TRAMWAY DEMANDS.

Dominion, Volume 4, Issue 1054, 17 February 1911, Page 2

TRAMWAY DEMANDS.

THE UNION ROSTER, GREAT SAVING CLAIMED, It will bo remembered that the -recent conference, at which City-Council delegates met representatives of the local •Tramways Union to discuss tho proposals : of the union for a new award, -was adjourned on the understanding that lyheii it resumed the council should; subml? proposals based oh the - institutioni'of a "spare list," whtte tho ,union - , on „ ita ; point, was • to: produce ->Foster cateuUted to obviate the necMsity for iongi^lioitfs and overtime or" the'rrntrdductioni of "a spare list; The council proposals areinot yet available, "but" the lihion roster has ueeri "prepared and will oe handed over fo tlie council pnor,toTtlie. next, meeting of tie conference. ' v ' * '. Some leading: : ieatiires "'of: the 'roster were explained to a . Dominion reporter yesterday by. Jlr. D. Dal ton., (president) and Mr. A. Sutherland (secretary) of the union. At the outset.'these; officials marked that the council-asked: the .union •{? endorse the' institution-; of a "sparelist which; might. involve the . employment of thirty additional men , or'.■ more.'' l'he union, other hand, .considered that there were'sufficient meh .iiow. in the service, to carry on" the "present volume of traffic it a considerable saving„in expense and with about 20 men to spare, Iho roster that has been J prepared. is a highly technical document, not very .in-: telligible to the average In its main features it • sets. out ..a .' scale.; of. hours and duties under which the services of every man employed oh- the: tramways' will be utilised to the best possible-ad-; Vantage. The union officials claim that if the roster were put in operation the same number of cars as are now running could be ran to tlio present time-table'ana that the number of; men now-employed: would suffice to. maintain'tbei service without overtime'and to provide a paid 'spare list." A "spare list" - is- at -present employed,; the officials .remarked, under the name of, "stand-bys." . : ■■ Reviewing" the Mayor's statement* that, the sum of .£7637 is paid annnalljr-on the tramways, in overtime, the officials remarked that .it is necessaiy to!bear.'m r mind' that all Sunday work'on the "cars" is ; paid for at time and a half rates .and that pn. two .holidays in. each Jrear(Go<sd,. Friday'and Christmas Day) the traihway- ' meh are paid double tirae. This over' , time had to be-paid under-i any circumstances and it probably accounted for" Ah, annual expenditure of about'<£3soo. der \the. roster system, however,.-a great part of remaining overtime nowl paid, would' be obviated 'arid "also ' the; -men; would be given-more reasonable'-li'ours-of' work. . , ■ The officials stated .that at present some, 68 men engaged ial-the service workedion broken shifts and had to-bo-at call for» from .ten to thirteen honrs in'working an.;, eight'honr shift. MoreoVer, a large hnmr/ .ber of men were retained-.on; duty for.; varying periods, and_paid without; being.; actually, employed. The agreement' under - which the tramways are now worked provides that no employee should be " asked • to sign off for less than bnejhonr. Wheal' their services are temporarily dispensed; with for any shorter period the men are paid at the same rate as though, they - were working. -v According- to the "anion officials .-.the roster thev have prepared i would make it possible -.for nearly* all the >; framwaymen : to work in unbroken shifts and would* ; do a\vav with the necessity - of paying men for time during which they-are*not actually working.