H—lB

(d) Forestry Contracts During the year the Director of Forestry sought the help of the Rehabilitation Board in providing trainees and instructors to assist in the construction of rural cottages for forestry workers, the provision of suitable housing accommodation' having an important bearing on the timber-supply situation. As a result it was decided temporarily to raise the status of the Rotorua Carpentry School from a half to a full centre. Fifty per cent, of each class of trainees will for one year undertake their outside house training by building forestry housing units. (e) Accommodation for Trainees To assist trainees located at certain centres where accommodation has not been readily available the Board has set up its own hostels. To date such hostels have been established at Kaikohe, Thames, Rotorua, and Gisborne.

(/) Administration Table VI of the Appendix shows the number of " A " Class trainees at the training centres as at 31st March, 1947. A comparison with the total relative figures as at 31st March, 1946, is as follows :

(iii) " B " Class Training (a) General 1. This scheme which provides for contracts with employers for the employment and training of ex-servicemen over a specified period continues to prove popular, and the past year saw a remarkable rise in the number of applications dealt with.

2. A comparison of the totals with those of 31st March, 1946, is as follows :

3. It has been necessary for the Board to continue its policy of restricting entry to certain trades and reserving others for disabled men—in the former to obviate the danger of a surplus of fully-trained men, and in the latter case to discourage fit men engaging in occupations peculiarly suited to disabled ex-servicemen in the relatively restricted field of employment open to them. 4. The magnitude of the task undertaken by local Trade Training Advisory Committees will be apparent from the figures disclosed above.

10

As at 31st March, Increase for Year. 1947. 1946. In training Completed training and placed 2,575 1,390 1,440 761 1,135 629 Totals 3,965 2,201 1,764

As at 31st March, Increase for Year. 1947. 1946. Trainees in training Training completed 3,036 433 1,410 133 1,626 300 Totals .. .. .. 3,469 1,543 1,926