DAIRY COMPANY WORK.

Hawera Star, Volume XLV, 28 April 1925, Page 10

DAIRY COMPANY WORK.

SECRETARIES’ SALARIES. ACCORDING- TO SCALE. A SUBJECT TO -BE DEBATED. Information of ;t proposed conference of dairy company secretaries to lie field, shortly, at which the question of a scale of salaries would probably lie discussed, was placed before .a meeting of the Taranaki branch of the New Zaland Society of Accountants at Hawera last evening, where it was felt that the society should'be represented at the conference in question with a view to checking anything in the nature of radical or drastic action. The chairman (Mr W. Power) said that this was a matter under the heading of general business which was of sufficient interest to Taranaki accountants to warrant consideration, and it was just a question of whether or not their branch should give a lead. It had been mentioned that a meeting of dairy company secretaries would be held at the time of the annual conference of the N.D.A., and naturally quite a number of the society’s members were personally interested. A scale of fees had been spoken of, and in this connection he thought that the way might be made easy by starting off on common ground. Personally, he could not see why there should not be some apjdicable scale of fees for dairy company work.. However, they did not know what attitude the conference would take. Continuing, the chairman said that it had been mentioned that one of the reasons for the conference was the formation of a “closer corporation amongst the, fellows that juggled with the butter-fat.” Mr Duncan said that he did not know but that the dairy people would look sideways at any close corporation, and he did not know but that any attempt to fix salaries of secretaries would meet with approval. The chairman pointed out that while some might look sideways at such a proposal, yet at the same time the Dairy Factory Managers’ Association had been an association for the benefit of not only the managers, but the companies, and the secretaries occupied a similar position —they also required the confidence of the directors. There were numbers of eases where secretaries were not receiving adequate remuneration, but at the same time it would be well for the branch to be represented at the conference in order to stop anything in toe nature of red-fedism. Such action would not be toadying to the employers, but would inspire their confidence. Most of the secretaries were members of the society, and consequently the society could out-vote those who were not, and so keep that confidence of the employers that was so essential. Mr Duncan mentioned that other matters besides salaries would be discussed at the conference. His opinion was that a secretary could battle along for himself as far as the question of salary was concerned. The chairman considered that what was wanted was something of a guide. As a basis on which to work it could be agreed that the minimum salary could be a certain figure, rising so much per ton of output until a certain figure was.reached, and the salary thereafter being left to the discretion of the directors. The greatest danger as far as salaries -were concerned was in connection with the smaller companies, where there were only a few suppliers, but where there was a. good deal of routine work that could not be dispensed with. A committee, consisting of the chairman and Messrs G. A. Duncan and- C. H. Suisted. was set. up to watch further developments in connection with the proposed conference.