RETIRING ALLOWANCES

Otago Daily Times, Issue 22065, 22 September 1933, Page 11

RETIRING ALLOWANCES

DISCUSSION BY HARBOUR BOARD EXISTING SYSTEM: TO BE ABOLISHED, At the monthly meeting of the Otago Harbour Board last night the chairman (Mr H. C. Campbell) brought up the question of the board discontinuing the payment of retiring allowances to employees who were going on superannuation; The chairman moved in this direction, and the motion was carried unanimously, members, however, making the rather remarkable confession that they were not optimistic regarding what they had adopted being adhered to. The chairman said that as they wore aware the board had dealt very liberally with two officers • who had retired recently from their service. One officer had received 12 months’ leave of absence and another six months, both on full pay, and both were to get superannuation. The -idea of the board’s superannuation scheme was to do away with the board paying retiring allowances. The board had now dealt with an officer in the engineering department and one in the secretarial department, and ho thought the time had arrived when they should definitely say that there should be no more retiring allowances. He would move in this direction, Mr J. B, Waters seconded the motion. He sdid that in making these retiring allowances the board had been .creating a precedent. Every employee of the board would naturally think he should receive some retiring allowance as well as superannuation. Employees should clearly understand that in future no retiring allowance was to be granted. Mr D. P. H. Sharpe: I think the motion is too late. The chairman: Better late than never. Mr Sharpe: Well, it is not fair. The chairman: One officer from each department has been dealt with very liberally and now it is time to alter the position. Mr Sharpe: There is also the harbour master’s department. Mr Thompson said he would support the motion. He said that the board dealt liberally with its employees in the matter of salaries and wages. It also paid to the Superannuation Fund a substantial amount. He thought the board did its part both as regarded salaries and wages and its payment to the Superannuation Fund. The board should not therefore be called on to make any allowance when officers retired from their service. Mr J. Loudon said his doubt was whether the motion, if it were passed, would bo adhered to. — : (Laughter.) The arguments brought forward had been brought forward before in one case, but the board had decided otherwise. A special fund had been established with the object of obviating the payment of retiring allowances. Mr A. Campbell said he agreed with the arguments brought forward with the exception of the remarks made by Mr Thompson in regard to wages and salaries. Ho totally disagreed with these remarks. The chairman said that the board contributed £248 15s per annum to the superannuation of the two officers referred to. The motion was carried unanimously. Mr Thompson said that if there was a fear that the resolution might not bo effective it might be advisable to make the position quite sound. He would give notice to move that a remit be sent to the Harbours’ Association asking that it be made illegal for any board to make a retiring allowance to an employee who was receiving superannuation Mr R. Duncan: I don’t think it would be possible to get such a motion through —they could not make the practice illegal. Mr Sharpe said he was quite sure that the practice would not be adhered to. They would have special cases brought before them. Could their board bind any future board? The discussion then ended.