RAILWAY CRITICS.

Dominion, Volume 7, Issue 1994, 27 February 1914, Page 8

RAILWAY CRITICS.

MR. HERRIES REPLIES TO. SIR JOSEPH WARD, REFORMS EFFECTED. CONCESSIONS TO STAFF. MINISTERS OBLIGATIONS FULFILLED. In a statement mado to a Dominion* reporter . yesterday tho Hon. W. H. Horries (Minister for Railways) traversed the speech delivered by .Sir Joseph Ward on February 14, at a function ~~to celebrate tho opening of the now offices "of the Amalgamated Society of Railway Servants. Oh that occasion Sir Joseph Ward referred to tho improved conditions and pay of railway employees during tho regime, of the Liberal Party. "In this connection," said Mr.. "it is dosirablo to place before the public arid the railwaymen what has been done by the present Government since it caino into power, in June, 1912. During the short time the •Mackenzie Government was in power a considerable, number of promises wero mado to the railway men in respect to improvements in pay and conditions of employment that had not been fulfilled. Although it was not obligatory on the part of the present Government to carry out these;promises, the-earliest opportunity wa3 taken of giving an assurance to the railway men that tho promises of my predecessor in this respect would be respected, and carried into effect as early as practicable.. Deputations from both tho outdoor and indoor branches of the railway servico waited on me, and urged consideration of their claims for , still, further advancement in their wages and salaries.

-"Salary Increases. ' "To make statutory 'allowances' that had- been granted by tho previous Administration, and were in operation at'tho'time, the Government in 1912 brought down ah amendment to the Government Hailways Classification Act, providing for increases of.salary to members .of the First Division, and of wages to members; of the Second Division. Tho improvements iny-espect to the First Division consisted of raising the maximum salary, in .Grade 9 from £220 to £245: in Grade 8 from £255 to £275; in' Grade 7 from £300 to £315. The minimum rato in Grade t'i was raised from £315 to £330, and iu Grade'lo from £120 to £126. Tho cost\of..these..alterations was approximately £11;000, per. annum,' exclusive o:i the value of promo'tions made in tho D/ 3 annually. - In the Second Division the. men who, benefited by., the alterations were:—Porters, labourers, watchmen;, crossing-keepers, bridge-keepers, surfacemen, machinists Grade 2, clean-ers,'.wash-out men Grade 2, crane-driv-ers Grade 2, shop cngiiiemen Grade 2, strikers, holdcr'srup, fettlers, furnacemen;. .helpers, skilled labourers, firemen Grade, 2, gasrnen Grado 2, locdmotivo storemeh, train examiners, coalmen, lcadingV.labour'ers,'. donkey, engine-driv-ers, .fencers; platelayers, signal erectors," ""'line ';'Crectors, ••■' bridgemen, and ■• \" -ganger's.' -, Iu .respect- to all '■' ; of J ' these" 'men, tho allowances':'tliat'had been granted by apre-' and which cost £44,31f! per annum, were made statutory, whilo the Amending Act provided, in addition, for increasing l the pay of leading' tradesmen," ordinary journeymen -tradesmen, .apprentices, strikers, holders-lip, "fettlers, engine-drivers, washout-men Grade 2, firemen, cleaners, train examiners, lifters, ..junior labourers,; etc., and other grades not specified' herein to the extent of a furtherannual'liability of £39,248. The total benefit, thorefore, derived by members of the Secorfd Division by the passing, of the Classification Act of 1912- was £83,564. .In respect to-the First Division, the increased salaries operated from April 1; Their benefits wero in addition to tho £83,564 granted to the members of the Second Division.

Additional Concessions. "At the time tho 1912 amendment was made, I intimated to tho various executives of the societies representing the railway men that tho Government had gone as far as it could in the direction of j improving their conditions at that ftine, but if it'were found finances .would permit a further amendment to ■the"' classification -schedule' if would bo made during the 1913 session,.in which I would deal principally with the claims of members of the-First Divisiqn, and put them'on an equal footing with other members of the Public Service in respect 'of pay. . After looking closely into.tho matter, it was-found possible to give effect to this promise, and accordingly the Government Bailways 'Amendment Act ,pf 1913 waß passed. 'An opportunity was at tho same time taken to increaso the pay of juniors in tho Second Division, and to •tako power which would enable tho Department to employ men who had previously been'too olcl for juniors and too young to he considered as adults. This disability in respect to ag© had resulted in an ayenu'o for steady, employment being closed against nil the' men con- . cern«3,;.owing to ineligibility %n account of age. . ■ '' | "Tho following will show tho improvei xnents made in tho salaries of members of the First Division;— -. ' ;

jjlaximum salary for each grade under ; tho Acts of 1912 and 1913. 1912. 1913. ;■' ■'..'..' .-.-.. "£...■£ Grade 1 ......... 700 700 „ 2 600 600 ~' 3 525 525- „ 4. , 450 . 475 „ '5 : ;..;...;.,.. 400 ; 425, ' „ G ..;....:. 355 ; 370' „ 7 315 315' , ~ 8 .275 SIS „ 9 i. 245. 260 „ 10 .....;..; • 200; ::220' "The payment of tho extra salaries Under the amendment of 1913 will result in an increased expenditure of-approxi-mately £25,000. " ~.z :,;•'. :;: .- "The pay oP junior porters, labourers, Strikers, machinists, lifters, and surfacemen was also improved as under:— •1912. 1913. ' '■•' -' '■'" '' s. d. ' s. d. First year 5 0 5 6 Second year 5 6 6 0 Third year GO.. 70 Fourth year ......'..'. 7.0]; 8 0 Fifth, year .'..•• 8 '0;. }■. 9 0 "The payment of these increases involved extra expenditure'' iii wages of £9000. , : ;;.'';;i ;..:

The New Regulations. "Immediately the 1913 Act was passed new regulations -governing staff condi-tions-were gazetted, and 1 are'now operative. In these provision was made for giving members of the Second Division opportunities of qualifying themselves for transfer'.;to:the First Division.. The disabilities pf juniors', in respect to promotion have- to a considerable extent been romoved in regard to all fnturo apwintecs. The travelling allowances havo been, increased in respect to the First-Division; especially in regard to thoso members employed as '. relieving officers. Members of tho Second Division alsr'participato in benefits under the head'pf r riight:'allowance. Provision is made for payment for 'meals in cases wher.e members of the First Division are ordered_spe,cially, on ,duty to, meet. unforeSee~n,....circumstance:s or perform

special work on Sundays.' For Sunday duty payment to members of the First Division is provided for analogous to the payment in the Postal Department. The conditions under which leave of absence and sick and accident pay were previously granted have been materially ' improved. In tho first division members with less than ten years' service can obtain two weeks' leave in each year, plus the Departmental holidays. Members with ton years' servico and upwards get threo weeks 1 leave, plus the Departmental holidays. No deduction is mado in the case of intermittent, emergency, and sick leave granted on full pay to members of the First Division, unless the total period they aro off for such Surposes in any one year exceeds 14 ays, when the days in excess of 14 aro deducted from the ordinary leave. Formerly when members wero absent from sickness or other causes tho time they were oif was deducted from tho period of annual leave.'

Holidays and Overtime. "The membors of the Second Division entitled to overtime and with less than ten years' service rcceivo six days' leave, plus four Departmental holidays; and with over ten years' service nine days, plus four Departmental holidays. Members of the Second Division not entitled to overtime and with less than ton years' service get nine days' leave, phis four Departmental holidays, and those with over ten years' service receive twelve days' leave, plus four Departmental holidays. In effect the regulations give to'members of the First Division with over 10 years' service an additional week's leave. To members, of tho Second Division with less than 10 ; years' service three additional days are now granted, while those members with oyer 10 3 T ears' service' receive six addi l tional days. Provision has also been made for granting members with at least 10 years' service extended leave of absence.up to 12 months, and to members with less, than 10 years' service extended leave up to six months. Leave in tho caso of sickness is also provided for on conditions laid down in tho regulations for any period up to 18 months. Members who retire- voluntarily for their own purposes are given leave varying from four to six weeks oh full pay, according to tho period •of their service. >Jf they are dispensed with through no fault of'their own they are granted leave on full pay for periods extending from four to twelve weeks, acqording to their period of service, and subject to certain conditions that are necessary to protect the publio interests. Members retiring oh superannuation are granted threo months' leave on full pay in all cases irrespective of service. Tho former practice was to grant one month's leave to. members with up to 25 years' service; two months for those with from 26 to 35 yoars' service, and three months to those with ' over ■35 years' service. Now all men are placed on a common footing in respect _ to leave on retirement on superannuation. 1 Superannuated membors and their wives aro granted, privilege tickets once a month. Formerly thoy had to pay the full.fare for travelling done after retirement. .' v

"Working Expenses and Earnings. "These are the -principal improve : merits that have bepn made by the present Government during the short time it has been in power.' In many other directions, however,'improvements have been made in the working conditions of thft.men, whiph, although small in themselves, represent in the aggregate very material Benefits and an increased cost in the operating expenses .of tlio Department. A good deal of criticism is being levelled at the Department at the present juncture owing to the fact that the percentage of working expenses to earnings is abnormally high, while the estimated revenue has fallen very,'much short of tho forecast. In this connection it must bo remembered that at the time the forecast was made normal conditions prevailed throughout the country, and there was'every reason to anticipate'that;the buoyanc.v hitherto manifest in the railway business of the- Dominion would continue. Since the forecast was.made, however, many circumstances have arisen which have had a disastrous effect on the railway traffic and the rovenuo derived therefrom, notably, smallpox and the labour unrest, which finally terminated in strikes. ;

The Smallpox Scaro. • "The. smallpox scaro caused a largo shrinkage in the passenger revenue, 'and the strikes, by paralysing the coal and other industries, had a similar effect on the goods revenue. With regard ti) expenditure, it was not to bo expected that material improvements justly duo to the railway men could be made in respect to pay- and conditions without having an effect on thccoperating expenses. .The Government fully anticipated that the expenses would have an upward tendency. The tendency to increase operating expenses is not,however, peculiar to Now Zealand. Railway statistics throughout the world show that tlio demands of railway men for a reasonable monetary .return for their' services and a shortening of their hours of labour.have been followed by a corresponding increase in tho cost of operating tho lines affected, and an ad-, vance in the percentage of working expenses to earnings. Notwithstanding tho advance in the cost of operating tho New Zealand railways for tho current financial year, I have no hesitation whatever in. saying that had normal conditions prevailed in respect to tlio industries of tho country, had tho strik/s not occurred, aud tho: visitation smallpox been prevented, tho revenue of tho Department would have como up to expectations, in which ©vent tho percentage of working expensos to revenue, would-not hava shown any material advance on the percentages for last year.

Ungenerous Critics,

"-The'endeavour that is being made to fix on tho Government of tho day the responsibility for shortages in revenue arising from—(l) epideinio of diseaso, and (2) ill-advised- actions of- irresponsible Labour, leaders, and to blame the present railway administration for the abnormally high rate of working expenses, due to tho uforesaid causes, is ungenerous, unjustifiable and strongly to .bo deprecated. Had tho same condi!tions obtained under former Administrations, we should at least have had an equally, regrettable position-.so far as tho financial results of operating the railways for-tho same period was concerned." r