ASYLUM ATTENDANTS' GRIEVANCES.

Auckland Star, Volume XXXV, Issue 200, 22 August 1904, Page 5

ASYLUM ATTENDANTS' GRIEVANCES.

A LIVELY DEPUTATION. 0j- Telegraph-— Parliamentary Retx>rter.) WELLINGTON, Saturday. deputation of Auckland and Canterbury members waited on the Minister for Public Work*., the Hon. HallJones, to-day to lay before him the grievances of asylum attendants, the !uekland members present being Messrs. Bollard, Kidd. and Lawry. It was represented that throughout the colony asylum attendants were underpaid, overworked, .badly fed. and had insufficient holidays. Further, it wa« pointed out that in the Shop and Offices ISill the ordinary hours of labour wore limited to 52 P er " l 'ek, whereas asylum attendants worked 30? hour*. It was nrged that a Board of Appeal should be se t for the hearing ■ 1' grievances instead of the men having in submit them through the medical superintendent, a procedure khich prejudiced their positions. The Canterbury members spoke a t some length concerning the position at Sunnysidc Asylum, where it was urged that their superintendent was a worse autocrat than the Czar of Russia. Jherc was some very plain speaking between the Minister and the deputation concerning this particular asylum. The Auckland members, while having 80 personal grievances against the medical superintendent at Avondale, endorsed the other statements regarding the other grievances of attendants. Mr. Bollard staled thnt great dissatisfaction existed in Auckland. Tbe cost of living had greatly increased during the last few years, but the scale of pay of asylum attendants had not been altered. .Many of the attendants found it rerv difficult to keep their wives and families on the present scale of pay. The Inspertor-Oeneral had some time ago recommended a more liberal scale, but there had been no alteration. It was a wrong attitude to adopt to say that there were always pl.-nty to take the places of those leaving. He pointed out that the attendants' lives were frequently endangered. An Appeal Psiard should be set. up, and there should be a system of superannuation, for the men could not save money at the present rates. Mr. Kidd declared that there had been great dissatisfaction at Avondale ■ o*er the hours of work and wages paid, i The mental strain on the attendants: was so severe that they should have | more leisure hours than tbe ordinary | worker instead of longer. | Mr. Witty referred to the fact that! during the last 15 years 784 attendants ! had left the asylums, of whom 143 had left during the past four years—a num- I her out of all proportion to other branch- I e3 of the Civil service. j The Minister, in reply, said that, while I he was generally in favour of the de-1 mands of the deputation, be would not j set up an Appeal Hoard. "So long as I j am Minister in charge." lie said, "I am I the Appeal Board." He thought the es-! fablishment of an Appeal Board would weaken discipline, and it would then ■ he a case of "fJod help the patients.'' He j would, however, allow complaints tn be | made direct to himself if attendants had failed to obtain redress by appeal to the medical superintendent. He promised that no attendant should be dismissed for appealing to the. Minister. He farther promised to improve the position of married attendants cither by erecting cottajjos for thefi in the asylum grounds, or by giving lodging allowances. He would al~o inquire regarding a superannuation fund. Mr. Davey declared that the Minister's reply regarding an Appeal Hoard was not very satisfactory, and promised to give the House some surprising details regarding Sunnyside. Mr. Bollard said that there was already too much "star chamber" business about the administration of asylums, and there would be no improvement until they got an Appeal Board. There were some further hot interchanges between the deputation and the Minister, Mr. Hall-Jo-en saying that he would much prefer to work amicably in the matter, and that lie would certainly make inquiries regarding the somewhat grave charges which had been made regarding Sunny-side, aud would also look into the grievances of attendants. Mr. Laurenson suggested that they Should thank the Minister, which aroused Mr. Witty's ire. and he asked. "What have we got to thank him for? Certainly for his courtesy, but we have nothing else beyond what we were promised last' year, and that has been absolutely Tcsultless."