44 



NANGLE. 



labour, to the breaking down of some of the industrial laws 

 and customs which had been established as the result of 

 years of hard fighting. Events have shown that these 

 fears were groundless. The scheme involved the training 

 of an estimated number of men for each calling. The 

 estimates have been exceeded in only a few cases, and in 

 those with the consent of the Soldiers' Industrial Com- 

 mittees concerned. The undertaking has, however, demon- 

 strated that it is possible to estimate the number who can 

 be put into a trade without endangering employment. It 

 has further shown that our laws permit of a very much more 

 systematic method of directing suitable recruits to the 

 callings than what is now in operation. Further than this, 

 the working out of the system has demonstrated the 

 advantage of both employers and employees' organisations 

 having a voice in the training of those who are to be the 

 workers of the future in the callings carried on in the 

 country. Some feared that it might even tend to destroy 

 the system of apprenticeship. So far from having that 

 effect, it has demonstrated the opposite, inasmuch as it 

 proved the value of disciplinary courses of training specific- 

 ally designed for such callings and comprised of both trades 

 school instruction and actual workshop training. As a 

 matter of fact, it was in its very essence an apprenticeship 

 training, since the later trainee stage was served to an 

 employer under the same conditions as those of the old 

 established apprenticeship custom. The assessment of 

 the value of the services of the trainees was, moreover, 

 on a more equitable basis than is the case with ordinary 

 apprenticeships, since the employer paid according to 

 periodical assessment made by expert tribunals, and con- 

 sequently got what he paid for in the way of services. 



The economic value of the scheme is not difficult to 

 estimate. At a very moderate valuation, each of the men 

 trained will be able to earn at least £2 per week more thau 



