DRIVERS' DISPUTE

Evening Post, Volume CXV, Issue 71, 25 March 1933, Page 17

DRIVERS' DISPUTE

MINIMUM WAGES RATES

CONCILIATION COUNCIL

An agreement on most of the wages clauses was reached yesterday afternoon at the Conciliation Council sitting in connection with the Wellington motor and horse drivers' dispute.

The following weekly minimum rates were agreed-upon: For driving! one horse, £3 17s 8d; two or more horses, £4 Is; motor-vehicles up to two tons (combined weight of vehicle and maximum load), £3 19s; over two tons and up to four tons, £4 Is 6d; over four tons and up to five and a half tons, £4 3s 6d; over five and a half tons and up to ten tons, £4 7s; over ten tons, &i 9s'6d; tractor drivers, £4 2s 9d; drivers of tractors used for roadmaking, Is lOd an hour. Attendance on horses and motor-vehicles in excess of ordinary weekly total of forty-eight hours: One horse driver, adults Is 8d an hour, youths Is; two horse driver (up to eight hours),, adults Is 8d an hour, youths Is; motor-vehicles (up to four hours), adults Is 9d .an hour, youths Is Id; thereafter time and a quarter.

It was agreed that youths between the ages of 16 and 18 should not be permitted to drive motor-vehicles with a combined weight of vehicle and load exceeding two tons or to carry parcels exceeding 701b, and that youths be^ tween the ages of 18 and 21 should not be permitted to drive vehicles with a combined weight of vehicle and load exceeding three tons or to carry parcels exceeding 1001b.

The question of,the proportion of youths to adults was -argued at length, and it was finally decided that the proportion should be one to three in the case of bakers, and one to four in all other cases..

Mr. W. J. Mountjoy; agent for the employers, gaye1 an assurance that if it was found that there was any abuse of the principle the employers would be prepared to increase the number of adults.

Casual drivers (men who are not employed -continuously' for more than a week) are to be paid lfd an hour extra on the ordinary rates; with a minimum of two hours' employment in any one day. •

Overtime was fixed at time and a quarter for the first four hours and thereafter time and a half, all time worked after 12.45 p.m. on the day of the weekly half-holiday to be paid for at the Tate of time and a half.

The following holidays were agreed upon: New. Year's Day, Anniversary Day, Good Friday, Easter Monday, Sovereign's Birthday, Labour Day, Christmas Day, Boxing, Day, and the day set aside for the waterside workers' picnic. In towns1 where there is no waterside workers' picnic the extra day is to be January 2. •, . The meeting was adjourned until today. ■ :'•'•• :. '■.-. ■-.-'■' '.'■':■■ .''■ ;