RAILWAY OFFICERS

New Zealand Times, Volume LIII, Issue 12483, 26 June 1926, Page 5

RAILWAY OFFICERS

ANUUAL CONFERENCE YESTERDAY’S PROCEEDINGS. The annual conference of the Railway Officers’ Institute was commenced yesterday, the president (Mr V. R. J. Stanley) presiding. Mr L. Aecken (chairman) and Mr C. P. Ryan (vice-chairman), on behalf on the Wellington branch, welcomed the delegates, and said that Wellington members would endeavour to make their stay as pleasant as possible. To-day the delegates, through the courtesy of the Wellington Rugby Union, will witness the Petone-Athletic football match on Athletic Park, and to-night will be entertained by the Wellington branch at a smoke concert. On Tuesday night the delegates will be the guests of the Fuller management at His Majesty’s Theatre. In opening the conference proceedings, the president said that it was desirable that delegates should endeavour to transact the business that came before them as expeditiously as possible, as lengthy conferences tended to consume a large portio nof the institute’s income. Members of their society throughout the Dominion would be keenly watching and hoping that the conference would result in something of material benefit to them, and he exhorted delegates to make the wisest possible moves in arriving at decisions. From a railway point of view, times had changed, and at present they might be said to be in a transition stage, and had yet to find out exactly where they were. The annual report and balance-sheet were adopted on the motion of the president and Mr L. Barclay, and during the discussion the president stated that in the matter of finance the institute was sailing pretty close to the wind, on account of the subscription paid by the members being the lowest levied by an industrial orgacnisation in Australasia.

The remainder of the day was occupied in discussing remits in connection with salaries and regrading of positions, and that portion of the agenda paper had not been finally dealt with when the business was concluded lor the day.