Maoris on the Move

Te Ao Hou, 1972, Page 34

Maoris on the Move Looking out of the car window on the way to work, walking down the street to buy lunch, crossing Lambton Quay in a hurry, one cannot go far without seeing buildings large and small under construction. Comparing the building scene in 1970 with that in 1960, a decade ago, we cannot fail to notice several obvious differences; buildings are now being built more speedily and are going higher; more sophisticated cranes and machines are in use. However, one of the most important and significant differences to be noted is the number of Maoris employed in the construction industry. Driving bulldozers, working below ground level or up to the penthouse, carrying, cutting and welding steel, Maoris are on the move. Drilling, lifting, measuring and sawing timber, mixing and pouring concrete, working and laughing, Maoris are on the move. If we look more closely at these Maori construction workers, we will notice two things; first their youthfulness — a reminder that the bulk of the Maori population is under twenty years old; secondly, and much more important — many of these young Maoris are doing skilled jobs. We are now able to look back on a decade of special Maori Trade Training in Carpentry which started as a result of liaison between the Department of Maori Affairs (as it then was) and the Technical Institutes. The Department undertook the work of recruiting suitable young men, transporting, housing and supervising them. Job placement, on the site training and finance for the scheme were also their responsibility. The Technical Institutes for their part provided tutors and complete up-to-date technical training facilities. The first carpentry trainees in 1959 were involved in what was then an experiment. This was a scheme to intensively train young and unsophisticated Maoris from the country to become tradesmen and to fit them both into the construction industry and into city life — in the space of two years. A challenge indeed! An experiment that had social, racial and economic implications. What has been the result of such an experiment? Have sufficient numbers of With five stories and three wings of laboratories and classrooms, the first stage of the new Central Institute of Technology at Heretaunga gives an indication of its future size. Halls of Residence for all students are part of the future buildings

apprentices who have passed through the training scheme continued working in the building industry? Have Maori trainees fitted in with their Pakeha workmates? Has it been an economic investment, financing these somewhat expensive training schemes? What of the academic standard reached by trainees? The following are some of the answers. The drop-out rate for Maori trainees during their apprenticeship years has been and is lower than that of the non-Maori apprentice — in most years considerably lower. Although training has been given in an all-Maori environment, in the classrooms and workshops of the Technical Institute, it would appear that there is no great problem of job integration. However, it is apparent that the settling-in process is speeded up and made somewhat easier if the trainee is fortunate enough to live in a hostel together with other Maori trade trainees. This ideal situation is sometimes not possible, e.g., when a trainee leaves the Technical Institute to be placed with a builder in another town. The cost of trade training is certainly high, but if a good tradesman is the result of this kind of training, then it is surely worthwhile. Provision of trade training for young Maoris helps to solve two problems present in the New Zealand economy by alleviating the acute shortage of skilled tradesmen in urban areas and by assisting with the problem of rural unemployment. The four-tier lecture-theatre block. The unusual construction and concrete surface-decoration demanded a high degree of skill Working on the roof of the lecture block are Inia Korohina of Te Araroa, foreman Terry Daniels of Te Araroa, and Tonga Tipaki of Huntly. All three are ex-trainees What of the academic standard reached by trainees? Small classes and good facilities for teaching have up to now produced good results. At the Central Institute of Technology, Petone, over a period of almost ten years, passes in the 1st and 2nd qualifying examinations for the Trade Certificate in Carpentry have averaged over 80%. By now almost two hundred carpentry trainees have passed through this institute alone. Individual boys who have completed the course have gone on to gain their Trade Certificate in carpentry. Finally, an interesting footnote. The new Central Institute of Technology complex at Heretaunga, north of Wellington, expected to be a major building project, is under way. A considerable number of carpenters are employed on this project. It is very appropriate that approximately one third of the carpenters helping to build this technical institute are Maoris. Stan Hunt Course Supervisor Building Department Central Institute of Technology