New Zealand in evolution, industrial, economic and political; . to journey-mens wages. The boards and courts had, however, thepower to fix the number of apprentices in the differenttrades which came before them, and the unions natu-rally, from motives of self-preservation, invariably threwtheir weight in to restrict the number, just as theyhad opposed the granting of under-rate permits. Thetribunals did v/hat they could against the representa-tions of the unions. In a judgment in 1902, in a grocersdispute, the Court remarked :— There are some occupations where it is advisableto limit the youth
New Zealand in evolution, industrial, economic and political; . to journey-mens wages. The boards and courts had, however, thepower to fix the number of apprentices in the differenttrades which came before them, and the unions natu-rally, from motives of self-preservation, invariably threwtheir weight in to restrict the number, just as theyhad opposed the granting of under-rate permits. Thetribunals did v/hat they could against the representa-tions of the unions. In a judgment in 1902, in a grocersdispute, the Court remarked :— There are some occupations where it is advisableto limit the youths in number. But there are otheroccupations where no such limit is either reasonable ornecessary ; and it is our duty to see that the avenues forsuitable work are not closed to the youth of the owe a duty to the boys of the community, as well asto the adult workers of the colony, and that duty wemust perform to the best of our ability. Before the law had been ten years in operation indus-tries were beginning to feel the ill-effects of the restric-. SOME EFFECTS OF ARBITRATION 221 tion of apprentices. Debarred admission to the indus-tries, and frequently encouraged to look higher byparents whose sudden accession of prosperity begotambition, youngsters drifted steadily into mercantileoffices, banks, and even—by the medium of a cheapand excellent education—into the professions. Thestandard of living and of education in New Zealandto-day is probably higher than in any other countryin the world. All branches of engineering are regardedas suitable occupations for men of breeding and educa-tion, and farming is quite fashionable for young men ofcollege and university education. Under these circum-stances, and in face of the restriction of apprentices, mostof the lower trades have been starved. New Zealandyouths have been deprived of admission, and a chronicshortage of workers has been created. New Zealandhas thus for years offered almost certain prospectsfor efficient a
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