BOROUGH AFFAIRS.

Hawera & Normanby Star, Volume LXXIV, Issue LXXIV, 11 May 1918, Page 4

BOROUGH AFFAIRS.

(To the Editor). . Sir,—The report of last Council meeting and discussion on the engineer's P™ate ™rk done in CoundH£J wnfV^?XL Planati°\ and the lowing il I hinkj meet .the case:— X ihe Council appointed a special committee to meet the engineer and arrange an agreement whereby he could do pnvate work in the Council's time. <j>rs. Uon e and Morrissey, with the Mayor, were appointed. Cr Havton moved that Ib 6 added. wZJSffSI l was the only one who did not agree to clause 3 The Mayor did nofcqSiS agree, but gave way to the engineer's argument The following are tne tour clauses of the agreement:—

1. The engineer shall be empowered to engage in or decline private practice or work for other local bodies, companies or individuals to such extent and in such manner or methods as he may deem best without the necessity of obtaining the' I sanction or approval of the Corporation tor any actions ho may consider advisable. Provided always that the engineer shall at all times give reasonablo and proper attention to his - duties m the borough. 2. All not profits actually paid to the engineer by parties other than the Corporation for work done by the engineer in his private practice tor such parties during the office • iT s ,stlP ulated in his agreement with the Corporation to be employed eP t""e I |y on work for the Corporation shall be divided equally between the Corporation and the engineer. Provided .that if, in any one year, the net profits actually paid shall exceed the sum of £400, then the Corporation shall not be entitled to a greater sum than £200 as their share of such profits, and the balance or remainder of the said profits shall belong to the engineer. Provided further that nothing herein shall affect in any way the monthly payment of the salary from the Corporation to the engineer as stated in the agreement and extension aforesaid 3. All profits, remunerations, or fees paid or payable for work done in private practice by the engineer outside of the office hours stipulated in his agreement and extension thereof with the Corporation to be employed on work for the Corporation shall belong wholly to the engineer. (Note—Circumstances may, once in a while, compel work to be done in the engineer's own private time which does not belong to the Corporation.) 4. Nothing herein shall affect or alter the terms and conditions of the agreement and extension thereof already entered into by both parties, excepting as regards Clause 10, which shall now be considered to be inoperative. These were, after a considerable amount of argument, withdrawn by the engineer. Then, after hi s work for the btratford and Eltham boroughs, the^ Mayor brings forward at last Monday's committee meeting a resolution which reads:—That the engineer be at liberty to take outside work on the same terms as agreed for Heathcote and Stratford provided that the work of the borough does not suffer in consequence. I asked the Mayor what proportion of the earnings did we receive, and how much did the engineer receive? The Mayor replied that he did not think w e should know. To this I could not agree I believe some of the councillors saw the resolution and agreed to it before coming to the meeting. Thi s _is surely not right to those who did not have sufficient time to consider it. # My amendment at the Council meeting was to accept the above four clauses except clause 3, inserting in its place, that the engineer receive 10 per cent, out of his earnings, to pay him for work done in his own time." This is what the Mayor could not receive, and ruled mte out of order. Now, I wish to say at this moment that the Mayor allows one plenty of latitude when he agrees with the subject, but when he does not he stops you at every corner, and the corners are many. f The reason I nut 10 per cent, for the engineer's work in his own time. I take it from his own words, where he says: "The matter of work in my own time, out of office hours, has been made into a veritable 'bogey,' it could not amount to more than 5 per cent of the work at least." Now, when I offer 10 per cent, surely the engineer will agree Then the Council will know exactly the amount they are to receive.—l am, etc., D. J. GOODWIN, Councillor.