£l00,000 ANNUALLY

Evening Star, Issue 26041, 4 March 1947, Page 5

£loo,ooo ANNUALLY

GOST OF WHARF WORK GUARANTEES? LEVY OF 8D AN HOUR ON EMPLOYERS (P.A.) WELLINGTON, March 3. The sum of £IOO,OOO is officially estimated as the annual cost of the guaranteed daily and weekly minimum payments to the waterside workers as provided in the recent settlement between the New Zealand Waterside Workers’ Union and the Government. The Waterfront Industry Commissioner, Mr A. E. Bockett, to-day issued orders giving effect to the weekly guarantee of £5 and the daily attendance money guarantee of twodiours at ordinary rates at the main and secondary ports as from Monday next, except at Gisborne and Oamaru, for which the date of operation has not yet heen fixed. Mr Bockett explained to-night that to meet the cost of the guarantee an additional levy of 2£d an hour on the employers would be necessary. The existing levies were for a holiday fund at the rate of 4d an hour to meet the cost of annual and statutory holidays, and a national pay office fund contributed to by the employers on a basis of 2 per cent, of wages, or approximately lid or Hd an hour. This made a total of s?d an hour, and to this figure would be added the 2Jd to bring' in, the required £IOO,OOO a year for the guarantees under the new system. The whole of these levies, Mr Bockett added, would be consolidated into a sihgle national administration fund levy of 8d an hour.