£50 MORE FOR STATE SERVICE

Press, Volume CVI, Issue 31077, 4 June 1966, Page 1

£50 MORE FOR STATE SERVICE

Higher Salaries Also Rise

(New Zealand Press Association)

WELLINGTON, June 3.

Public servants on salaries up to £2175 a year will receive a £5O increase as a result of the recent ruling rates survey.

The increases will be tapered off after £2175. Above this figure the increases are £4O at £2295, £3O at £2415, £2O at £2555 and £lO at £2710.

The Government has also approved a recommendation by the Advisory Committee on higher salaries in the State Services that the last two ruling-rate survey increases, totalling £135 a year, should be carried through to top salaries from April 1, last.

The Government has also accepted the committee’s views that there are insufficient grounds for a comprehensive review of top salaries at April 1, although the committee will be asked to undertake a general review later this year.

The Prime Minister (Mr

Holyoake) said tonight that discussions were still continuing with the combined service organisations on the method of adjusting salaries above the basic level of £lOO5 a

year. “Further negotiations with

the service organisations did not bring any agreement on this issue,” he said.

“The Government has, therefore, decided to apply the increase on a flat basis and thus follow past practice for surveys that have not been associated with a general wage order of the Arbitration

Court. “The organisations have the

right to apply to their respective tribunals against this decision.”

Mr Holyoake said the effect of the decision on top salaries would be that public servants who. since 1962, had not received the ruling rates survey increases in full would have their salaries adjusted so that the margins between grades were restored to the 1964 level.

This adjustment would assist the statutory regrading of the Post Office, the railways and part of the Public Service which was due this year, but no other changes to the general scales were contemplated for regrading purposes.