"SMOKO!"

Shannon News, 12 January 1926, Page 3

"SMOKO!"

COUNTY EMPLOYEES CRITICISED • AND) DEFENDED. NEW SCHEME OF PAYMENT. The Works Gommittee of the Horowhenua'County Council on Saturday made .th'e' follow&ig recommendation: "That a working foreman he appointed to supervise fOTrinartion. work at Waikanae as directed by the Engineer at the rate of 16s per day and that the wages of Overseer Goldsmith be increased from 18s to 20s per day, • also that such employees as are engaged at Wiaikanae'oii Main Highway construction work he paid at the rate of-Is 9d per hour actual working time." It is probable that before long 40 or 50 men will he engaged at W:adkanae oai the main highways scheme. Cr. Broadbelt said he was very pleased to see that'a works, foreman; was to be appointed at Wlaikanae and hoped that would apply right through the County. In a good many oases the men just pleased themselves as to what they did aiid.that was not in the best interests of the County. They were- engaged in a big work and it was essential that they should' get the best' result possiible. •• It was an excellent idea that they should pay Is 9d an hour tor time worked. He would like to know if that would apply to the Wirokino Riding where men yv&te engaged in main highway work.

The Chairman; No, it is. to tried in Walkanae for. a star*. Cr. Broadibelt approved of the policy ofi increasing the men's wages, paying them- only for time worked and having a time-keeping foreman over them. He had had a good many complaints as to the/way in which the work was being done, but had put the beat face on it because he never liked to encourage complaints until he was sure of hie ground. In many cases, however, he knew the Council did not get the results they should do. , COMING TO WO'RfK AT 8.30. 1 The Chairman: Are you referring, to the main highway work or the men working generally for the County? ■. •= .■»■'■ Cr. Broadibelt said that with regard to the main 'highways schemehe had not haa an opportunity 'oi seeing personally What was going on, but he heard a lot of complaints and he would like to get to the bottom of. theni before he made a definite statement.

The chairman said, this was not an f answer to his. question. Was Cr; t Broadibelt referring to the main ! highway work? \ Cr. Broadhelt: To both, speaking - s - generally. Ho had had complaints f about some of the men working loc- , ally for instance that Uhey were ar- s riving at their work H 8.30 in the ( morning. . S The Engineer; Would you .mind . giving me any names? ' A ■ ( ■ Cr. Broadbelt; Yes, I Will"give you , names. . . The Engineer; now. do you know ( that the men had not been working , somewhere else first. They might , have been engaged at the yard. Cr. Broadbelt, did not think they , could do very much before'B.3o. < The Engineer said he had been at , the yard very early lately and knew ; that often the men were-there. The people who made complaints did not. know the first thing about it and thev did not want, their names to be mentioned and that was not faar to himself or the men. Cr Broadbelt; Surely. I can gave you some names if you want them, provided we can get redress. There is only one thing I want to stress and that is thaU we get full, value for the money If we haw 40 men and we lose half an hour a day each it will soon mount up. The Engineer; That is what tins ■ recommendation is to. prevent. Cr. Harkness also would like to see the ' recommendation; made general. The rise in wages would be appreciated by the men. The Engineer; It is. not a rise.Or Harkness mainitained that it was. It was better than they were getting. THE VALUE QF "SMOKO." The chairman (Cr. Monk) said it ' should not be news to -councillors,to know that each gang on main highways work in the County had a working overseer in charge. The question of having overseers so far as the riding men were concerned was a different matter. . [Perhaps they were particularly fortunate in the south end of the County in that they had good surfacemen, and there was • .iKxfc much cause for complaint. He . did not think they could have an """" overseer when they had one man working here and one somewhere else He had seen the men working in the pit and on the roads and was quite satisfied they were giving the Goravty a. very good return. If any ratepayer or other person made a complaint to a councillor and they were prepared to come to the Council or to put it in writing, the councillor could tell them that the Council would- give full consideTaton to ( the complaint. ' If a complaint was made against any man or body, of men in that way it would come before the Works Committee for. enquiry and then before, the Council as a whole. He himself had had a complaint only recently that certain men were sitting down smoking m working houirs. He did not think the Council begrudged the ten mtoutes morning and afternoon for that. He asrreed With a big employer of labour who told him'that if men were < riven'a deflnftte "smofeo" they had a smoke, hut if they had to snatch

it a good deal of time was last. He had no complaint to make about the men having a short "smoko," No doubt it was annoying to a ratepiayer as he came along to find all the men sitting down smoking and he would thlink "There are those tellows wasting our money again," In regard to the work thaft had been accomplished, the chairman said he thought the Council had got a very good return for the money spent. The Works Committee's recommendation was then adopted. Cr Ryder added that a cook was (being provided for the men at Waikanae and aoooirnimodat.ion for those who required it.