H—ll

The number of notified male vacancies at 31st March, 1948, was 185 (61 at 31st March, 1947), including 38 men required for sheep-farming, 9 for freezing-works, and 41 for building and construction. Eailways also required labour. Female notified vacancies totalled 48, as compared with 68 at the end of the previous year, and included 18 required for domestic services. Napier District Secondary industry in this district covers a diversity of employment, but has not shown much expansion during the past year, this being partly attributable to a temporary shortage of premises and difficulties in building. Provision for light and heavy industry on reclaimed land contiguous to a new housing block will, however, facilitate further industrial development, and good opportunities for new industries exist. Napier is the port for a rich pastoral district, and the seasonal demand for shearers and wool-store employees is of some importance. Over 360 wool-store workers were employed at the peak of the season. Male notified vacancies at 31st March, 1948, were 139, including 56 skilled and 66 unskilled adults. The figure for 31st March, 1947, was 124. Female vacancies numbered 66, including 25 juveniles, as compared with 117 (50 juveniles) at the end of the previous year. Tobacco-manufacture required 25 women workers, the clothing industry 13, and hospitals 8. Hastings District This is also a rich primary producing district requiring a considerable pool of seasonal labour. Favourable climatic conditions ruled throughout the past season and difficulty was experienced in providing sufficient casual labour for fruit-picking at the peak of the season, particularly as no accommodation is, as a general rule, provided by employers. Seasonal industries other than farming absorbed between October, 1947, and January, 1948, an additional 910 male employees, but little or no difficulty was experienced in placing seasonal workers in alternative employment during the winter months. Secondary industries cover a diversity of employment opportunities and assist substantially in balancing the seasonal surge in employment. Notified male vacancies numbered 47 at 31st March, 1947, and 187 at 31st March, 1948. This number included 36 skilled and 113 unskilled adults. All types of farming required 54 workers. Female vacancies totalled 25 at 31st March, 1947, and 98 at 31st March, 1948, including 21 vacancies in clothing-manufacture and 48 in hospitals. Neiv Plymouth District Although dairy-farming and allied seasonal industries predominate in this area, the district offers a variety of employment opportunities to the male worker in many other occupations. Engineering trades employ over 1,000 men and building and construction about 900. During the past winter the seasonal outflow of labour (approximating 800 men) was satisfactorily absorbed in alternative employment. Cable-laying projects carried out by the Post and Telegraph Department and Public Works Department undertakings have assisted materially. Shortage of labour for dairy factories was not as acute as in the 1946-47 season and again it was possible to alleviate the position by recruiting Maori workers from the Rotorua district. The freezing industry was threatened with an acute labour shortage during the early part of the season, but this was overcome to some extent by the provision of temporary accommodation. The view has been expressed that the problem of seasonal labour for freezing-works will not be overcome until the industry provides permanent accommodation for a minimum of 100 men.

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