NEED FOR MEN

Dominion, Volume 9, Issue 2629, 26 November 1915, Page 6

NEED FOR MEN

EMPLOYERS' ASSISTANCE

CONFERENCE WITH MINISTER

EFFECT ON INDUSTRIES

A number of matters connected with recruiting, and the effect 011 industries generally of the withdrawal of men for the expeditionary forces, were discussed in Auckland 011 Tuesday afternoon at a conference between the Minister of Defence, the Hon. James Allen, and a representative number'of Auckland employers.

The Minister (tlio "Herald" reports) said that the meeting had been arranged b'ccausc there were probably somo matters the employers might wish to speak about to him as Minister of Dofence, _ and there were matters connected with reoruiting which ho wished to discuss with thein. The employers were acquainted with the general position. The Department had adopted a voluntary system of recruiting, and did not see its way to depart from that. The Department feared that, in. the 1 event of other methods being adopted, there would be a possibility of trouble on the part of one section of the community. Whether' or not that fear was justified the Department was not prepared to say. In seeking men for enlistment, the Department had deemed it. wise to appal first of all to the employers, and, by giving them an idea of the number of men:wanted, to allow them an opportunity of organising their industries to moet the demand. In order not to embarrass employers, the policy had been adopted of asking men accepted for service to remain in their employment until called up; and, on the other hand, the Departmant place'd on the employers the obligation, to keep the men in employment until ' they were wanted, and not turn them adrift because they had enlisted. This system appeared to "have worked satisfactorily. Protection of Industries. The . Department was particularly anxious not to embarrass industries, and especially those industries which produced goods of military value, 6uch as boots and" woollen goods. Men engaged in the woollen trade had not been accepted for service when tliey applied, and others, already in camp, , had been sent back. The Department would also assist any other industry. with which : it was not so _ intimately concerned whenever that industry made o legitimate appeal for help. The Department wished to help and 00-operate with industry in every possible way. - The Department also asked emjloyers to keep open the places of men who enlist and go away, and also, so far as was possible, to assist the men who had gone away by allowing them to draw a proportion of their ordinary pay. This, perhaps, entailed sacrifices, but the country would appreciate just such assistance as that.

With respect to recruiting, continued the Minister, the country at presont was pledged to send away every four weeks reinforcements estimated at 20 per cent, of a main body of 13,000 men. The original main body had numbered less than 7000, but it had been greatly increased. Tho rate of reinforcements had varied. At first it Had been 30 per cent;, then it had gone down to 10 and 15 per cent., and now it was' 20 per cent. In other words, 2400 men wero now required every four weeks. This was a large order, and the matter of carrying it out was as much a responsibility on tho individual employer as it was on the Department. But lie know ho need not appeal to tho employers for their co-operation; their help had already been given. The Quota Difficulty. ,Mr. Craig asked what quota, Auckland was expected to supply. The Minister said that this was not definitely fixed. The ' Department started on a" population basis, but found this unfair because the South Island had a smaller proportion of young men than had the North. They therefore started a system of calling up' a certain percentage of. the men who had registered, and liad to alter this again and. arrange the system on a basis of the numbers passing the\ medical test. At present the Department "was between the devil and the deep sea," having to wait on the result,of tho national register, -and the figures shownig the proportion of available men in the different districts before finally making its recruiting arrangements. What Employers are Doing. 1 Mr. Craig said the employers appreciated tho difficulties with which the Minister was faced, and wherever they could assist him they would gladly do so. He thought that the great majority of employers were keeping registered men on their staffs until they were called up. ■ The Minister: That is so. Mr. Craig said that many employers were also keeping positions open for men who had enlisted and gone away. A member of the party said that action in this direction, on the part of employers in New Zealand was practi-callyl-universal. The Minister: Yes, I think it is Mr. Craig said that the payment of men while they were absent on active service was a. matter of some difficulty. Some firms could afford it: others could not. Many firms were assisting the soldiers in this direction. * The employers and the Minister thon prooeeded to discuss various other aspects of tho withdrawal of men from industries. .