COUNCIL TO PAY.

Star (Christchurch), Volume LXVI, Issue 20329, 12 June 1934, Page 10

COUNCIL TO PAY.

Time Lost by Lyttelton Relief Worker.

Letters of protest against the action of the Borough Council, as the femploying authority, in depriving a relief worker, of one day’s work and payment were received from the Lyttelton Waterside Workers’ Union, the Lyttelton Ships’ Tally Clerks’ Union, the New Zealand Seamen’s and Firemen’s Union and the Lyttelton Unemployed Workers’ Association, at a meeting of the Lyttelton Borough Council last evening. *

A further letter concerning the same relief worker was received from the Certifying Officer at Lyttelton, Mr B. M’Farlane. The officer stated that the Commissioner of the Unemployment Board had reviewed the report of the Court case in which the man was convicted and had directed the Certifying Officer to inform the council that in the event of the man being refused work by the council, and if no other local bodv was prepared to employ him, then he would cease to be a responsibility of the Unemployment Board.

Councillor D. E. L. Collett said that the majority of the councillors were led to believe that the man was entitled to work only two days, but in the light of what they knew now he moved that he be allowed to work and make up the day he had lost and that the amount be paid out of the council’s funds. Councillor A. H. Fowles, in seconding the motion, said he was certainly under a wrong expression. It appeared that the council had since received a re-intrepretation of the Certifying Officer’s statement.

Councillor W. D. Gower, in supporting the motion, said it was no good punishing a man twice. The Mayor said that he did not think Certifying Officer had been brought into the matter at all.