF COMMITTEE. W. D. Hunt (Chairman), T. 0. Bishop, representing employers. James Roberts, Oscar Mcßrine, representing workers. Malcolm Fraser, 0.8. E., F.S.S. (Government Statistician). H. D. Thomson (Under-Secretary for Immigration).

REPORT. The Hon. the Minister of Labour, Wellington. Sir, — We now have the honour to present the second section of our report upon the problems arising out of unemployment. In our first report we dealt with the whole subject of unemployment in general terms, and also made certain definite recommendations which we were unanimously agreed upon. We held over other matters for further examination, and indicated our intention of studying these and reporting upon them as we found ourselves able to do so. In this second section of our report we deal with the following matters in the order named :—- (I) Recommendations for minimizing unemployment and for relief of the unemployed. (II) Possibilities for increased farm production. (III) Homes for workers adjacent to centres of employment. (IV) Review of the statistics as to unemployed since our first report. (V) Results of the individual investigation of a large sample of those on the unemployed registers for over twelve months. (VI) Cost of unemployment relief during the past three years ; and (VII) An appendix containing the statistical tables referred to in the report. (I) Recommendations for minimizing Unemployment and for Relief of the Unemployed. Of the several matters which we reserved for further investigation, the one of greatest urgency appeared to us to be the question of measures to be taken for the prevention or minimizing of unemployment and for the relief of the unemployed. We have therefore given this subject prolonged and careful consideration, and we now present our unanimous conclusions and recommendations thereon. For convenience we repeat here the classification of unemployment set out in our first report:— (1) Seasonal unemployment in the primary industries —butter and cheese making, shearing, meat-freezing, and harvesting. (2) Unemployment in other industries because of the seasonal nature of the primary industries— as, for instance, in connection with transport and shipment of butter and cheese, wool, and meat. (3) Unemployment arising out of the permanent replacement of manual labour by the use of improved methods and machinery —as, for instance, the use of tractors and other improved appliances for the loading and unloading of ships and cargo handling on wharves, the use of steam-shovels and other plant in roadmaking, and the use of more effective machines generally in connection with manufacturing. (4) Unemployment arising from the substitution of new materials —as, for instance, the use of oil in place of coal as ships' fuel, the use of electric power in place of steam, and the use of brick, concrete, and steel in place of timber in building. (5) Periodic general unemployment arising from general depression of trade, as occurred particularly in 1921-22, and again in 1926-27. (6) Unemployment arising from incapacity or from improper training.

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