48-HOUR WEEK FOR POLICE FORCE

Dominion, Volume 30, Issue 173, 19 April 1937, Page 10

48-HOUR WEEK FOR POLICE FORCE

Advance in Pay PUBLIC SERVICE HOURS NOT PRACTICABLE A lediicliou in the working week of Die Police Force from 56 hours to 18 hours, an advance of ten shillings in pay weekly because of the impracticability of adopting the 40-hour standard. of the Public Service, and the training and employment of 125 additional men have been agreed to by the Government. The Minister in Charge of Police. Hon. P. Fraser, in announcing the new conditions on Saturday, said that tlie questiqn of reducing tlie hours of the Police Force in accordance with the expressed policy of tlie Government had been receiving close attention There were difficulties in the way of effecting any considerable reduction in the hours of work, and the Commissioner of Police. Mr. D. J. Cummings, who had given much attention to the matter, had made certain recommendations. These recommendations involved tlie training of a large number of men to enable the working week to be reduced. After a close examination of the facts it bad been decided that the hours of duty of the members of the force would be reduced from 56 hours a week, which had been in operation hitherto, to 48 hours a week as soon as a sufficient number of men could be trained. In order to give effect to this proposal it would be necessary to call up 1.25 men and to put them through a course of at least three months’ training and instruction in law. The accommodation at tlie Wellington South Police Training Depot was nor sufficient to enable Ulis to be done. The Commissioner was therefore arranging with tlie Defence Department for tlie hire of necessary hutments, classrooms and general equipment for the lodging and messing of 125 men at Trentham Camp, where the training would be undertaken. Ten Shillings a Week More. As the Government had set a general standard of 40 hours in the Public Service, and as in the departments where tlie 40-hour week bad not been practicable for the time being the weekly hours had been reduced to very near that number, it was only fair that, the police should receive some additional pay to make up to them in some measure for the inability to reduce the hours of duty at a time when hours had been reduced generally. Owing to tlie fact that it was only possible to have the hours of duty reduced to 48 at the end of three months from May 1, being the time needed for training the additional men required, and to the further fact that the hours even when reduced would be considerably in excess of those worked in the Public Service as a whole, it had been decided to advance the pay of members of the force by 10/- per week. When the 48-hour week for members of the Police Force bad been established successfully, the question of further reducing tlie hours of duty would be given consideration. At that time it might be necessary to review the whole question of remuneration in relationship to the reduction of hours and to tlie conditions then prevailing in the Public Service generally. Tlie Minister has communicated Hie above information to the president and secretary of the New Zealand Police Association.