Salary Bar System "Unfair To Workers"

Press, Volume CII, Issue 30264, 17 October 1963, Page 18

Salary Bar System "Unfair To Workers"

(N«w Zealand Press Association)

WELLINGTON. October 16. An attack on the Arbitration Court system f Imposing salary bars which put workers outside award provisions was made by the secretary of the Wellington, Marlborough, Westland, Nelson and Taranaki Local Body Officers' Union (Mr P. M. Butler) today. Presenting the union’s annual report to its conference, Mir Butler said the court’s practice seemed unfair. He cited the case of a member of the Labourers' Union, of which Mr Butler is also secretary, who was promoted as a working foreman to be a member of the staff, putting him under the •cope of the Local Body Officers’ Award, and thereby limiting the amount of overtime he would receive. “There was other evidence that the same county council advanaced certain officers a few pounds above the then existing salary bar in order to deprive them of overtime and oilier benefits in the officers' award,” he said.

“Apart from the general powers conferred on ths court, the legislature has not specifically stated that s worker who, through skill, merit, service or experience

nas peen ante to maze special contractural arrangements with his employers, should lose the other specific benefits of an award and consequently other provisions of the industrial legislation." Mr Butler suggested that by fixing salary bars to exclude certain persons from awards, the court was arbitrarily debarring some workers from other provisions of tiie awards. “If iit is found necessary to exclude certain persons from an award because of the special nature of their positions or dash of interests, then such persons should be specifically excluded by the title of their occupation or otherwise,” he said. “To debar workers from the benefits of an award by fixing an arbitrary amount, cutting out workers who may receive a few shillings above it, is entirely unfair and should be discontinued.”