RAILWAY CLAIMS

New Zealand Herald, Volume 81, Issue 25022, 12 October 1944, Page 7

RAILWAY CLAIMS

HEARING BY TRIBUNAL CASE FOR MANAGEMENT (P.A.) WELLINGTON, Wednesday At the Railway Tribunal hearing ol the Amalgamated Society of Railway Servants' claim for threepence an hour increase today, the department's reply said the management regarded the claims as for a Hat rate increase for all employees, irrespective of the work on which they were engaged, based on the cost of living argument. So far as the claim for increased wages was governed by cost of living factors, the management considered that such an increase must first be approved by the Stabilisation Commission. There were, however, grounds, other than cost of living, which might, warrant increases in pay to some sections of the A.S.R.S. Dealing with the request that the cost of living allowance be incorporated in the classified rate of pay, the statement pointed out that the allowance was not at present included when computing overtime and other penal payments, but it' it were added to the classified rate it would be so included. The cost of incorporating the present cost of living allowance in the ordinary rate of wages for the purpose of computing the penal rates at present in force is estimated at £92,000 a year in respect to employees in the A.S.R.S. and the Railwav Tradesmen's Associa-

tion, which, owing; to an overlap in the organisation, could not be separated tor costing; purposes. To apply the principle to all second division employees would increase the cost to approximately £105,000 a year. Regarding the claims 011 behalf or junior employees, the management submitted that to accede to the extent desired was quite unjustified in the whole of the circumstances. While acknowledging the splendid work of the staff during the war years, the statement pointed out that man hours did not increase uniformly "'it' l increases in the volume of traffic. Ihe position today was that the business and revenue of the department had declined very substantially and at the present time the gap in the number or staff employed had been considerably lessened bv the return of approximately 2100 railwaymen from the armed forces, while several hundred men had been employed by direction of. the manpower authorities. The present stafi showed an increase of 5.(38 per cent on that engaged in September. IM9. The general tenor ol the A.S.K.o. case was that during the past few vears a strain had been imposed on raih\a\men, and this had already been acknowledged. It was submitted, however, that as the tribunal was being asked to adjudicate with respect to wages lor the ensuing 12 months considerations relative to existing conditions and those in prospect were more relevant.