TRAMWAY DEMANDS.

Dominion, Volume 4, Issue 1052, 15 February 1911, Page 11

TRAMWAY DEMANDS.

"SPARK LIST" EXPLAINED. When the City Council delegates met representatives of the local Tramways Union on ..Monday, evening with a.view to frainin;; new conditions of employment a proposal that eventually became, lor the tiino being, the principal fhemo of discussion, was that of tne council". tip..epatea to introduce what is called "the ►pare list" system, in Wellington.' In the discussion it was not very fully explained »;hat a spare list really is. Yc;.tfrday, a Dominion reporter interviewed several local Irnmwaymcn who have had experience of tho spare lift in other centres nnd obtained the information that is detailed below.

Generally speaking the "spare list" system involves the employment of a.'iuiniber of men who obtain casual work at ordinary rates of paj-, without any cuarnntee as to tho time during which they will be so employed. These casual, helpers fill the place of men who are absent through sickness, or aro away on ■ holi-, day, or of men who arrive late for duty and lose their day's work. Spnre list men are also often employed in running special cars during late and rush hours. Usually tho eparc list men nrt; required to roport at the car depot at about 6 a.m. und again at 2 p.m. if they have not previously been detailed for duty. In the exigencies of a tramway system they aro often employed, to fill vacancies in the regular shifts. ■ . -At the conference on Monday evening tho Mayor stated that ho. would not countonanco the institution of the sparo list in Wellington unless .the men so employed were guaranteed'a minimum weekly wage. ■ "If tho thing is run iritolligeAtly there can be no possible objection to it," was the verdict of a tramv:nynian who worked on the spare list in Perth; West AustraIμ,, for two years. • The system, he exnf*>aed, was in full working order in Perth when he left that'city about eight years ago. Since then it had "been modified under the terms of an award. As ho kuew the systom,. it was desinned with a view, to retaining so many men at call as , could replace men ' absent • through sickness or other cause, arid-run' special cars. In Perth thefo were about' twelve men on tho spare list. Of theso four, Vho were rated as seniors, were renuired to report at,tho depots every day, and as a rule they worked full time. 'J."ho other 9, junior to these tour' men, were only required to turn out on Saturdcj : n":ght9 and Sundavs, when special cars wer'O run. jhey could attend for work if they liked during tho week or could «ok outsido tt'drk. As men left the service they wore replaced by the senior spare list men and: the iuriicr snare list men in turn were enrolled'with tho four seniors who woro required.to report daily for duty. Iho tramway men in Perth, according to the tramwayman who supplied this information; liked,,the,spare list arrangements woll enough. The rejular men could work overtime if they dssired, but in practice they usually abstained: from doing so. While tho system wr.s in vogue, if a man'wanted a holiday of a day or a month ho could always get it. ', ' Another tramwayman sooko of liaving had experience of the snare-list system in Melbourne and Bendigo. In each'town it worked satisfactorily, y. The samo man stated tnat in Sydney-he wr.s informed by Mr. Mark, depot-master of the Rofrllo •depotj.ono of tho larjest in Sydney, that the snr.ro list system gavo everv fcitisfactiou, niul that as a matter of fact tho men would, not bo without it. In Sydney, where about 1000 cr.rsr.ro running j.nd soaiethinc; over 4000 regular mon are employed, there is a list of about 4SO men. Here, in Wellington, said this informant, tramway men have'■' safeguards' against abuse of.the snare list system, if it is introduced.- ThcV havo , their union in the first'.placo. .ftnd .msrcoverl 4'right of appeal-to tho Tramways Committeo or to the Government Appqal Ber.rd.v•■■■<- :■- .- '* '■■''>' >' !; :\ '.-I .-J.,.-). .S '