Ex-Servicemcn (Preference)
48.
asked the Minister of Labour whether employment exchanges have been particularly instructed, in selecting applicants for jobs, to see that ex-Service men are not placed at a disadvantage through lack of recent experience of civilian employment.
Yes, Sir. Comprehensive instructions on the placing of ex-Service-men and women, which were issued to all local offices of my Department in June, provide that, in selecting applicants for submission to employers, ex-Servicemen are not placed at a disadvantage through lack of recent experience of civilian employment.
Will my right hon. Friend extend this preference particularly to men whose demobilisation is held up for a long time?
The preference will be utilised in all cases where it can usefully be applied.
49.
asked the Minister of Labour what steps have been taken to distinguish ex-Servicemen from others in his Ministry's register, having regard to the undertaking given by his predecessor in the Debate in this House on 16th May IO45-
As stated by my predecessor in the Debate to which the hon. and gallant Member refers, the existing arrangements enable the cards of ex-Servicemen to be picked out very easily. When ex-Servicemen are submitted for vacancies a special introduction card is used which indicates that they are ex-Servicemen.
Does the term "ex-Servicemen" include men who served in the 1914–18 war?
It says "ex-Servicemen."
Labour Control
50 and 51.
asked the Minister of Labour (1) whether he is aware that the administration of the Control of Engagement Order is becoming more difficult to operate; and whether he is in a position to announce any relaxation of this Order; and
(2) whether he is now in a position to announce the policy of the Government on the future of labour controls.63.
asked the Minister of Labour whether he will consider removing the provisions of the Essential Work Order from all male labour over 42 years of age.
I propose to make a comprehensive statement shortly about labour controls, and I would ask hon. Members to allow me to deal with the whole Question together.
Is the right hon. Gentleman aware that there has been very considerable delay in dealing with this matter, in which both sides in industry are interested? Is he further aware that these Regulations are at present being defied, and is he taking proper action to see that they are enforced?
That there has been delay is admitted, but it is not avoidable delay.
It is necessary to examine the question of labour control, the right of men to seek employment, and the right of a man to choose whom he wishes to employ, at the same time as the other economic controls and the urgent need of certain industries for work of vital importance. The whole thing is being examined together, and I hope it will be possible to make a statement shortly.Can the right hon. Gentleman tell the House of any other country in the world where, in peacetime, women are subjected to the control there is now?
I think I have quite enough to answer for in this country.
Will the right hon. Gentleman say whether the delay is due to the ineptitude of his immediate predecessor?
Civil Defence Personnel (Reinstatement)
52.
asked the Minister of Labour whether men conscripted for the N.F.S. can demand reinstatement in their former employment while this is denied to those who enlisted voluntarily; and whether he will consider the equity of making any distinction.
Men compulsorily enrolled in a Civil Defence Force under the National Service Acts after 10th April, 1941, acquired reinstatement rights under those Acts, and were therefore brought within the scope of the Reinstatement in Civil Employment Act, 1944. While it would have been inequitable to have deprived such persons of their rights, it was not considered practicable to bring within the scope of the Act the many other classes of persons, including volunteers for the National Fire Service and other forms of Civil Defence, who had performed valuable services during the war.
Does not the right hon. Gentleman feel that it is a litle unjust to treat volunteers less favourably than conscripts?
I am not prepared to express an opinion, but I can say that anything that is to be done will have to be done by amendment of the Reinstatement Act.
Hospitals (Staffing)
57.
asked the Minister of Labour upon what date his Ministry replied to the letter dated 9th May, 1945, from the clerk of the Warwickshire County Council, concerning the shortage of staff at hospitals, institutions and children's homes under the jurisdiction of the public assistance committee; and what steps he took, or proposes to take, to relieve the shortage.
A reply to a similar letter addressed simultaneously to the Ministry of Health was sent on behalf of both Departments on 30th June. Considerable efforts have been made to meet the nursing and domestic staffing needs of the county council and particulars of a number of applicants have been submitted, but it is clear that, as in a number of other institutions throughout the country, many vacancies still exist. My right hon. Friend the Minister of Health and I are considering what further measures, in addition to those already taken, can be adopted, in the light of the Government statement on "Staffing the Hospitals," which would assist the council.