Hayek refers to the Control of Engagement Order of 1947, issued by the Minister of Labour and, as delegated legislation, not subject to amendment by Parliament. Ivor Thomas, in The Socialist Tragedy (London: Latimer House Ltd., 1949), pp. 104–5, offered this succinct description: “Under this Order men between the ages of 18 and 50 and women between the ages of 18 and 40 may not be engaged except through an employment exchange of the Ministry of Labour, apart from certain exempted occupations. Workers in coal mining and agriculture are not permitted to leave those occupations. Other applicants at an employment exchange are offered jobs that in the Government’s view have the highest priority. If an applicant refuses to accept a job he can in the last resort be directed, and failure to obey the direction can be punished by fine or imprisonment."
Thank you very much!
“Workers in coal mining and agriculture are not permitted to leave those occupations.”
Living in Britain at that time must have seemed like “The End of the Road”.