WELLINGTON TRAMWAYS

Southland Times, Issue 16842, 19 September 1911, Page 6

WELLINGTON TRAMWAYS

sons SIDES OP THE TBOUBLE. [Per United Press Association.) WELLINGTON, Sept. 18. A decisive stop has been taken by one side in the tramway dispute, which has lingered so many months unsettled. By u ballot /taken during last week and announced at a meeting of tramway men held yesterday morning the employees Union has expressed itself in favour of referring tiie dispute to the Conciliation Council. There have been • a number of conferences between the Executive of the Union and tramway management. The latest of these was held on Tuesday. Wednesday and Friday evenings of last week. The proposals of the men were then formally examined and discussed, and at the last gathering an offer by the Council was considered. No settlement was reached, as , the decision of the Union to go to the Conciliation Council sufficiently indicates; but the Executive of the Demerit, represented by Messrs Rich* nrdsem and Cable, manager and assistant manager, will place Its report and recommendations before the Trmnvnys Committee this afternoon. In the light .of vesterday’s Union ballot It does not appear that negotiations are likely to be resumed. The recent proceedings have not been open to the press, but the secretary of the Union (Mr A. Sutherland) has expla ned the attitude of the men. The delay in arriving at some definite understanding is one of the men’s grievances, for they consider that the Council could have made Its present offer months ago. Mr Sutherland thinks that the management has made up Its mind In accordance with a definite understanding with the other tramway managements in tine Dominion not to go beyond a certain increase of wages in its offers. This has not satisfied the itnen. who have seen the City Council recently grant increases In the salaries of the permanent staff and officials amounting to £1,300. and considerable increases in the daily wages of corporation employees. The trackmen employed to keep the tranAvay track In order have also received Increases to the extent of making their hourly wage more than that received by motonnen and conductors. In view of these facts the tramway men did not think that the Offer of about £I,OOO a year divided among the body of tramway employees was sufficient. For seven years and Over the tramway men had not received any Increases. The actual increase offered by the Council would, moreover, go to a limited number of motormen. Mr Sutherland further submits that the men have throughout stood loyally by th 3 management and endeavoured to carry out a time-table which Is extremely difficult to run. For their services, the men consider, they deserve some recompense In the shape of a share In the general rise of corporation sa aides. The Mayor (Mr T. M. Wllford) Informed a reporter to-day that he was not at liberty to speak until he had consulted the Tramways Committee In th 3. afternoon. It Is understood, however, that the offer made by the management was the maximum the system cculd stand. It amounted to a rise In wages to motormen of long service. It would be impossible to accede to the full demands of the employees, which would entail an extra cost to the city of betw'een £B,OOO and £9,000. The net surplus on last year’s working was much less than this, being between £5,000 and £6,000. * The upkeep of the tramways was not likely to become less expensive, and, the only possible way of paying large Increases In wages of employees would be by raising the fares. Whether the public would submit to that would be another matter. So far the tendency had been all in the other direction. The management had done its best to meet the men; but the Executive of the Union apparently wanted the concession of Us full demands or noth lag. The wages and conditions of work on the Wellington tramways were acknowledged to be the highest and the best in New Zealand, anc a Dominion award such as the Union originally sought could not be exfected to rise above the Wellington conditions. A motorman, by working overtime, made as much as £8 a fortnight, and the consideration of a “spare list" of “stand-by” men to shorten the hours was apparently not acceptable in the Union.