The Office Of The Department Of Labour in Napier is situated in temporary premises on the first floor of the Athenaeum Building, in Browning Street. The officer-in-charge is Mr. W. J. Blake, who is also Inspector of Factories for Napier.

Mr. William John Blake, Inspector of Factories and Awards at Napier, is a native of London, England, and went to Australia in the year 1842. He was educated at private schools, and afterwards entered mercantile life in Launceston, Tasmania. In 1862 he came to New Zealand, and after engaging in commercial pursuits for some years in Dunedin and on the West Coast, he entered the postal department of the Government service in Wanganui, but subsequently relinquished his appointment to take up book-keeping for a legal firm. Later, he became an insurance and general commission agent, until accepting an appointment as Government Inspector of Factories in Wanganui, in December, 1897. He was transferred to Napier in 1905. Mr. Blake, while in Tasmania, took a keen interest in athletics and volunteering.