FREEZING WORKS ENGINEERS.

Gisborne Times, Volume LII, Issue 5465, 28 April 1920, Page 2

FREEZING WORKS ENGINEERS.

APPLICATION FOR INCLUSION IN GENERAL AWARD.

DECISION RESERVED.

The Amalgamated Society of Engineers made application at the Arbitration Court yesterday before liis Honor Mr Justice Stringer, for the freezing works engineers in the Poverty Bay district at present working under a separate award to be brought within the scope of the general award applying to the Amalgamated Society of Engineers. Air S. ~T, Elston appeared in the interests of the Union, and Mr Westbrooke represented the Employers' Association.

Mr Westbrooke said that awards sul»'sequent to 1915 bail not cited institutions such as freezing- works. Tin? employers had always therefore regarded themselves as hound by the 1915 award and not by any later awards. Mr Elston said that hitherto the Court had refused on every occasion to include or join the freezing works with the general engineers’ award, and he was asking the Court now to give an award embodying the freezing works engineers. The claims of these me: 1 , were practically on all fours with those of the general engineers. Mr Coder wall (Gisborne Shoepfarmers* frozen Meat and Mercantile Co.> considered it desirable to have a separate award so far as Poverty Bay wan concerned. The employers were raising no dispute as to wages and they wo lain agreement with the principle of a 48-hour week, or six shifts of eight hours each. This, however, was not practicable with regard to those engineers engaged on the boats which were j taking out the lighters employed by tin 1 Sheepfarmers’ Company to load I meat on ships anchoring in the roanstead. Thomas Hibbcrd. a fitter and turner employed at the Ivaiti freezing works, said he was receiving pay at the rate of £o 11s lid per week. In addition to In's ordinary duties as an engineer he was obliged to carry out certain rii pairs. lie was working 47 hours per | week. Eorly-four hours was the recog- ! ntsed time, and for the first two hours i extra lie received time and a-quarter, j and after that time and a-lnilf. They ' wore paid double time for Sundays, and were also paid for holidays. I Neill Marsha,ll. an electrical linesman ! employed by the Gisborne Borough Council, said he was receiving wages l at the rate of Is lpd per hour. He , was working forty-eight hours a week. ! His occupation was a skilled one, and !it was also attended with certain 1 dangers. I Herbert Claude Oaten, electrician in ■ the employ of the Borough Council, I said his wages were £5 a week. He j xva s paid for all holidays, but. did not i receive any overtime, though he was ! granted a fortnight’s annual leave, it j was only on rare occasions that he worked overtime. j Walter Rowland Cole, engineer employed on one of the Gisborne ShecpI fanners’ tenders, said at present lie | was receiving £25 per month. the fiT-eman employed on the same boat was I receiving £5 per week of fifty hours. ! and was paid :5s per hour overtime amt , (is per hour on Sundays. He (witness) ! ontv received -Is per hour for Sundays, j To Mr Cederwall: Witness had been 1 told bv the company That ho would I shortly have his pay increased to £27 i per month. lie had been paid clui ing ■ h period of absence through sickness. 1 Three weeks holiday on full pa.\ weie | allowed him. lie admitted Unit it would be impossible to work the lightering on a shift basis owing io tidal difficulties. . . Walter Dickson, an engineer employed at Nelson Bros.’ freezing works, said he was being paid £1 per shift. Forty-eight hours constituted an ordinary week’s work, though sometimes lie worked as much as fifty-six hours, but. was only paid at the ordinary rate for the extra time worked. He was granted an annual holiday on full pay oi fourteen working days. Mr Cederwall asked for the clause relating to sick pay to be struck out. The company had always paid tins «ick pav. and he had no doubt they would be found willing to continue to do so. although lie did not see that the.\ should be bound clown to .it. Ifis Honor reserved his decision.