OVERTIME REFUSED

Auckland Star, Volume L, Issue 221, 17 September 1919, Page 5

OVERTIME REFUSED

UNTIL COURT REVERSES THE NO-BONUS DECREE. DECISION OF IRONWORKERS. It is the unanimous decieion of the three allied iron workers' unions in Auckland that their members shall touch no overtime work of any description until the Arbitration Court sees fit to reverse its no bonus with overtime decree. The unskilled ironworkers who form portion of tlip General 'Labourers' Union, will discuss their attitude at a general meeting to-night. Mr. E. F. Barter, secretary of the A.S.E., and also advocate before the Court for the allied unions, eubmits a etatement in which lie contrasts the old award and the new one in this matter of overtime payment, and shows that under the present wages scale, but with the i old conditions, for twelve hours' additional work members will actually re- ! oeive lees money than before. The table j shows the results of 12 hours' overtime at a rate of time-and-a-quarter for the ! first two hours, time-and-a-half for the next two, and double time thereafter, with 2id. an hour .bonus. This works out at 4/OJ for the first two hours, 4/10J for the next two, and £1 6/ for the other eight at double time, which, with 2/6 bonus, makes £1 17/5 for the twelve. Xoiv under the new no-bonua system, the first three at time-and-a-haM bring 7/3J, and the last nine at double time, £1 9/3, which gives the total of £1 lli/fiiS, or a decrease of 101 d. For Sunday and holiday work under the old conditions of double-time with the new wagea amendments, twenty hours' work is estimated to bring, with bonus, £3 D/ 2, but now without the bonus, this 20 hours, if worked, would bring in wages only £3 5/, which is 4/2 less. A EEPLY. Mr Barter takes exception to the part lof Mr. Wright's statement wherein he saye that the employers ajrrecd to pay the 1/7J and 2Jd. bonus without waiting for the Court. Mr. Barter says they did so on the application of the union for a conference which was held on April 30. The employers agreed to pay the 1/7J plus 2Jd. from May 1, and offered to pay time and a half overtime if the workers brought proof that it was siven down South. "On proof being given," shvs Mr. Barter, " the emnlovers waived the offer because they claimed they had had no opportunity of placing the" position before the Court down South, which meant the union had to file a case in the usual manner and bring evidence in support of their cla'ins. I, as advocate for the all'ed iron trades, contend that the only ouestion Vfore the Court was the alteration fro?n rate and a <ji:art«?r for the first two houre' overtime and rate and a half for the second two. and double time to follow, to he altered to rate find a half fnr the three and then double. Mv reply to Mr. Wright is that the Court was not nsked to concirf»r any other oiiostion but ihe chance in the rate for overtime. Bonus was not discussed either one wav or the other. Furthermore, as regards action of the unions conr-prne* T want to state that this has Tieen fully dis,oiis=ed at snppial TneeHnpw of the three unions called by circular."