Student Employment Bureau

A Report Off Progress

Victoria college's infant Student Employment Service, which cut its eye-teeth last November helping students find vacation jobs and placating employers whose jobs nobody wanted, has a long way to go before it approaches the record of the Melbourne University Appointments Board, which last year placed more than 1600 students in vacation employment—apart from helping' hundreds of graduates to find permanent jobs.

But, in spite of the critics, my feeling is that it has been a successful experiment and one that justifies continuing with the scheme. Though less was accomplished in placing students than was hoped, at least a great deal was learnt that could be learnt no other way. We can take from other organisations their filing systems and their technique, but the only way to make it easier for Victoria College students to get the sort of vacation jobs they want and need is to start trying to team the students and jobs available.

In spite of the inexperience of the sub-committee, a gratifying proportion of the students who registered were matched with suitable jobs. The committee is grateful to the office assistant. Miss Dougherty, for patiently handling so much of the negotiations.

Publicity was the first need. To make the scheme known, posters were placed round the college, and a total of about 90 students registered for either full-time or part-time (odd-job) employment. Letters were published by the Wellington daily newspapers, for whose assistance we are grateful, and the response was at times embarrassing. Occasional paragraphs in the Press kept the scheme before the public eye, and in addition a few small classified advertisements were run.

Perhaps the most salient feature of the employment market for students we uncovered was the desire of farmers and country housewives to employ students—and the marked reluctance of students to take Jobs of this kind. The committee had considered that there might be numbers of students who would like a complete change of scene and occupation in farm work, housework or minding children in the country, etc. No doubt there are many students in this category; they appear to be those who live in farming districts, and have no trouble at all "Jacking up" jobs in their home area—the students who return year after year to the same dairy factory, for instance.

Those who registered almost unanimously wanted well-paid city jobs with opportunities for overtime. Most did not want to leave home "and pay board out of my wages"—if they lived in Wellington, and they wore not keen to take work that did but offer something considerably above award wages. Girl students, because of the openings for them, seemed less choosy, and to have less difficulty in finding jobs with the very much lower peak earnings they could hope to receive—for instance, working as relieving staff in shops or offices. But they, like the boys, were far from enthusiastic about jobs which promised a holiday in different surroundings, with less pay (but also less opportunity for spending it) than that to be earned in the city.

Before the Student Employment Service started, some employers had been in the habit of writing to the Executive and requesting student labour. Their letters were placed on the notice board in the past, and once examinations were fairly under way, and it seemed unlikely that many more students would register, this practice was again followed by the S.E.S. In addition the Labour and Employment Department's officers were most helpful, and were confident that they could place most of the students if necessary.

Fortunately some wool stores were among the employers offering work though the S.E.S. But moat students wanting to work in wool stores, on the wharves or in freezing works, in face of a mounting shortage of casual work of this kind, did some hard canvassing before they found what they wanted. It seems as if relatively few were helped by the S.E.S.

Students wanting work in shops or offices or as storemen or drivers found plenty of jobs on the books Those satisfied to accept an award, wage generally found a number of jobs, but others wanting more lucrative positions, unless they were already on the books or lucky enough to apply when the most attractive vacancies occurred, presumably had to find work through their own efforts.

Critics can, we realise, retort: "Why doesn't every student just find his or her own job? They know what they want, and if they've any commonsense they know where to look for it'" Sometimes, when things seemed particularly exasperating, even those most enthusiastic about establishing the Student Employment Service at Victoria felt like asking the same questions.

But in fact the teething troubles of the Service really only show the need for it. With the best-paying jobs scarcer than they have been in years, competition for them was keen. Relatively few employers offering lucrative positions applied for student workers—presumably most didn't need to—they were turning them away. But among at least a sizeable number of Wellington employers, the Student Employment Service is becoming known; as soon as it becomes so well known that few employers will not have heard of it, it will seem simpler for them to telephone or write to the S.E.S than to search for labour themselves. And, if students collectively maintain a good record for fair, enthusiastic work (when there's work to be done) then even in more difficult times, students should be assured of getting jobs with far less effort and far more chance of success than otherwise would be the case.

Through the' open-book system operated by the Service so far more likely to get what he wants than if he simply took the best Job he's heard about through his friends or family.

All these suggestions assume that enough, students can benefit by a Student Employment Service to make it a useful institution. More information on this point should be revealed when answers to the questionnaire on vacation employment now being sent out by the New Zealand Student Labour Federation are known. So, please fill in a questionnaire when it comes your way—you'll be helping yourself and other students!

Pauline Hoskins