PAY OF RAILWAYMEN

Dominion, Volume 12, Issue 57, 2 December 1918, Page 6

PAY OF RAILWAYMEN

LOCOMOTIVE MEN DISSATISFIED PROPOSALS TO THE GOVERNMENT A SERIES OF LETTERS, The following correspondence has passed lwtween the Prime Minister and the New Zealand Locomotive Engineers', Firemen, and Cleaners' Association, and has been authorised for publication hy the executive council:— October 17, 1918. Dear Sir—l am directed to place before you the very serious discontent which is permeating the ranks of the New Zealand Locomotive Engineers', Firemen, and Cleaners employed on the Niiw Zealand Railway.?, and to seek your assistance in bringing about a remedy. The executive council has, in spite of opposition, given their support to the Government during the period of the war. And in this respect they have had, up to tho present the loyal support of the majority of their member.', and further, these members have done their duty to the Department when the staff was depleted owing to so many of the men being at the front,-and have kept the trains going. Much siehiess has been the result, amongst the men, as a result of their loyalty owing to the irregular and long hours on duty. However, the men have now com« to the conelusion that as they have assisted the Government for four years, the Government should now be in a position to indicate to them in what direction their conditions and wages should be improved. The men consider - that they are considerably underpaid, and owin.e to tho change of*parties in the House they were deprived of any improvement. _ In order to sive the men some satisfaction, the executive council advised the men that an appeal wonli be made to Parliament, and I herewith enpend a circular which slmws pointedly l th» mp»'s position. As there is considerable disagreement o-i the-e matters with the Department. T wouhl suggest that a conference he held, a»d that a Conciliation Commissioner preside =o that the matter in dispute, con'd b« settled. The men are verv reasonable in thrir deroanrK as they are merely asking for r.verlime rate for night work between the hours of 9 p.m. and (1 n.ni. and their wa"»s £>"(! on tl>» same Iw : s as Australia. I trust' that yon will give the matter your serious ■vmsideratinn, a«d assist, council to avoid any unpleasantness.—(Surged) W. M'ADLEi', General Secretary.

November 20, 1918. Dear Sir—l am directed to remind you that up to the present I have not had any reply to my letter to you pointing out the grave, discontent existing amongst the members of this association, and asking you to appoint a Conciliation Commissioner to adjudicate upon the matter in dispute betwaen the Minister and the men. A meeting was recently held with the Minister, but no satisfactory conclusion was arrived at, and therefore- I would be obliged if yon would go into the matter and see if anything can bo done. .As the matter is very serious, T would be obliged for an early rsplv— (Sitrned) AY. M'ARLEY, General Secretary. November 23, 1918. From Prime Minister to General Secretary. , Dear Sir,—l duly received your letters of October 17 and November 20, regarding the wages and conditions of the em-, ployment of the locomotive engineers, firemen, and cleaners in the New Zealand Railways. In reply, I have to state that the loyal support of Civil Servants throughout the war, including the members of your association, is freely admitted, and has been recognised and appreciated by the Government, which has made every endeavour to treat the Civil and mitigate as far as possible the effects of the increase in the cost of living caused by war conditions, by. granting bonuses from time to time as the cost increased. Railway servnnts in particular have been well treated in this respect, an extra bonus of Is. per day having been granted to married railwaymen beyond what other Civil Servants have received. In this way, since the commencement the war, married railwaymen, on whom tile financial burden bears most heavily, have been granted 3s. per day in bonuses,* representing a total cost to the Department of about £(100,000 per annum. Witli regard to the request of the association to be brought within the conditions of the Conciliation 'and Arbitration Act, I would point out that this would require special legislation. At present, men employed in the New Zealand Railways are subject to the conditions of the New Zealand Government Railways Act, and regulations made thereunder, and this fixes the rates of pay and conditions of employment. Requests of a similar nature to that made now by your association have been preferred in the past by other sections of the railway staff, and upon two separate occasions the question was submitted to a vote of the men, who in each case indicated clearly that they preferred to continue working under' the railway rates of pay and conditions, and there is good reason to believe that the majority of the railwaymen are still of the same opinion in this respect. • At the present time, while a large majority of railwaymen are at the front, it would, in my opinion, not bo right to these men, and would be detrimental to their interests, to allow the staff .remaining in New Zealand to givp exnressiou to an opinion as to the advisability of altering the conditions of employment. The question should "be left over until the return of the railwaymen nt nresent at the front. If their an induction is given of a desire for a chnnse) the matter can be further considered. (Signed) W. F. MASSEY. The following letter was forwarded, to the Prime Minister before receipt of his letter dated November 28:— ') Novomber 30, 1018. Dear Sir,—My Executive Council has instructed mo to write to you and advise you of the position which has arisen in connection with the claims put forward by tho association for some considerable time for the improvement in wages and conditions of the N.Z. Locomotive Engineers, Firemen, and. Cleaners' Association.. In doing so, they consider that it is their duty to the public of New Zealand to apprise you of the situation, and the men consider (hat their action, which may appear hostile to Ihe public of New Zealand is on the contrary, tiallv in tho interests of the (ravelling public. The Executive Council has icceivod almost a unnniinous instruction from the blanches throughout New Zealand to prepare the organisation for taking more drastic action than the association has done_ in the oast for getting a better hearing for their qrievances and for redressing same. The men consider that the representintr of their denni'ds for improved conditions and increased wages lias always received the same equivocal reply from those renresenting the Government and indirectly the liublic. The Executive Council in 1!)]7 petitioned Parliament for the association to lie allowed to come within the provisions of the Conciliation and Arbitration Act. not on account of what the Court might do for therfi alogother, but In get away' from (he present unsatisfactory niefhnii. The Minister of Railways now States that this is impossible as he would have to muke it apply to all railwaymen.

Tn reply to this, my executive states that if we (the locomotive men) are ulaced in the same happy position no the other employees, arc in we. too. will wit seek the Court's insistence. However, the Ewiitivn Council f ko . "olitioned in" 'fl'.T for inwroved conditions, ■dc.. and (his was referred to the Government similar in Hie other petition, bu| so far no iwlpntimi has boon "'von that anvthing "'ill bo done to r.»rry H'em out. T am- directed to mention these matters to show you that we rave done our he«t. n« an executive to bring about an amicable sel'lont'nit of Hie disnm<\ ned we hone that before the men do lake anv oth?r action the 1 the whole facts will he placed before th" nnblie nf N'ew fton'mid from even' nvaililde n l -!-. form. We want to be fair to the public and we will n«k them to iudgo oiir case fairly. That is all wo ask. T mieht linro mention that tho loco-

motive men have been loyal to thy Government and the people of Now Zealand at a time when great pressure was brought to bear upon the men to make tiso of the responsible work performed by the locomotive men. The locomotive men have stood in with, the Government in winning this war and again they withstood the influence of others, but 1 merely mention these matters, not because the men consider they have done other than their duty to th'o public, but for the purpose of showing you that we nre playing the game right up to tho finish. The men consider that they have waited long enough and that they arc not getting a. "square deal." If you think (hat the matter is serious enough for you to preside at a conferenco with representatives from the Department or to appoint any other'person we will be pleased, as our duty now is to strain every nerve in preventing what will prove to be n-calamity to New Zealand under present conditions. I must express regret that the executive has tak»ii up so much of your time in this matter, but they realise that when all amicable efforts fail their duty is to stand loyally by the members. ' (Signed) W. M'AfILEY, General secretary. With reference to the remarks in tho Prime,-, Minister's letter re the Arbitration Court vote, the secretary states that iim both occasions when the vote was taken tho locomotive men (engineers, firemen, and cleaners) were-left out, ami were no,; allowed to exercise a vote. The vote was confined to workshops. The locomotive .Association took a vote of their members re this matter about 1914, and a majority of the members decided to ask the Government to bring them under the .Act.