FARM LABOUR

Evening Star, Issue 22452, 24 September 1936, Page 17

FARM LABOUR

ALLEGED SHORTAGE IH‘SOUTH OTAGO MINISTERIAL DENIAL [From Oor Parliamentary Reporter.] WELLINGTON. September 23. A denial of the allegation that the Labour Department was unable to satisfy the applications for farm labour was made by the Minister of Labour (Mr Armstrong) in reply to an urgent question asked in the House of Kepresentatives to-day by Mr J. A. Roy (Opposition, Clutha)’. Mr Roy asked the Minister what steps he proposed to take to relieve the acute shortage of farm labour in the South Otago district, this was an exceptionally busy season of the year, he said, and farmers who had applied to the department had been informed that no labour was available in Dunedin or Invercargill, notwithstanding the fact that hundreds of men were on sustenance in those cities. In one small district alone 14 men could be placed. “ Allegations of an acute shortage ot farm labour have been made on previous occasions lately in the House,” replied the Minister, “ and I have emphasised that my department has facilities for assisting farmers to obtain labour. They should apply to the nearest certifying officer, and every effort will be made to satisfy their requests, provided that the wages and conditions are comparable with the standard laid down in the Agricultural Workers Act. I know_ of no application from a farmer offering these terms which my department has been unable to satisfy. “ If the position in South Otago • is as acute as has been stated,” Mr Armstrong said, “ it must have developed with surprising rapidity, because I had an official census taken on September 15 for all applications for farm labour on hand .at that date in New Zealand. This census does not bear out either the allegation of the member for Clutha of an acute shortage in the district he mentioned or of my department’s inability to satisfy applications.” The Minister stated that at Dunedin on September 15 there were five vacancies, and since that time three of those had been filled, in addition to another 15 applications. Invercargill had 12 vacancies on that date, and five of those had since been filled, as well as an additional six. The Minister named 25 places in Otago and Southland where there had been no unsatisfied applications on September 15. “ I have made inquiries,” the Minister containued, “ and these indicate that the statement that the department is unable to supply farm labour has not been made from either the Dunedin or the Invercargill office. The Dunedin office reported to me to-day that it is having no difficulty in that respect, and the Invercargill office advises that, although farm labour is not easy to obtain, it has so far bad no insurmountable difficulty.” The Minister added that, if Mr Roy would supply him with particulars of the 14 vacancies to which he had referred, every effort would he made to fill them if the conditions of employment were satisfactory.