INCAPACITATED SOLDIERS

Otago Witness, Issue 3380, 25 December 1918, Page 38

INCAPACITATED SOLDIERS

QUESTION OF UNBEB-EATB PERMITS.

CONFERENCE IX3 BE HELD.

In response to a notice issued by the secretary of the Dunedin Returned Soldiers' Association convening a conference to be held in tile association's room in Dowlmg street last week to discuss the question of issuing under-rate permits to returned soldiers, tiie following delegates were jjresent:—Returned Soldiers' Association—Messrs W. Clark, G. M. Smith, W. E. Farqtfnarson, J. H. M'Dougall, and Captain R. V. Jones; Otago Labour (Jouncil—Messrs M*. Silverstone and W. G. Cope; Lmpioyers' Association —Mr E. C. Hazlett; Amalgamated Society of Engineers—Messrs S. J. Elston and A. J. Rice; .Bootmakers' Association—Mr S. C. Brown.

The secretary of the. Otago Patriotic and Welfare Society wrote stating that owing to the shortness of the notice the association was unable to send delegates. The Otago Labour Council submitted the following report upon the essential requirements of any scheme of repatriation and employment of returned soldiers : 1. That the present Order-in-Council be revoked, and be substituted by an agreement between the Government and the Federation of Labour for the purpose of providing the best facilities for the employing of incapacitated soldiers either as underrate workers or learners; such agreement to be then made into an Order-in-Councii under clause 35 of "The Regulation of Trade :and Commerce Act, 1914." 2. Wages shall be fixed by the employer, discharged soldier, Government representative, and a trade union representative in the industry in which such soidier is to be employed (hereinafter termed the Soldiers' Employment Board). 3. Wages to be iurther regulated by the above parties.

4. The total wages', inclusive of the Government subsidy, paid to the returned soldier shall not be less than the minimum wage operating in the industry. 5. The difference between the sum paid by the employer as wages and the minimum rate of wages obtaining in the industry shall be borne by the State, to be met by a direct tax on the land values in the dominion.

6. The minimum rate shall be exclusive of any pension the returned soldier may receive. During the currency of an underrate permit or the period of apprenticeship of a returned soldier the Pension Board shall not review the pension paid to such returned-soldier.

7. The period of apprenticeship or the currency of a permit shall be estimated as from the time they were first granted and until the returned soldier is declared a competent worker.

8. All pensions shall be fixed prior to the granting of an under-rate permit or the commencement of apprenticeship of a re-' turned soldier.

"9. Should a returned soldier be employed as an under-rate worker or a learner in an industry which is not governed by an award his total wages shall not fall below £3 per week, including the State subsidy. 10. A returned soldier who is either learning a trade or working under an under-rate permit shall be under the direct supervision of the Returned Soldiers' Department and the .aforesaid Soldiers' Employment Board. 11. Where there is no trade union in an industry in which a returned soldier mav be employed either as an under-rate worker or learner the local trades council shall act in place of the aforesaid trade union. 12. All other conditions operating in an award shall equally apply to a discharged soldier whether working ae under-rate worker or learner who may from time to time be working under such award. ;Mr S W. Clark who presided, stated that it was principally the question of the issuing of. under-rate permits to returned soldiers that it was proposed to discuss. The Government paid £1 per week for 12 months to incapacitated soldiers, who were taught various trades at technical colleges; and in this connection he wished to draw attention to the attitude of the inspector of factories and the director of technical training. The issuing of permits interested only two persons—the inspector of factories and the employer. In a number of oases men who had only just commenced their training in the technical school were sent by the director of technical training to work in motor garages without receiving any remuneration from the employers. This meant that for the greater part of 12 months many men did not receive a penny more than what was really a Government subsidy of £1 per week. The Returned Soldiers' Association was going to do its utmost to protect the interests of the men who had fought for their country. Mr E. C. Hazlett said that owing to insufficient notice of the meeting he was the only member of the Employers' Association who was able to be present. The matter of - under-rate permits to returned soldiers who had been incapacitated had been under consideration by the Employers' Association for at least a month, and the matter was to be discussed at the annual meeting of the association, which was being held In Wellington at the present time. Mr li. Clark, who was a member of the Employers' Association, and who was also on the board of management of the Technical College, had gone to Wellington for the special purpose of bringing the matter before the He (the speaker) could not enter into a discussion on the question until the executive of his association had submitted its report. The employers were just as much interested in the matter as any of the delegates present, and he suggested that the conference be adjourned till a later date to enable the meeting to be of a more representative nature. Messrs Elston and Silverstone spoke in favour of the question being discussed at the present meeting, the latter suggesting that a general scheme of repatriation should also b.j discussed.

Mr Clark pointed out that a repatriation scheme was being formulated by the New Zealand Returned Soldiers' Association, and therefore the Dunedin branch, which numbered 1100 members, was not prepared at present to discuss this question. After further discussion it was decided to adjourn the conference till January 10, to enable the employers' representatives to be f resent It was also decided to ask the lanufacturers' Association, the Ironmasters' Association, . and the Motor Garage Proprietors' Federation to send two delegates each to the conference.

Messrs Clark, Brown, and Elston were appointed to wait on the inspector of factories and request that only temporary

under-rate permits be granted in the mean time.

It was also decided to request that no more men be drafted from the Technical College to private employment without a permit. ~