OIL-BURNER NOW

Evening Post, Volume CXXVI, Issue 132, 1 December 1938, Page 10

OIL-BURNER NOW

COASTAL VESSEL STORM

(Received December 1, 1.20 p.m.)

SYDNEY, This Day,

The conversion of the New Zealand coastal steamer Storm from being a coal-burner to* a motor-vessel has been completed.

The conversion is claimed to be the biggest of its kind carried out in Australia or New Zealand.

A MISUNDERSTANDING

UNION AMALGAMATION

A report has been published that Auckland trade unions have raised objections to a proposal, attributed to Mr. P. M. Butler; national secretary of the New Zealand General Labourers' Federation, to form a General Workers' Union. The objections are, it is reported in the "New Zealand Herald," that such a body would absorb unions which already have district awards and Dominion federations, and whose members would be precluded from obtaining the benefits of national unions and awards

Mr. Butler stated today that the position has been misunderstood. He said that the Poverty Bay,. Labourers' Union, which was a small separate union, desired to become part of the larger union which embraced Wellington, Nelson, and Westland, and having decided the matter by plebiscite, had applied to the Registrar of Unions for amalgamation. No other union was affected.

The registrar, in accordance with the usual procedure, had asked unions with similar members in the Auckland district for their comments, and Mr. Butler quoted his letter of inquiry, which emphasised that only the one union was affected.

A statement to the same effect was made to "The Post" by Mr. F. D. Cornwell, national secretary of the Federation of Labour.

ployment Promotion Fund will be paid in respect of any holidays granted in accordance with the provisions of the awards or agreements under which the men are working, and in respect of any days the men are employed on the job during the two weeks ending January 7. 1939, provided the employing authority meets its proportion of the wages cost. Where, however, the employing authority grants holidays in excess of ' the Statutory holidays and annual leave legally due in terms of the awards or agreements, the Department's subsidy will be limited to its usual proportion of the payment for the statutory holidays and for the annual leave, or to an amount equivalent to two weeks' sustenance at full rates, according to the worker's conjugal classification, whichever is the greater. "If, in any case, the combined amount of holiday pay provided under the awards or industrial agreements governing the employment of men oh these full-time works and the amount of ,wages that may be earned whilst employed on the job during the two weeks ending January 7, 1939, fails short of the payment the men' would receive by way of full sustenance, according to their conjugal classification, for two weeks, arrangements will be made to make up the difference to the workers concerned. OTHER WORKERS. "Men whose employment is not covered by an award employed by sports bodies, charitable institutions, etc., which operate on • the basis of the Public Works Workers' Agreement and men employed for full time at standard rates of pay on the gold-prospecting scheme will receive the following holiday pay:—(l) Under two months' service, no* payment; (2) two months, but under 12 months, three days' pay; (3) twelve months but under 2 years, three days' pay, plus five days annual leave; (4) two years and over, three days' pay, plus ten days' annual leave. "In those cases where the pay of the men employed under these conditions is less than the equivalent of two week's full sustenance, according to the worker's conjugal classification, arrangements will be made for the difference to be made up to the men concerned." FREEZING WORKS EMPLOYEES. Provided they had gone off relief in order to take up their employment in the freezing works, it has been decided to pay those employees whose ■■ contract of employment is suspended ', or terminated on or prior to December ■ 23, and whose term of employment up to the date of termination or suspen- [ sion totals less than two months, one ] week's full sustenance without regard to their earnings over the past two months.

Similar transport concessions as applied last year will again be granted to workers employed in the Faraparaumu, camp and to those men employed under the gold-prospecting scheme.