RAILWAY GRIEVANCES.

Evening Post, Volume LXXXI, Issue 84, 10 April 1911, Page 8

RAILWAY GRIEVANCES.

.- OFFICERS V. MINISTER. A further attack on tne policy of the Kaihvay Department is r made in the April -number of the Railway Officers' Advocate. "In our last issue," remarks "the magazine, "we made the serious statement that the Railway Service was 'seething with discontent and dissatisfaction, this existing --more particulai'lyamongst the members of thejfirfit'divi-, ekin. A general statement such as the above is of no value iix itself, but must Be supported ,by some tangible. evidence, before it can *be admitted as correct, or feven partially bo, and therefore in our article we quoted two definite cases of in status of certain positions, either of which, we -consider, was -sufficient to fully substantiate the allegation that the departmental policy was to ireduce the value of the higher petitions an the service, thus debarring members "from^"receiving justly earned' promotion:' {Besides the two specific instances referired to above, several other cases were mentioned, and the positions affected eufficiently clearly indicated to enable the (management to identify them without any difiiculty. Our- article of- the.'let iMareh put forward the railway officers' «ide of the question in a fair and reasonable manner, inasmuch that the charge it contained was so formulated •as to- admit of direct refutation, had this %een possible. We know there are two -fides to almost every question, but it (would really seem that in this case the -Hailway Departments eide of the question will not bear examination, as the .'head of the department has" intimated to the preee that he does not intend to tteply to our criticism. We would here -3ike to emphasis© the fact that the fail--tway officers are^not asking for, nor^do'two claim on their behalf, increased salaries individually. The point to which attention was specially directed was" the ■manner in which, ac vacancies occur in ith'e higher grades, they are filled by* the appointment of members ranking in a ''lower grade than that occupied by the retiring officer. If this kind of thing ,goes on long enough, the junior officer •of to-day can look forward to the maximum salary of the lowest grade as ithe utmost payment he will ever receive ■hv return for his services." ■' n THE CASE OF MB. H. M. MILLAR. The Advocate has been a strenuous attacker of the onoe-projected appointment of the, Hon. J. A., Millar's son, (Mr. H. M. 31illar, as " assistant electrician and draftsman." This case has iib-Y,- taken, an interesting turn. Apparently when everything was ready for the completion of the pr-eliminaries. — so Complete' that the Minister defended the appointment in the press — a- hitch came. 'It. was necessary that Mr. H. M. Millar ishould give * evidence of the necessary either by" practical "test or 'by examination. It % understood that lie has not yet furnished that necessary evidence, and he lacks the • position which was the subject of his father's defensive statement about two months ego- "