OTIRA TUNNEL.

Press, Volume LVII, Issue 17058, 1 February 1921, Page 7

OTIRA TUNNEL.

VISIT OF MINISTER OF PUBLIC WORKS.

The Hon. J. G. Coates arrived at Otira last evening after an interesting trip through from Sheffield, Bealey, and over Arthur's Pass. He was accompanied by Mr P. "VY. Furkert, Engineor-in-Chief, Mr F. Langbein, District Engineer for Canterbury, and Messrs A. G. Henderson (president), "\V. K. MoAlpine (vice-president), and P. R. Clirnio (organiser) of tho Progress League.

Tho Progress League party made the full journey from Christchurch, having left the city at seven o'clock. Arthur's Pass railway station was reached at two o'clock, and the final stage to Otira was completed, with intervals for inspection, by six o'clock. During tiio motor trip Mr McAlpine, who is chairman of tho Tawera County Council, pointed out to tho Minister tho urgent necessity of bridging the last crossing of the Kowai and the crossings of tho Porter and Broken livers, and stressed the heavy maintenance costs required for the upkeep of his council's portion of the Christchurch to West Coast main road. Mr Coates approved of'the work already accomplished for approaches to the bridge at the first crossing of the Kowai, for which a grant up to £IOOO, £1 for £l, is on the Estimates. Operations in the Arthur's Pass tunnel were discussed by the Minister in tho evening, when he met a deputation from the Workers' Union, consisting of .Messrs R. Beban McLaren (secretary), W. Kidd, W. McGrath, and W. Robertson. The workers objected first to the proposal to reduce by 10 per cent, the present contract price per foot, £l6 lis, at. tho Otira end. They said that in driving 224 feet of top Leading 477 shifts were worked, and the net earnings amounted to £517, or an average for each man of one guinea a shift. For 261 shifts of lower heading: work they had earned £202, expenses, in regard to explosives and tool sharpening being exceptionally heavy. Mr Kidd said that all round, under present conditions, tho men could not earn more than £1 a shift. *the ground was hard and progress was slower, and prices for blasting material, paid for by the workers themselves, had increased. Carbide at Otira cost 7£d a pound, though the price in Christchurch was only 6(1. t Mr Furkert: You are being charged the cost price. Mr Beban: Your supplies must have been fought when tho market was high. After discussion, Mr Furkert said that tho offer was not a ten per cent, reduction, hut a ten per cent, retention. The Departments engineers considered that. £l6 12s a foot was too much for the job at the Otira end, but for the sake of peace they were making the offer of £lo 10s a foot, plus £1 Is paid when the whole work was finished. Mr Beban said that the Union was absolutely against the retention proposal. Mr Coates said that he would inspect tho workings beforo making a decision. The next request by tho Union was that where returned soldiers had worked for the Department beforo tho war their war service should count in the holiday computation under the Pubho Works and Construction Workers agreement. Mr Coates said m these cases the men's services should be counted from the date fixed for everyone else, November 20th, 1919. Permits to count broken, time -would be given to all workers who sent satisfactory explanations. . _ , ~ . _ Mr Coates told Mr Behan that if any officials of the Union had a question of victimisation in their-minds they should get rid of it. It was not practised v the -engineers and -it - would not »jo tolerated. The Government preferred to deal with an executive m labour m The rß Union further asked that all carpenters and motonnen at the tunnel should be paid the top award rate. _ The Minister replied that no would go into this matter with the engineers.