asked the Minister for Lands if he will state the number of labourers employed by the Land Commission in January, 1948, and January, 1949, respectively, in (a) County Mayo, and (b) the rest of the State.
Ceisteanna—Questions. Oral Answers. - Labourers Employed by Land Commission.
The particulars required by the Deputy are as follows:— January, 1948: 146 labourers were employed in County Mayo and 1,260 in the remainder of the State. January, 1949: 41 labourers were employed in County Mayo and 529 in the remainder of the State.
The Deputy will appreciate that the numbers employed in the month of January in any year are not a fair index of employment throughout the year. In actual fact, as I stated in reply to a recent question by Deputy Beegan, the average number of labourers employed during the year ended 31st December, 1948, was 1,593, compared with 1,055 during the year ended 31st December, 1947. Weather conditions naturally affect the number employed at any particular time, and for that reason the month of January is perhaps the worst month to take as an index to the trend of employment.