Women Recruits For Army Advised Not to Resign Jobs

Taranaki Daily News, 31 August 1942, Page 4

Women Recruits For Army Advised Not to Resign Jobs

Auckland, Aug. 29. Service in the armed forces does not prejudice any person's right to resume his or her former civilian occupation after demobilisation. Under the Occupational Re-establish-ment Emergency Regulations it is a serious offence for an employer to demand the resignation of an employee who is about to enter the forces in order that the employer may evade responsibility for the return of the worker to his or her job. The regulations make it clear that this is an offence by the employer, one section stating: "No person shall terminate the employment of any employee, either for the purpose of evading or attempting to evade any obligation imposed on him under these regulations or in expectancy of the employee's rendering military service or by reason of the fact that the employee has been accepted for military service." Any girl who desired to serve her country in the forces and who was encountering difficulty of this kind with her employer was strongly advised to consult the nearest office of the National Service Department, stated an ofBcial to

j whom the question was referred. AtI temps to victimise male employees had ceased with the introduction of the ballot system, and so far no cases of attempted victimisation of female volunteers had had to be dealt with. The headquarters of the recruiting agency for women, the Women's Wai Service Auxiliary, referred to a statement circulated by the Minister of National Service, Mr. Broadfoot, on the post- war position of women who enlisted, in which he asserted that nothing prejudicing their right to resume their former occupations under conditions that would not be less favourable than would have been the case had they not enlisted would be tolerated. The civil rehabilitation of demobilised women in their former occupations would not be left to chance, but would be the Government's responsibility. In the meantime women were strongly advised not to put in resignations, because such action might prejudice their positions in the event of their. enlistments not being accepted, as well as certainly prejudicing their post-war prospects if they did enter the forces.