The Wages Of Justice

NZ Truth, Issue 984, 4 October 1924, Page 1

The Wages Of Justice

Magistrates Move For More Money

Ne^ Result : Five Shillings Weekly

It seems that the Magistrates are to receive, oh their petition, an increase of- salary, along with a curtailment of Coroner's fees, the net result* of which will be to increase their payments averagely by about 5/'- a week. :

According 1 to "inquiries made, by "Truth," following 'on information casually dropped by someone "m the know" m "Wellington, it seems that the gap between wages and the, high cost of living is one which has for \ some time past given New Zealand's Stipendiary .Magistrates cause for grave concern ; and, it is stated! the occupants d£ Magistrate's Court Benches throughout the country recently petitioned' the Minister for Justice for better recognition on the Civil Servants' salary list. The chief grouch L of the S.M.s appears to lie m the fact | that they are required to pay excep- • tionally high superannuation premiums, and yet receive oj, retiring pension which I is proportionately- smaller than that of the ordinary Civil Servant. This, - and other matters, were placed before Minister for Justice'iri the 'largely-'! •f .signed petition which he received some •little time ago. .;. r • , ' The w^iQle question was discussed by the already sorely harassed Department, whose chief concern is to spend as little 'as possible of the limited cash at its dommand; arid, as a result of. much financial juggling, there has been made to the Magistrates an offer

which amounts to an increase m salary of about five shillings per week. The Minister's proposal is that Sti-. pendiary. Magistrates'" salaries shall.be £950 per year for senior Magistrates m the four chief centres, £900, for second Magistrates , m the cities, and £860 for those .presiding m Courts elsewhere. . In order, to set off these increased emoluments, however, a con- ! dition" is /provided that Stipendiary, Magistrates shall forfeit their, right to the Coroners' fees which they now receive (m 'addition to their ordinary Court pay), when they preside at inquests. ■ " ! The proposed increases m salaries are expected to run into about £1780; a year, divided between 30 Stipendiary Magistrates. But, as against this, the Department will save Coroners' fees amounting! to, £1400 a 'year. So that the actual increase of . ; expenditure which the proposal of 'the Minister for Justice involves runs into a matter of £380 a year. Divide £380 a year between 30 Magistrates and the result shows, roughly, that, under Mr. Parr's proposal, the dispensers of justice represented m the petition will receive averagely. an inci'ease of £13 a year, or five shillings per week!