asked the Taoiseach if he will state for each of the years 1926, 1936, 1946 and 1956 the estimated total number of persons at work in agriculture, forestry and fishing, stating for each such year for which separate figures are available the number employed in each of the three branches of agricultural activity; and if he will estimate the total number likely to be so employed if the "excess of labour resources on small and medium sized farms" were reduced to the "standard requirements" as described and interpreted in Appendix A to the Report on Small Western Farms.
Ceisteanna—Questions. Oral Answers. - Employment in Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries.
1.
I propose, with the permission of the Ceann Comhairle, to circulate in the Official Report a statement showing, for each of the years 1926, 1936 and 1946, the total number of persons at work in agriculture, forestry and fishing, as returned at the Censuses of Population, and the estimated number at work in 1956.
On the basis of the standard requirements in man-days per animal or per acre of crops, etc., as set out in the British White Paper "Assistance for Small Farmers", applied to the stocking and cropping date for Irish farms as given by the 1960 Agricultural Statistics Enumeration, it is estimated that the "requirements" in question in that year amounted to 66.47 million man-days. It must be stressed, however, that these standard labour requirements are not applicable to Irish farming conditions where the degree of mechanisation is not so high and farms are generally smaller, and more labour would be required. The corresponding number of man-years depends very much on the figure taken to convert man-days to man-years and this is influenced by climatic and other considerations. In the Report on Small Western Farms a figure of 280 man-days per year was arbitrarily taken, since the main object of the compilation was to compare farms of different sizes in the four provinces. If this figure is used the aggregate number of man-years required in 1960 was 237,400 as compared with 382,800 males engaged in agriculture as returned at the 1960 Enumeration, but it is necessary to emphasise that the assumptions on which this figure is based are of such a character as to deprive it of any real significance.
Following is the statement:—
Total number of persons at work in agriculture, forestry and fishing.
|
Sector |
1926 |
1936 |
1946 |
1956 |
|
Agriculture |
646,334 |
608,980 |
563,955 |
n.s. |
|
Forestry |
199 |
198 |
428 |
n.s. |
|
Fishing |
5,531 |
4,175 |
3,534 |
n.s. |
|
Total |
652,064 |
613,353 |
567,917 |
445,000 |
Note: Persons engaged in State Forestry are not included in 1926, 1936 and 1946, but they are included in the 1956 estimate. Persons engaged in Jobbing Gardening are included in 1926, 1936 and 1946, but they are not included in the 1956 estimate.