NEWS OF THE DAY

Gisborne Herald, Volume LXXII, Issue 21753, 30 June 1945, Page 4

NEWS OF THE DAY

Payment Above Minimum

“Most of the board’s outside staff are paid above award rates for their acknowledged good service, and I should like to know whether the beard wishes to maintain that level when the new award amendment takes effect,” stated the managingsecretary of the Poverty Bay ElectricPower Board. Mr. R. P. Baigent, at yesterday’s meeting of the board. He was giving the board the effect of the recent upward revision of minimum rates for outside employees which, he said, would add £BOO to £IOOO to the board's wages bill. The board decided unanimously to maintain the premium policy in regard to outside employees.

Record Sales of Health Stamps An announcement that health stamp sales during the recent campaign actually exceeded the record of the previous year was made in Wellington yesterday by the acting Post-master-General, the Hon. F. Jones. The actual sales amounted to £01,598, compared with £59,904 during the previous year, Mr. Jones said. The record sales were all the more gratifying when it was realised that overseas sales had been less than during the previous year, when the Princesses appeared on the stamp for the first time. This year’s stamps, which will feature the world-famous monument of Peter Pan, will be on sale from the beginning of October.—P.A.

Still Going Up Despite the recognised difficulties of supply, and the constant urge for economies in the consumption of electric power, new installations in the district continue to increase consumption. At yesterday’s meeting of the Poverty Bay Electric-Power Board the managing-secretary, Mr. R. P. Baigent, reported on electricity sales for the two months ended May 31 as under: Lighting. £4444 (1944, £4061); heating and cooking, £5372 (£4944); water-heating £2114 (£1912): power, £IBOO (£1794); total, £13,730 (£12,711). The maximum half-hourly demand on the Works Department's system for May, according to the report of the engineer Mr. F. Matthewson. was 4162 k.v.a.. whereas the maximum demand on the board’s system was 4757 k.v.a. The board generated 202,080 units of power by the use of its stand-by plant, as compared with 2,025,176 units purchased from the Government system. Actual consumption on a unit basis, was lower in May, 1945, than in May, 1944.