DEATH OF A FRANKTON SHUNTER.

Auckland Star, Volume LI, Issue 116, 15 May 1920, Page 12

DEATH OF A FRANKTON SHUNTER.

QUEST-ON OF EXPERIENCE. FURTHER ACTION MAY RESULT. (Bj Telegraph—Own Correspondent.) HAMILTON, this day. An inquest was held to-day by Mr. H. A. Young, S_l., on the body of George Black, a temporary porter, who died at the Waikato Hospital, following an accident while engaged in ghunting at Frankton Junction. Mr. Moore, local traffic inspector, appeared for the Railway Department, and Mr. E. H. Northcroft was present to watch the case en behalf of the widow and of the shunter in charge of the gang when the accident occurred. John Howard Hooton, shunter, --fated that Black was a relieving porter, and when the accident happened he w»Tiding on the side of a wagon. Where the lines intersected, a stationary truck wae sending just clear> of the main line, and it was between this truck and the wagon on which he was standing that Black was crushed. A more experienced man would have seen, and avoided, the danger. Replying to Mr. Northcroft, the" witness said that in normal times the -practice was to carry on operations of that kind with graded shunters—-men •with five to six years' experience. It ua s unwise to employ inexperienced

Replying to Mr. Moore the witness said he knew of no similar.accident bjppening to an experienced man. lie had complained to the statlonmaster and the coaching foreman that to keep Black on the shunting was unfair to Black and to witness. Coroner: Could Black have refused to do the work. Witness: I think that would have been regarded as an act of insubordination a#d disciplinary action might have Tieen taken. Coroner: Could lie not have represented his case to the Railway Appeal Board?

Witness:, Had he been suspended he probably could have done so. Coroner: Is there anything in the regulations to compel a man to accept a duty for which he is not fitted* Witness: Well, the authorities reserve the right to place a man in any position they thing fit. Air. Moore said if a man did not think he was competent for.a certain \foxk he could make representation!, and need not accept the work. A man was not to be suspended for doing so. COUNSEL BLAMES DEPARTMENT. Mr. -ortheroft observed that Black was probably not aware of the danger of the work. The experienced men who put him there were to blame. ,Mr. Xorth—'oft said he would like the case property sifted. It was a question whether or not the Department was responsible for; Black's death, and in view of other proceedings being possible it was necessary to clear up the matter both in the interests Of the widow and the Department. The shunting was hazardous and the Department had recognised that in the past by putting on only the higher graded men. It was common knowledge that the Department had been losing its experienced men for a long time. From Frankton Junction alone, during the past twelve months, no lese than a dozen men, with experience ranging up to 16 years, bad resigned; and at present there were" only two experienced shunters at that big junction. The Society of Railway Servants did not desire the bead official, at Frankton to be made the soa_wgoat_ for the present position, as it was considered tbe Department and not the Frankton officials were to blame. In the last three years no less than 200 ehunting accidents" had occurred in New Zealand, and of that number 17 were fatal. If the Department continued to lose the best of its men at tbe present rate the roll of accidents would, considerably increase. The Department, by having. failed to employ the best men for the work was, responsible for Black _ death, and the railway servants feared that other young men without sufficient knowledge of the work and its dangers migb. be subject to tbe name risk if -BometWng was not done to stop the practice. ; ~ r

BLACK'S OWN REQUEST. Several employees at Frankton Junction gave evidence to the effect that they had made representations to the •tatjonm-ster and the coacbin*foreman to have Black removed as they considered him inexperienced. One witness stated that Black himself had asked him to speak to: the coachingforeman to .have him taken off, as he did not consider he should occupy the position of. second-grade shunter. Representations were made, but without effect effect. , .._.;, , v- ;,„;;. The coroner, in giving bis verdict, said it" appeared to him i that! at ;th_ time of the accident Black, who was employed as a shunter at the Frankton yards, had not sufficient experience to undertake the work. It was not clear whether' he could have refused to do the work without affecting his position in the service. The evidence showed that there was a shortage- of experienced "shunters at Frankton, but it.is not disclosed to what that was due, or whether it could-have been reasonably prevented. *',_.; : verdict ;'of -'accidental death returned, the coroner" stating that ift> blame was attachable to any of the men employed in the-, shunting operations. .."■'• •' ' 1