RAILWAY WAGES BOARD

Wanganui Chronicle, Volume LXXXI, Issue 18974, 27 March 1924, Page 4

RAILWAY WAGES BOARD

(Per Press Association.) WELLINGTON, March 25. At the Wages Board inquiry to-day, Mr Sterling maintained that with the increased cost of living, the men were entitled to-day to 13s 4 l-3d, against 9s in 1914. They were now getting 13s 4d, so were not entitled’to an increase. Railwaymen were now being paid a proportionate wage as compared with other classes of workers, and if they were granted an increase it would upset the whole relative position as between different industries. In Queensland railwaymen worked 48 hours, and other Australian States and South Africa had gone back to the 48 hour week. He urged that meh in the second division would get the increase in weekly wages the desired, and greatly improve their economic position, by accepting the 48 hours week. Mr Mack contended that the representatives of the Department had given the Wages Board nothing tangible to go upon and nothing tangible to discuss. He doubted whether the representatives had any power to make or accept any offer at all on behalf of the department, whereas the representatives of the A.S.R.S. had such power. The department gave them to understand that if the 48 hour week was adopted, 1 ‘no permanent men” would be dismissed, but that word “permanent” was the nigger in the wood pile. There were 1100 to 1300 casual men who would be subject to dismissal. Mr Mack proceeded to argue the case ofr an increase in wages when Mr Sterling made an interjection with regard to the Arbitration Court. Mr Mack: I think the time has arrived when the Arbitration Court should be dumped into a creek and done with, for the simple reason that the figures as shown to the Arbitration Court were the wrong thing to mention in regard to the requirements of an individual man. The figures were so juggled with, he contended, that they were no good at all. He pointed out that the Australian States mentioned by Mr Sterling as having gone back to the 48 hour week were losing from a million a year in the case of New South Wales to eight millions in the case of Queensland on their railways, and that South Africa was losing four millions a year on her’s, whereas the New Zealand railways last year had a surplus of £295,000. He could not see how the department was going to improve matters by having a 48 hours week instead of a 44 hour week if it was not going to dismiss any men. The men were desperately anxious to increase their weekly earnings, but not at the cost of 1100 to 1300 men being thrown on the street, because if these men were to work for less than they should work for, then obviously a new standard would be established, and the workers would go down and down instead of improving their position. There were, he complained, laws to keep down the wages of workers, but none to keep down the prices that workers were charged for commodities they needed. Butter and milk and wool had all gone up recently, and that must increase the cost of living.

Tho chairman asked what was covered by the £862,000 that the department estimated the men’s demands would cost. Did it refer only to the 2s 6d increase in wages or the whole of the demands?

Mr Sterling: All the demands. The demands other than wage increases are estimated to cost £200,000. Mr Mack said that £862,000 was a big figure, over quarter of a million, but the A.S.R.S. representatives were there to negotiate, and if the department’s representatives would negotiate ihe ventured to say that the £862,000 would probably be cut down by 50 per cent.

The chairman-: That is not to be taken as an indication that ypu are prepared to cut down the 2s 6d a day by 50 per cent? Mr Mack: “No.” He added that even if the other side offered Is increase they would be prepared to go on to consider all other demands, and see where they got to. The gentlemen on the other side, however, had “no more power than that inkstand” to negotiate on the question of wages. Not one of them dared to get up and say that he was prepared to offer Is a day increase. Mr Sterling said that the department’s representatives were present, in accordance with the order of reference of the board, to assist in the inquiry as to whether the demands of the A.S.R.S. were justified or not, and to report. The chairman: I can see that the main question is No.‘ 1 (that of wages), but I don’t see that you can agree on one point till you have considered all.

Mr Connolly said that negotiations in regard to increase of wages had been going on for twelve months, and they wanted to see some progress made. The position was a serious one for the second division, and the men were waiting and waiting for an indication that the department was prepared to negotiate amicably by offering some increase in pay. Really the basis was wages. If they could decide something even tentatively in regard to wages then they would deal with other points, and arrive at some decision in regard to them also. The board was set up primarily because the parties had not been able to agree on wages. Everything depended on wages. In reply to the chairman, Mr Hammond stated that 3000 permanent men and 1500 casual men received the basic wage of £3 19s lOd only. That was 41 per cent, of the men. About 75 per cent, of the basic wage men would be married men.

Mr Connolly: J think you could say 80 per cent.

Mr Hammond: Nd, I couldn’t go above 75 per cent., and that is a very rough estimate. After further discussion the chairman said he would consider the question of procedure, and the conference was adjourned till to morrow. WELLINGTON, March 26. When the Railway Wages Board resumed in the afternoon, the chairman (Mr. H. D. Acland) said he wanted to hear evidence as to what effect an increase in wages to the second division would have on other departments. He took it that he was present in an independent capacity as representing the the public would be very interested in this aspect of the question. Mr. H. H. Sterling stated that he would take steps to obtain this information and could have it ready by the morning. Mr. Acland said that if an increase were granted to railway servants it would only be on grounds which would justify a similar increase to other branches of the public service,

and the country was entitled to know what such an increase was going to cost. He did not think that they would get any further on the wages question until this information was in his possession. Mr. Connolly intimated that he was not prepared to dismiss other ques tions until the matter of wages had been disposed of. The board therefore adjourned until 10 o’clock to-morrow morning.