Political report of the Executive of the Jewish Agency submitted to the ... Zionist Congress and the ... session of the Council of the Jewish Agency · 1937-08-01 · 8.1937 · p. Seite 104

104 share, it is submitted, is due to Jewish labour both as citizens and as members of that community which by its development activities causes the growth of the volume of work on public works. 3. In public works this share should be fixed in terms of men-days. In so far as this may result in a larger proportion than 30% of the wage bill being paid to Jewish labour, such excess would be fully warranted by the provision contained in the Prime Minister's letter to Dr. Weizmann that in determining the share of Jewish labour in public works the relatively higher con- < tribution of the Jewish population to the revenue shall be borne in mind. In actual fact the share of the wage bill received by Jewish labour has been considerably less than 30%, while the proportion allocated to them in terms of men-days has been even smaller. At certain periods the share of Jewish labour dropped to nil. 4. The following procedure is suggested for the allocation of contracts to Jewish labour. At the beginning of each year a list of works to be carried out with Jewish labour should be drawn up in consultation with the Jewish Agency, calculated to ensure that the Jews obtain their due share. This list should contain a fair proportion of roads as well as of buildings and should comprise all types of jobs, skilled as well as unskilled. Road contracts should be concluded by agreement — with appropriate labour agencies acting as contractors without a competitive tender, but on the basis of Public Works Department rates. With regard to buildings one of two alternative methods should be adopted. Either there should be a stipulation in the tender form that Jewish labour must be employed, or the competition should be limited to contractors — not necessarily Jewish — undertaking to employ Jewish labour. Special arrangements should be made to accord to Jews a fair share of road maintenance works. 5. With a view to ensuring the share of Jewish labour in Municipal works, instructions should be given by Government to . the mixed municipalities of Jerusalem and Haifa that 50% of the works be allocated to Jews. 6. With regard to the Ports and Railways, a special consideration arises: the need to avert the danger of dislocation which threatens these services in times of racial unrest as long as their personnel consists of members of one race to the virtual exclusion of the other. It is the grievance of the Jewish Agency on this score that the refusal of Government to introduce Jewish labour into the Jaffa Port contributed to the success of the racial strike in that port in the months April to September 1936, which in addition to paralysing that vital public service contributed in ä very marked degree to the consolidation of the Arab strike throughout the country and the prolongation of the disturbances. At