TWO ALLOWED

Timaru Herald, Volume CLVIII, Issue 23387, 19 December 1945, Page 4

TWO ALLOWED

Manpower Appeals Committee Sits In Timaru Three cases were heard by the Christchurch Industrial Manpower Appeal Committee at a sitting in Timaru yesterday. Two other appeals set down for hearing were withdrawn by Live of the committee. An appeal by New Zealand Railways against permision being granted Harold D. Hendry to terminate his employment with the Department as a fireman was dismissed on a medical certificate produced on behalf of Hendry. The Department appealed against the Manpower Officer’s decision in granting him permission to terminate his employment on the grounds of staff shortages. Although it dismissed the appeal, the committee sympathised with the Department in its staffing position, said the chairman (Mr J. E. Jones) but it would be against the interests of the man to compel him to return to work for which he was physically unfitted. Hendry, with his wife, had taken a light job as married couple on a farm, the District Manpower Officer (Mr E. R. Winkel) told the Committee. New Zealand Railways also appealed against permission being granted Z.lexander M. Davidson to terminate his employment. For the Department Mr L. McMillan said that since Davidson had left there was no plumber stationed at ' the Timaru station. There was work for two tradesmen in the district, where repairs to Department houses were still in arrears from the winter snowstorm. Witness agreed that the country work was not very attractive. Davidson was at home only at week-ends, during the week baching wherever he was working at the time.

Davidson, who was overseas for three years and returned with the first furlough draft, said he had declined a transfer on promotion to Invercargill and had accepted a position with the Timaru Borough Council as a plumber. His work was mainly on new cottages being erected by the Council. He had given permission for Davidson to leave the Railways because the Department had been so long in lodging an anneal, Mr Winkel told the committee. The appeal was allowed, subject to the condition that Davidson be permitted to leave the employment of the Railways Department on February 28, 1946. The South Canterbury Electric Power Board appealed against the direction of John Kenneth Mather, a linesman, to the Ocean Beach Freezing Company, Southland, as a solo slaughterman. The appeal was dismissed. Associated with Mr Jones were Messrs P. J. Kelly (employees’ representative) and R. H. Webb (employers’ representative).