asked the Minister for Social Welfare if he will state the number of skilled building workers who have applied to his Department for employment in building from addresses in Britain since December 1st, 1949, giving separately the number of these in each trade category, and the number in each category placed in employment through the Department.
Ceisteanna—Questions. Oral Answers. - Skilled Building Workers.
The reply to the first part of the Deputy's question is: carpenters, 209; bricklayers, 128; masons, 9; slaters and tilers, 16; plasterers, 65; painters, 176; plumbers, 47; glaziers, 4; steel-fixers and benders, 10; electricians, 48; steel-erectors, 26; woodcutting-machinists, 13; stone-cutters, 1; clerks of works, 6, and costing-clerks, 6 Total, 764.
The particulars asked for in the second part of the question are not available. The procedure adopted in regard to skilled workers in the building trade at present in Great Britain, who indicate their desire to return to employment in this country, is to record them in a special register maintained by my Department in Dublin. Each such registrant is supplied with particulars of suitable employment as it becomes available. The prospective employer is at the same time informed that this is being done and is furnished with the name and address of the registrant. Both parties are advised to enter into direct correspondence regarding any matter they may desire to settle before a contract of service is completed. Owing to the nature of this procedure it will be understood that my Department cannot say how many of the applicants who have been introduced to employers have been engaged.
Will the Minister give any figures for the number of vacancies notified to his Department which could not be filled out of the skilled labour available?
The total number of vacancies for skilled workers notified to my Department which could not be so filled was 953, which is more than the number of applicants for such skilled employment, but of course the number of applicants did not necessarily fit perfectly into the number of vacancies in a particular trade.
Can the Minister indicate the various headings under which these vacancies were notified? It might be in the public interest that that information should be made available.
It is a separate question.
I will arrange to have it put down for answer later.
As a matter of fact, it is pretty much the same as in the first paragraph of my reply.