WAR BONUS.

Lyttelton Times, Volume CXVII, Issue 17283, 26 September 1916, Page 10

WAR BONUS.

POSITION OF CIVIL SERVANTS.

ANOMALIES POINTED OUT.

Representatives of the Public" Service Association waited on the Hon J. Allen at Wellington on Thursday to put before him certain mattors in connection with tho war bonus.

Mr G. Allport (president) said that some officers had a desire .to. invest in war loan certificates, but they desired that, if possible, the Government should help them by allowing them to make payments by instalments. Many of them were low-salaried men, who did not feel in a position to pay the full amount at once. Another matter was the decision of the Government to pay a bonus of only £3 to officers under eighteen years of age. Single men,/,ver eighteen •years' of age, lie pointed out, received £7 10s, although many of those under eighteen years had seen more service than those over eighteen years, and in any case the cost of living had gone up in the same proportion. Then there was the case? of the casual employees in the Public Works Department; They were only to be paid as from July 1 instead of as from April 1 in the case of other employees. That seemed to be an -anomaly, and the association would bo glad if the Government would remove it. Another matter was that of overtime. If a man worked overtime so as to bring his total salary up to over £315 a year, he did not get the bonus, whereas the man who got less than £315 a year and did not work overtime did get tho bonus. It had to be remembered that a man had to work six hours' overtime in a week for nothing before he received any overtime pay, and it seemed very hard that when he did work extra hours after that he should be barred from getting the bonus.

' Tho Minister said the matter spoken of concerned the Minister of Finance and Cabinet more than himself. In regard to purchasing war loan certificates by instalments, he did not know whether the Minister of 'Finance could arrange it. He understood that some such arrangement uad been made in tho Publio Trust Office, but other departments could not do that because they had no funds at their, disposal. ,He would, howover, submit the proposal to the Minister of Finance. Generally he would place the points made before his colleague, but the deputation must understand that there wore certain limitations, one. of which. was that the expenditure! was not to exceed £400,000, and therefore they could not open the door any further than it was at present. It seemed. Mio added, somewhat anomalous that tho amount earned by an officer working overtime should prevent his getting the bonus. There must, however, bo certain anomalies and injustices in any scheme, and he did not see how it was possible to avoid them. In any case tho overtime worker, it .must be remembered, had received the payment for it- As to efficers under eighteen years of age, he did not. see that there was anything unfair, in view of the fact that the total amount to bo expended was limited. Ho did not think he could hold out any hope of an alteration being made in that respect. In regard to Public Works casual employees, the Minister said the matter had been very carefully considered. The reason for tho difference was that nearly all of them' were casuals, and the bonus had to be paid on the basis of their weekly or fortnightlv rates of pay. Why, he asked, should they go back in regard to casual employment beyond July ? Some of the men did not go to work until July. The arrangement was made with the Minister of Public Works, and all he (the Hon J. Allen) could do would be to submit their suggestions to him, although' he could not hold out any hope of its being altered.