Evening star., 1936-03-02
LABOR SHORTAGE.I|
HITS NEW ENGLAND.
Certain Industries Suffer Be.
cause Workers Have Taken
Up Other Jobs.
Special Dispatch to The Star

Special DlSpALCl 10 Inc star.
PROVIDENCE. r. T., March 2 CN.A.
N.A).-In the face of national un-
employment generally conceded to ex-
coed 100000 persons, several in
fuences have combined during the
past year or more to create a marked
and increasing shortage of skilled
labor in some basic local industries.
This situation, while national in
scope, is especially important locally
as 1t is seriously affecting in par
ticular the metal trades and the
jewelry industry, which contribute
greatly to Rhode Islands industrial
position
Already Of much concern to manu-
facturers, the shortage of certain
types of skilled labor promises to be-
come even more acute as industry
progresses along the road to recovery.
In TACT, conditions have reached a
stage where many individual manu-
facturers and at least one industry as
whole (the jewelry tradel nave de-
cided that they must adopt compre-
hensive and systematic measures to
combat the situation.
Traced to Depression.
Much of the increasing shortage of
skilled labor can be traced directly to
the depression, as many workers,
forced to find employment in other
lines. are now content with their new
work or are skeptical of the per-
manency of the recovery movement
and will not return to their old
trades.
Also OF primary importance is the
TACT that industry has been laggard in
training apprentices to fill the vacan-
cles created by death, old age and
loss OF workers to other lines. Local.
ly, the situation has been aggravated
by the increasing number of skilled
mechanics taken out of private in
dustry and given work at the naval
tordepo station at Newport. Expan-
sion OF naval building activities has
created a serious skilled labor situa-
ton at other points in New England
as well as in Rhode Island.
In competing with the Government
at the present time, manufacturers
say, they are at a disadvantage be-
cause industry is still in a GONZALES
cent stage after several years of
struggle with the ravages of depres-
sion and is not yet in a position to
offer inducements which the Govern
ment is able to extend.
Latest reports from the naval tor
pedo station at Newport show that at
the present time it has approximately
5000 civilian employees, $50 more than
were on the rolls in December. 1884.
OF these civilian workers nearly 1000
are skilled mechanics, All are helpers
and IS apprentices.
Pay Rolls Increased.
The January pay roll this year ag-
gregated $507, ,532, against $379,359 in
the corresponding period of last year.
In addition to the above mechanics,
many Of whom have come from the
field of private industry, the re-
opening of the naval training station
has taken some go skilled mechanics
and few draughtsmen and engineers.
Complaints Of manufacturers here
and elsewhere in New England that
they were having difficulty in finding
adequate supplies of skilled labor and
that they were losing men to naval
building activities have reached the
New England Council in .uch volume
during the past year that the council
recently decided to conduct survey
of the situation
The council found that there was
definite shortage of skilled labor and
that while it was most severe in -,e
machine tool and Woodworking
trades, it was also evident in the tex
tile and building industries.
The shortage found by the council
was confined by the State directors of
the United States Employment Service.
particularly in Rhode Island and
Connecticut. In this section of the
country, it was learned, more than 70
per cent of unemployed persons apply
ing for jobs were not trained In any
skilled occupation.
(Copyright. 1896 by the North American
Newspaper Alliance, 1nc.)