POWER BOARD EMPLOYEES

Press, Volume C, Issue 29537, 12 June 1961, Page 7

POWER BOARD EMPLOYEES

Increase In Wages

increases ranging from 5s 2d to £1 a week have been granted by the Court of Arbitration to workers employed under the Marlborough, Nelson, Westland, and Canterbury electric power boards and supply authorities employees' award. The award includes members of the engineers' union. Inspectors and inspector servicemen have been granted an increase of £1 a week, electricians and registered E. or E.S servicemen. 15s 4d; servicemen with limited registration and unregistered learners. 7s 2d; diesel plant operators, storemen. meter testers. linemen trainees, workshop assistants, permanent hydro station labourers, racemen. and labourers, 5s 2tl; and certified linemen, 13s 4d a week. The extra hourly rate to be paid to electricians with advanced trade certificates has been raised by Id. and the yearly wages of a hydro station engineer and a hydro station operator of the Marlborough Electric Power Board have been raised by £42 and £43 respectively. The wages of trainee operators in the Westland and Marlborough districts have been raised by 5s 2d a week, as have the wages of operators and racemen in the West land district. The rates for junior trainee linemen have been raised by 10s to 12s a week There must be no more than one junior trainee lineman to each three men employed on lines, and not more than one in each gang. The wages for shift workers have been raised by 6d a shift extra for the afternoon and night shifts. Overtime worked on country work is to be paid for at the rate of time and a third; it was previously Is fid an hour additional to ordinary rates. When overtime is worked it is to be arranged, where practicable, for workers to have at least eight consecutive hours off duty between the work of successive days, if necessary being released after the overtime work for eight hours, without any loss in pay for ordinary working time missed. If a worker resumes or continues work without having had eight hours off duty he is to be paid at double rates until released from duty for eight hours. If a worker is notified to work overtime and the work is cancelled less than two hours before the appointed tithe, he is to be paid not less than one hour at ordinary rates. The terms of the award, which were reached bv the assessors in Conciliation Council, are retrospective to May 1, 1961. and will remain in force until October 31, 1962.