WAR GRATUITIES

New Zealand Herald, Volume 82, Issue 25181, 19 April 1945, Page 7

WAR GRATUITIES

DECISION WANTED RETURNED MEN RESTIVE The question of payment of gratuities, which was referred to by the Minister of Finance, Mr Nash, in an address at Wellington on Tuesday, is a very lire one among returned servicemen. Inquiries made in Auckland yesterday revealed that the Government's delay in making an announcement of its policy on the subject is causing considerable restiveness among members of returned men's organisations and that Mr Nash's reference to the inflationary danger will not check the representations being made for prompt Government action along the lines taken in other countries. "If the bogey of inflation is going to be raised against returned servicemen, it may just as well be said that they should not have rehabilitation and other v benefits," said the president of the Auckland Returned Services Association, Mr A. P. Postlewaite. "A serviceman would use a gratuity to help establish himself again. He needs it. Deferred Payment Opposed "If a gratuity is to be paid it should be in excess of the Is 6d for every day of overseas service, paid after the last war in view of the higher cost of living," he continued. "Before coming to a decision the Government should submit its proposals to the returned servicemen's organisation to ascertain whether they are satisfactory." Mr Postlewaite urged that the Australian scheme whereby payment of gratuities was to be deferred for five years should not be followed in New Zealand. It was not a gratuity at all if it was deferred for that period, he considered, and if Mr Nash anticipated delaying payment for five years there would be a strong protest from returned servicemen. Such a proposal would cause grave dissatisfaction. Servicemen needed the lump sum as soon as they return to civilian life and not in the distant future. Letter Not Yet Answered

At almost every meeting of the R.S.A. members were asking what the Government was going to do about gratuities, and what the amount would be. Mr Postlewaite continued. The Auckland R.S.A. intended to submit a remit to the Dominion conference of the association on the gratuity question for the purpose of obtaining the views of returned servicemen. »■

The Second N.Z.E.F. Association is also taking keen interest in the question. On March 14 a letter, as yet unanswered, was sent by the Dominion executive of the organisation to thp Minister of Defence, Mr Jones. It stated that the matter of war gratuities had been exercising the minds of members for some considerable time and it had been hoped that some pronouncement would have been made by the Government. The Minister was asked to place the matter before the Cabinet and advise the executive of the Government's intentions. War gratuities, the letter stated, played a very helpful part in rehabilitation and did not constitute loan moneys which, together with interest charges, ultimately required repayment. Interest in the question is not confined to Auckland. Every branch of the association has sent remits to the Dominion executive on the subject of gratuities. HIGHER PAY THE TIMBER WORKERS RESULT OF NEGOTIATIONS Wages in the timber industry throughout Sew Zealand, with the exception of Nelson, Westland and Marlborough, are to be increased in accordance with the recent pronouncement by the Arbitration Court on standard wages. These increases, which have yet to be ratified by the Court, follow negotiatipns between representatives of the Sawmillers' Federation and the New Zealand Timber Workers' Union. The secretary of the union, Mr F. Craig, said that the increase amounted to 3id an hour on all 1942 wages rates'. There were slight variations in the wages schedule in the 1945 award, which came into effect from January 1. The lowest rates for men in the bush would be 2s Bjd an hour, and 2s 8d for those in town establishments. Wages increased through semi-skilled and skilled classes to 3s- 3|d an hour for sawdoctors. Youths and females in the towns would receive 4s a week more, and the pay of youths in bush areas would rise from Is to Is 6d a day. When the agreement was presented to the Arbitration Court, added Mr Craig, the president, Mr Justice Tyndai!, congratulated the parties on the amicable arrangement arrived at. thus assisting the Court. ELECTION ANOMALIES SUGGESTED REFORMS ELECTRIC AND TRANSPORT Suggested reforms to correct anomalies in the elections of members of the Auckland Transport and Auckland Elec-tric-Power Boards were placed before the Parliamentary Select Committee on local A joint statement on behalf of both boards was presented by Mr W. H. Nagle, chairman of the Transport Board. On the occasion of the last municipal elections six separate issues were placed before the majority of the electors in the metropolitan area, said Mr Nagle. These issues were the Mayoralty, councillors, and members of the hospital, harbour, transport and electric-power boards.

"The presentation of six issues simultaneously created the utmost confusion and dissatisfaction as the result of which the general opinion confirms that it is impracticable to conduct successfully an election involving more than four issues simultaneously," Mr Nagle continued. "The Auckland Transport Board and the Auckland Electric-Power Board, whose interests are similar in many respects, have therefore conferred with a view to reaching some common basis of agreement on matters which in their opinion would not only obviate many of the difficulties now existing, but would be in the interests of the electors concerned and of both organisations."

As the position stood at present the next general election for members of the transport board was due in 1947 and of the electric-power board in 1946. The last election for the transport board was due in 1943 bu L , was postponed until 1944, and that of the elec-tric-power board was due in 1942, but was postponed first until 1943 and then until 1944. If ruling provisions were Complied with it would mean that the term of office of the present transport board would be for three years and of the electric-power board two years, although the previous terms of office were for five and six years respectively. It was therefore submitted that the next elections of both boards should be held on the same day in October or November, 1947, and thereafter on the same day every fourth year. It was also proposed that in future provision should be made for a nomination fee payable by candidates to either board, thus bringing the boards into conformity with other municipal corporations.