TRAINEES BUILD HOUSES WHERE CONTRACTORS DON’T

Grey River Argus, 2 October 1948, Page 5

TRAINEES BUILD HOUSES WHERE CONTRACTORS DON’T

WELLINGTON, Oct. 1

Rehabilitation trade trainees are building houses in many centres where private building firms for the most part have not accepted State housing contracts, At Gisborne, at one stage trainees were building 78 State houses, although private contractors were not then building any. The same applies to a lesser extent, in Greymouth, Westport, Timaru, Foxton and Maslerton. If the scheme were to close down very few State houses would be built in such towns. This was .stated by Mr S. W. Gasper, chairman of the Rehabilitation Board’s trade training committee, at the quarterly meeting of the Rehabilitation Council. It appeared that in those centres, had it not been for the trainees, few State houses would have been built.

“Had it not been for the rehabilitation scheme, the building industry in this country would have been chaotic,” said Mr Gasper. He pointed cut that nearly one-third of the carpenters operating to-day had been trained under the scheme, as well as nearly one-third of the bricklayers

Carpenters were still badly needed. In Wellington one firm was prepared to take 100 trainees whenever they were ready. Had it not been for the scheme, instead of there being 10,000 carpenters in New Zealand, there would be less than 7000. It deemed thta the demand for housing would continue for some time yet, and he felt that the, train--ing should be continued. Until the end of August, trainees had handed over 1554 completed houses, of which 554 had been completed this year Erection of houses was now being speeded up, with the materials position much easier.

He felt it worth noting that wherever there was a major disaster, the services of trade trainees were' being used. They had done good work in the Gisborne area after the recen’ floods. Trainees were now being also used to assist in the devastated area in Hamilton.

Until the end of August 7223 men had completed training in all trades and another 6489 were still beingtrained; but, in some districts, applications for trade training were falling off.