TRAMWAY LINESMEN.

Dominion, Volume 4, Issue 1215, 25 August 1911, Page 6

TRAMWAY LINESMEN.

WAGES AND SUNDAY WORK. Reporting to the City Council last evening on various aspects of the dispute between tho Wellington City Corporation and tho linesmen employed in the Tramways Department, the City Electrical Engiucor (Mr. Stuart Richardson) stated that thore were two clauses in dispute— wages and Sunday work. The Tramways Committee were agreeable to adopting the tramway preference clause, but as tho Conciliation Council had adopted tho preference clauso contained in the carpenters' award, it was obvious that tho latter should be adopted to avoid the anomaly of two preference clauses for the one union. With regard to wages- the recommendation of the Conciliation Council in connection with the wiremen's wages was that they should receive Is. 4UI. per hour—an increase of Id. being allowed, as wiremen are required to pass an examination in electrical theory and practice and obtain a license. It was stated thai tho wages paid ; in Wellington wero the highest in the Dominion. In the original demands the wage asked for linesmen was 2d. less than for wiremen, this being aatnittot! as a reasonable difference taking into consideration tho fact that wiremen were tradesmen, and linesmen required no technical training. It would thus bo seen that in view of the Conciliation Council finding at the present rate of Is. 3d. per hour, linesmen wero very well paid iu Wellington, where, in fact, they received 25 per cent, more than in the other centres. The minimum rate, of pay for linesmen's assistants, who are unskilled labourers was >at present Is. lid. per houi, which was admittedlj a h : gh rate of pay for this class of labour. The nroposal to adopt a sliding scale of pay for these men was strongly objected to', and if adopted would lead to endless complications throughout the corporation service. The only Sunday work was in cinorgcncy cases,' and as tho employees got all public and statutory holidays time and a half only should be allowed. He recommended that linesmen be paid a minimum of Is. 3d. per hour, aud that linesmen's assistants be paid 'a minimum of Is. lid. per hour; that time and a half be allowed for Sunday work, and that the preference clause as recommended by the Conciliation Council be adopted. The report was referred to tho Tramways Committee.