Labour Trouble

Chrome Mine Strikes Labour Trouble

, 6 1HHE American controlled chrome A mining company, “La Tiebaghi,” which, -at Paagoumene, New iledonia, -operates the world’s ■ chest chrome mine, reports being considerably hampered in its pro duction by scarcity of labour.

With the probable departure soon of Vietnamese labourers, the Tiebaghi company may find itself in worse condition.

The Vietnamese have specialised in underground mining for some years. It takes time to form a good miner even when the human material is available, but there is little of it in New Caledonia.

New Caledonian natives do not take kindly to underground work and a few years ago an experiment was made with labour brought from Italy by the company.

The experiment was a failure, most of the Italians migrating to Australia after a few months.

It has been suggested that there -•re excellent underground miners in apan and crews could be brought o New Caledonia under contract y a limited time while local miners ue being trained.

The chrome mines are unlikely to working at full efficiency until e labour demands of the Yate

dam and the open-cut nickel mines are still unmet.

Of the 49,000 tons of chrome pro duced last year, 34,000 tons went to USA and 15,000 tons went to France. f Dr- T. T. Romans, Chief Medical Officer for the Cook Islands, will

be leaving shortly for Engll where he will undergo a p graduate medical course. Dr. H McCarthy, of the Medical Resesi Council of New Zealand, arn at Rarotonga on the June iIT Pomare to take over the dutiej acting CMO for three months