RAILWAY SERVANTS.

Star (Christchurch), Issue 6830, 18 April 1890, Page 4

RAILWAY SERVANTS.

; BOY LABOUR. I LONG HOURS OF WORK. r The Executive Committee met on Tuesday evening. The Acting General Secre- > tary, Mr Rae, laid a considerable amount l of correspondence on the table, both I epistolatory and telegraphic, some of > which being of pressing importance had t been replied to at once. Complaints were _ numerous. After mature consideration the r following resolution was carried unani--5 mouslj — " That the Secretary write to the I Commissioners, pointing out to them that ' notwithstanding the letter recently addressed by the Executive to them L re boy labour, a large number of I boys were being taken on at Invercargill . and other places, and to request them ! not to add to the number of boys already j employed, until they had finally disposed r of the question as submitted to them by . this Committee." L _ Several members of the Committee were , instructed to make diligent enqniry into > the grievances complained of, and report . thereon atnext meeting, : Other letters and telegrams were received f on Wednesday morning from the West Coast, where the manner in which the men are being treated has caused widespread diß3atisfacti6n. The President and Secretary deemed ifc advisable to call a special meeting o£ the Executive to conBider the best means for averting a crisis. '. The Grey River Argus, of April 11, has [ the following: — "The District Railway Manager should mate some alteration in the working of the hydraulic machinery and cranes with the view of equalising the . hours of labour. The two men, Kirby and Bennett, were on duty for thirteen hours on Wednesday, and yesterday they went to work at 5 a.m. and. knocked off about , twelve o'clock last night — nineteen hours . at a stretch ! And these men hold responsible positions. It is too bad to drive i men to this extent, and we call attention 1 to it in the hope that the matter will receive the consideration of those responsible. For Borne reason or other the men are not paid over-time the same as the railway wharf labourers, although the shipowners are charged Is Gd or Jss per hour for every hour they are oa duty before 8 a.m. and after 5 p.m. The fact is that such a state of things indicates something wrong somewhere. The matter is buing severely commented upon by the public." We are informed that these practices are not confined to Greymouth or West- i port.* The Executive Committee are nowgoing carefully into the matter.