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THE CITY TRAMWAYS

WORKERS ASK FOR MORE WAGES

"AN AUTOMATIC INCREASE »

Mr. A. L. Monteith (representing the city tramways employees) yesterday told Hie Arbitration Court that, according to the spirit of the agreement entered into bv the corporation and the employees on ALay 5 last, the latter were entitled to have their wages "automatically increased' 5 so that the purchasing power was the level at which tho agreement hail sot jt.' He therefore asked the Court to grant tho employets u •sufficient increase to compensate them fully for the rise "in the cost of living since May. He submitted that, bound us it was by tho terms of the agreement, the corporation was not oiititled To conreniT that there were reasons for which the full compensation should not be granted. While the cost of living.had increased by 77 per cent, Air. Montuith stated, the had recoived increases in wages of only (ill per cont. on tlio average. 'l'hey were not asking for the. 14 per cent, to be made up, but only for a sum that would cover the increase in tho cost of Jiving in tlio period between May 5 and November 5 of this year. The amount would work out at 'is. a week. Tho profits made by the Wellington tramways in yeare gone Dy nad, "thanks to the starvation wages paid to the workers," been very liniiusome. "1 submit," lie said, "that these tremendous profits cannot go on, and the position is to-day that so lar as tho tramways are concerned, they have got to take the ,ups with thei downs, ami this is the first time in the sixteen years that they hare been in operation that they have not made tremendous! profits. In last year, over the working expenses they showed a profit of X67,1t09. . . . \'our Honour will notico that when tho agreement was entered into there was a question of a bonus, and that tvas the May bonus issued by tho Court. We did not retoive that." Mr. Monteith added that the corporation must abide by the. terms of tho agreement; the union did not care if it cost a million of money. He was sure that some fabulous amount would be mentioned. Mr. W. H. Morton, General Manager of tho City Trnmw'aj-s, said that the corporation was not going to ask that the agreement should be set aside. The agreement provided merely that the union should have the right to apply for a review of tho wages schedule at the end of six months. The council was concerned about the fares to bo charged to the public, for such fares were a factor in the cost of living. He did not believe anyone desired that a tramwayman should be paid less than a fair wage. Without overtime, the rates for motormen .was M 10s. to 165., and the rates'for conductors £i 6s. to .£-1 Bs. But tho council eould not run the trams on ordinary ratea, and overtime work. with, overtime rates of pinevitable. Overtime 1 was paid after eight hours work. Thus, in actual {practice, the waces of motormen ranged on tho average from JW. 9d. to .£6 126., and those of conductors from iio 18s. 3d. to 4.0 is. The motormen and who made up the majority of the men in the service, had received 74. per cent, increase in wages 6inc© 1914, and tho had received a percentage of increaso that was-not quite so high. Ihe statement that the City Council was not prepared to pay a living .wage did not, therefore, have much weight. 1 ho. City Council's policy ill regard to the tramways was governed by consideration ot the public interests. The present demand of the men, if acceded to would cost the city well over £20,000. He submitted that nothing to such an increase hnd happened lately. 1 lie council, in entering into the agreement had meant that tho employees should have the right to come to tho Court and apply for compensation for the increased cost of living, but it had not meant that there should be an automatic increase in wages when the cost of living roso. The Court resorved its decision.

Permanent link to this item
Hononga pūmau ki tēnei tūemi

https://paperspast.natlib.govt.nz/newspapers/DOM19201214.2.67

Bibliographic details
Ngā taipitopito pukapuka

Dominion, Volume 14, Issue 68, 14 December 1920, Page 8

Word count
Tapeke kupu
697

THE CITY TRAMWAYS Dominion, Volume 14, Issue 68, 14 December 1920, Page 8

THE CITY TRAMWAYS Dominion, Volume 14, Issue 68, 14 December 1920, Page 8

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