Notes of the Day

Gisborne Times, Volume XXXIII, Issue 3628, 14 September 1912, Page 6

Notes of the Day

THE DOMINION’S LABOR LAWS. This year marks the attainment of the Labor Department’s majority, and a short historical review of its organisation and growth 'is given in the annual report which was presented to Parliament yesterday under the title of “Bureau of Industries.” The Department commenced ils work in dune, 1.891, under the charge of Mr Edward Tregoar, who retired l’rbii'i the position of secretary in February 1911. Of the officers appointed to the Department shortly after its inception, only' four, were on the staff when the report was compiled—Mr '.John

g Lomas, tho present secretary, Mr James Shanaghan. who joined-in 1892 and lias since retired from the position of inspector at Auckland, Mr 1. W Rowley, Demitv-Chief Inspector (mined 181)3) and Mr J. W. Collins, accountant (joined 1894)- I ho; staff of three in 1891 has grown to .88 in 1912, and the functions of the department have enormously incieasod. Its chief work on establishment was to deal with the “unemployed difficulty which at that time was most pressing in all the larger towns, lodnv tins work is an important branch, but the duty of administering the “Labor” laws has formed the chiet responsibility of the-Department. In surveying the twenty-one yea is history of the Department, Mr Lomas writes: “I look' back upon a record of great and lasting work accomplished by the operation of the humanitarian laws administered by the Department. The outstanding feature of all is the total abolition of sweating of the workers and a recognition, hard won, perhaps, from both employers and workers, that each has gained some mutual benefit by The operation of the labor laws of Now Zealand ” The renort describes the past fiscal year as a normal one. There has not been any undue fluctuation in trade and, generally speaking, all branches of. industry have been steadily employed. The usual shortage of farm laborers was experienced during the spring and summer months, and overseas arrivals were welcomed. Reliable evidence has been given to the. Department that in a number of instances for wages of from 25s to 80s per week men in the dairying districts are expected to work from 4 a.m. to 8 p.m., and when the season slackens they have to face discharge or reduced earnings. These methods are considered as responsible, to some extent, for the shortage of farm labor, as men will not willingly accept such conditions. During the coming season the Department will , give preierence to employers who will guarantee workers some reasonable period oi employment. As announced last year the Department has decided to improve the industrial statistics by making them cover the work done in the factories throughout the year The fir«t set of the new statistics will ! he published later as an appendix to the Department’s report, in iutuie information will be -collected tor comparisons between the rates pronde-d i in the various awards and the actual j wages paid to worker?. -* ke touil I number of factories is 12,847, an 111I crease of 121. I' or the first time hotels ape included in the figures ror shops, and largely owing to this fact I substantial increases are shown in I the figures. The number of_s:iops has S increased by 1*33, to 16,5< *. employj ees; by 7066 to 29,671, employers by ! 3585 to 19,367. and wages by £402.j 752 to £2,375,147. The official rej ports show that the difficulty of securing women workers grows more I acute with each passing year, and | with rare exceptions there has been j work offering for all women callers ! at the employment bureau.