§ 1. Mr. HERBERT WILLIAMSasked the Minister of Labour if he can furnish an estimate of the number of juveniles registered for employment who are still at school; and whether such juveniles are regarded as unemployed for the purpose of the statistics published by his Department?
§ The MINISTER of LABOUR (Sir Henry Betterton)The latest figures available on this point were published in the Ministry of Labour Gazette for May and relate to a special inquiry made on the 19th March. There were then 7,442 boys and girls, under 16 years of age, still attending whole-time day school while registered as applicants for employment. Boys and girls who are still under a statutory obligation to remain at school cannot be registered for employment. Those who are free from that obligation are included in the monthly statistics published by my Department, so long as they maintain registration.
§ Mr. WILLIAMSDoes that mean that nearly one-tenth of them are still at school?
§ Sir H. BETTERTONSomething like that.
§ 2. Mr. WILLIAMSasked the Minister of Labour if he can furnish an estimate of the proportion of juveniles who left school in the last 12 months who have failed to obtain any employment at all, and the proportion who are at present without employment?
§ Sir H. BETTERTONI regret that I can furnish no estimate on this precise point. The only information available bearing on the subject is that derived from a recent inquiry when it was found that of the boys and girls under 16 years of age who were registered as unemployed on 19th March there were 15,757 who were not at school but had had no full-time employment since leaving school.
§ 3. Mr. WILLIAMSasked the Minister of Labour if he will institute an inquiry to determine what proportion of the juveniles registered as unemployed have been out of work for less than one week, one month, and three months, respectively?
§ Sir H. BETTERTONThe information is not at present available. Further information will become available when the age of entry into insurance is lowered, and I will consider then the desirability of instituting such an inquiry.
§ 4. Mr. GRAHAM WHITEasked the Minister of Labour if he will state, as on the latest convenient date, the number of boys and girls between 14 and 18 who are registered as unemployed; and if any estimate has been made of the total number unemployed on the same date?
§ Sir H. BETTERTONAt 14th May, 1934, the latest date for which figures are available, there were 52,560 unemployed boys and 41,360 unemployed girls, aged 14 to 18, on the registers of Employment Exchanges and Juvenile Employment Bureaux in Great Britain. I am unable to give the numbers unemployed who were not so registered at that date, but it has been assumed in the past that the numbers unregistered are approximately one-third of the numbers registered.