RAILWAY STAFF CONTROL

Press, Volume LXXV, Issue 22662, 17 March 1939, Page 12

RAILWAY STAFF CONTROL

DISSATISFACTION ALLEGED PROMOTION METHODS AND GRIEVANCES APPEAL BOARD MEMBER RESIGNS (PRESS ASSOCIATION TELEGEAiI.) WELLINGTON, March 16. Charges of staff maladministration in the railway service, because of •which he tenders his resignation from the position of Division I representative on the New Zealand Government Railways Appeal Board, are made by Mr J. S. Roscoe in a letter to the Minister for Railways (the Hon. D. G. Sullivan). Mr Roscoe says that grave dissatisfaction with the present staff control and administration is widespread in the service, mainly because of methods of promotion, long delays in dealing with grievances, and the management’s refusal of a right of

appeal. “Please treat this letter as my resignation from the position of Division I representative on the New Zealand Government Railways Appeal Board,” he writes. “My object is to bring under your notice, for immediate action, the very serious position that has developed through staff maladministration over a considerable period, and to secure justice for the officers whose interests I- am elected to serve, and to secure efficient administration of the service. That can be achieved only when this condition is fulfilled.

“In the light of more than five years’ experience as Division I representative on the Appeal Board, I am sure that very grave dissatisfaction with the present staff control and administration is widespread in the railway service. In the main this dissatisfaction arises from: Three Hensons “(1) Methods of promotion. “(2) Long delays in dealing with grievances, including appeals arising out of the regrading of positions, which was due on April 1, 1937. To date appellants have not received departmental replies to their statements of claim in reference to the value of positions, nor have any of these appeals been set down for hearing. “(3) The management’s refusal of the right- of appeal, specially in one case, where a member has been dismissed and the board, by a majority decision, has held that there is a right of appeal.

“Unless the staff can have confidence in the impartial functioning of the Appeal Board, the present serious unrest and lack pf confidence will continue. My personal relations with my colleagues on the Appeal Board are the happiest possible. In order that those whom 1 represent may immediately become aware of the reasons for my withdrawal from the Appeal Board, I am handing a copy of this memorandum to the press.” Official Comment The Assistant-Manager of the New Zealand Railways, Mr E. Casey, to whom Mr Boscoe’s letter was referred, commented as follows:—“ Officers of the service have their own organisation, the Railways Officers’ Institute, which is in touch with the Minister and the management regarding service conditiohsj etc., and is the official body which deals with any suggested alteration in the method of promotions. This does not come within the purview of Mr Roscoe’s position as a member, representing officers, on the Government Railways’ Appeal Board, whose functions are of a purely judicial nature. The assistant staff superintendent and other officers have been engaged almost exclusively for many months in dealing with Appeal Board work, and the fact that from the middle of February to date the Appeal Board has been sitting practically continuously is an indication that the department is doing its best to overtake arrears of appeals. “The department has no jurisdiction over the procedure of the Appeal Board, which is an independent body, and procedure naturally has a bearing on the time taken to hear and dispose of appeals. Departmental regulations state that where disagreement between the department and the board as to the right of appeal occurs, the case is submitted to the Solicitor-General for his opinion. There has been no suggestion up to the present regarding the impartiality of the Appeal Board. The department has had no previous intimation of Mr Roscoe’s action or intentions regarding his resignation from the board, although within the last week he has been m personal contact with the General Manager of Railways, Mr G. H. Mackley, and myself. “It is not understood why a matter of purely departmental concern should be required to be ventilated in the press by Mr Roscoe. The necessary arrangements are being made for the election of a successor to Mr Roscoe on the board; but the gazetted regulations require that a minimum of two months’ notice shall be given to members concerned regarding an election. This will have the effect of holding up the appeals of members of the first division for a further three months "