FIRE-BREAK WORK

Dominion, Volume 28, Issue 114, 7 February 1935, Page 4

FIRE-BREAK WORK

Standard Wages to be Paid For some time past relief workers have been employed grubbing and clearing up the fire-breaks in the vicinity of Wellington city reserves aud ; plantations. These breaks are . pro-> vided to minimise the danger of fire and to make a definite fighting area where it may be possible to check a fire- , ~ This year the director of parks, Mr. J. G. MacKenzie, has been employing about 170 relief workers on the job of clearing fire-breaks. The qtiestion has now been raised by,the men that this work is essential to the safety of the reserves? parks, and gardens of the city, and is therefore standard work which should command standard " The matter was considered at a special meeting of the reserves committee yesterday afternoon. It was generally conceded that firebreak clearing was a standard work, us it was a work of necessity in the interest of .the public estate. Or. J. Burns, chairman of the committee, concurred In that view and with others agreed that standard rate of wages should be paid those men engaged on the job. At the same time he made it clear that this decision would mean a drastic reduction in the number of men employed, as the City Council could not afford to pay anything like 170 men standard rates of pay.