H.—36:

As in previous years, the majority of the registered unemployed were labourers, the percentage for each month being as follows :— Per Cent. Per Cent. January .. .. .. 61-5 July .. .. .. 59-5 February .. .. .. 55-5 August .. .. .. 60-6 March ... .. .. 56-1 September .. .. 63-9 April .. . . ■.. 48-5 October .. .. .. 63-8 May .. .. .. 64-4 November.. .. .. 61-0 June .. .. .. 65-8 December .. ...' 51-9 Of the 8,432 men included in the classifications for the month of December, 1930, 3,364 were single and 5,068 married men. The classification according to dependency shows that 3,168 men had no dependants ; 1,406, one dependant; 1,403, two dependants ; 1,089, three dependants ; 652, four dependants ; and 714, five dependants or over. The total number dependent on the 9,630 men on the registers at that date was 15,800, approximately (assuming that the unspecified cases had the same general average number of dependants as the specified cases). The percentage of unemployed fitted for heavy work varied between a maximum of 91-6 in May and 83-7 in December, 1930. Table 111 (attached) shows for each month of 1930, the duration, in weeks, of unemployment during the past six months. The average duration of unemployment of registered unemployed at the end of the first week in each month of 1930 was :— Weeks. Weeks. January .. .. ..12 July .. .. ..12 February .. . . .. 11 August .. .. .. 12 March .. .. ..12 September.. .. ..13 April .. .. .. 11 October .. .. .. 13 May .. .. ..11 November .. .. ..13 June .. .. .. 11 December .. .. .. 13 The classification according to the duration of unemployment, in weeks, shows that on the 9th December, 1930, 2,027 men had been out of employment for less than six weeks during the immediately preceding six months, 1,524 between six and ten weeks, 1,387 between ten and fourteen weeks, 1,102 between fourteen and eighteen weeks, 1,122 between eighteen and twenty-four weeks, while 1,266 men had been out of employment for twenty-four weeks or more during the preceding six months. The percentages of registered unemployed in the various groupings made during each month of the year 1930 were : —

The increase in the severity of unemployment during the year is illustrated by the increase in the proportion of men included in the class "18 to 24 weeks " and "24 weeks and over." In December, 1930, 15 per cent, of the men registered as unemployed had been out of employment for twenty-four weeks or more during the six months prior to that month, while a further 13 per cent, had been unemployed for between eighteen and twenty-four weeks during the same period. The occupations of registered unemployed in the various districts on the Bth December, 1930, are shown, in Table VI of the Appendix. The seasonal variation in unemployment is illustrated by the attached Tables VII and VIII. In Table VII the average number of registered unemployed on the register during each month of the years 1926 to 1930 is expressed as a percentage of the average number so registered during these five years. During the years 1926, 1927, and 1928 the maximum monthly numbers of registered unemployed was recorded in June, July, or August, while in January of 1926 and 1927 and in December of 1928 the lowest numbers were recorded. During 1929 the normal seasonal fluctuation is observed, except for the sudden increase in October of that year consequent on the announcement by the Government that work would be found for registered unemployed. In 1930, however, the seasonal fluctuation was lost sight of in the abnormal increase in registrations during the later months of that year. Table VIII shows the seasonal fluctuations in employment in the main " secondary " industries. As data are not yet available for the year 1930, these figures do not show the effect of the 1930 depression.

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Percentage of Total. Duration of unemployment (luring the past Six Months. ' '— Jan. Feb. March. April. May. June. July. Augu Sept. Oct. Nov. Dec. Under 2 weeks .. .. 6-0 8-6 7-0 6-5 6-2 6-4 4-8 4-8 3-3 3-5 4-9 6-2 2 weeks and under 4 .. 11-2 10-8 11-2 11-1 10-7 11-0 10-3 9-9 8-1 7-9 7-2 8-3 4 „ 6 .. 11-8 10-6 11-0 12-8 12-7 11-4 10-8 10-9 9-4 8-7 7-6 9-5 6 „ 10 .. 19-6 20-7 20-3 21-5 22-9 22-6 22-1 21-4 21-2 18-8 18-9 18-1 10 » 14 .. 16-9 16-5 16-0 17-0 15-9 16-8 18-2 17-5 19-1 18-8 18-2 16-5 14 „ 18 .. 13-9 12-6 12-4 12-4 11-7 12-1 12-3 13-7 13-3 171 14-4 13-1 18 ■, 24 .. 9-6 10-9 10-5 9-5 10-0 10-5 10-5 10-8 12-8 13-4 14-8 13-3 24 and over .. .. 11-0 9-3 11-6 9-2 9-9 9-2 10-8 11-0 12-8 11-8 14-0 15-0 Total specified cases .. 100-0 100-0 100-0 100-0 100-0 100-0 100-0 100-0 100-0 100-0 100-0 100-0