CONTRACTOR DAY LABOUR.

Press, Volume L, Issue 14916, 14 March 1914, Page 11

CONTRACTOR DAY LABOUR.

RICCARTON TOWN HALT/.

PROTESTING BURGESSES. A meeting of the Riccarton Burgesses' Association was heht on Thursday night, when the decision of the Riocarton Borough Council to erect th< new Town Hal and municipal offices bjday labour instead of calling foi tenders for the work was considered. ' Mj R. W. Brightling presided. The following motion on the matter waa proposed:—"That this Association strongly protests against-the intention ot. the Riccarton Council to erect the Town Hall and offices by day labour." It was stated by several members that the day labour method would make the work more expensive than if the work was carried but by contract. Mr Stringer' said he was satisfied that the contract method would mean the cheaper job. He quoted cases - where contract prices for certain worki were much lower than the actual price: by carrying out " the work by day labour. • Cr. Stokes mentioned certain Australian railway works which had been carried out by day labour at, a sarins in cost, but anotnr.- member pointed, out that the Commonwealh Government had decided to complete the transcontinental railway across Australia by contract instead of day TaTifrar, the' former being- in their opinion the. cheaper. Cr. Ford said he was one of the, two who voted in the Council to hare the - work done by contract. He wae as anxious as anyone to hare the work, done as cheaply as possible, hut if the Council employed day labour, and did not call for tenders, there would be no check on the cost. To call for. tenders simnly to arrive at the value of the work would be manifestly' Ho wanted the Council to call for tenders, . and should it eventually be decided not to accept a tender, the usual uniform fee should be paid to the lowest tenderer. If the Council objected io call for tenders on the ground of expense, he would be willing to pa/ the fee himself. Another member pointed out that if the Council did the- work by day labour it would have to incur the expense of scaffolding, etc., which woulu be useless when the building.was finished. In the course of the discussion it wa» stated (that at a previous meeting of the Council a member had said that if the bed-rock day labour price for tho work was £1000. and a tender was piit in for £800, he would still support tho day labour method. A question was raised as to ' larity of the meeting, it being aliened that propor notice was not given. Tho meeting approved of the action Of tho chairman and secretary in calling the meeting, but the chairman that any decision arrived at on the original . motion could not be sent on to tho Council for the reason that the meeting was not propeply constituted. members protested against this ruling, and the meeting broke up without any decision being arrived at. Another meeting will be "held later to discuss th© position.