Taranaki Daily News. TUESDAY, AUGUST 21. COMING-A CLERKS' REVOLT.

Taranaki Daily News, Volume XLVII, Issue 8182, 21 August 1906, Page 2

Taranaki Daily News. TUESDAY, AUGUST 21. COMING-A CLERKS' REVOLT.

We deimed it necessary on Ausrust Bth to draw attention of the public t > The Bond JSl:ives of the Post Office." In that article we had o&nwm to remark that " the high officials in the G.P-0., secure in their saddle back chair, don't care" how the clerks in the Post Office rub along, As a matter of fact, the same beautiful resignation to the hopeless position of the Government clerk is observable throughout the high officials of the Civil Service, the " saddleback," having by merit—or good fortune—risen to a position in4he public service of the country when the regulation affecting mere clerks does not touch him. * « * # If you care to go into the matter of salaries of " saddlebacks " from Judges of the Supreme Court to various " experts" who have been admitted to the Service without examination—you will see that a paternal Government has noticed that the price of bootssjwid bread, house rent, tiling and all the other small necessities of life havo gone up. Recognising this the Government raises tho wa'res of the " saddlebacks.'' not by increment of 'five or ten pounds a year, but by one hundreds anil so on. It is notorious that in some of the Departments theio are men whose salaries have been increased time after time and who are holding some of the most responsible positions, who would fail to pass the necessary examination to get them entry as clerks in a private company. # * * 3 It SBEMB to be an axiom with tho public servant w'id is drawing n great deal d money fo.' the least possibv exp 'i diture of e. v vgy that ho is oiili lei to all the gcods tho go.ls send and 'hat a clerk u ho is in tho ahsiirl position of earmt g an eighth of the nabob's .-alary is like the son of Ham the person to carry the burden, gets the kicl-8 and proei-ius few ha'pence. J f one desires pro >f that merit is not the oa'y pathway to pos'. tion, is i'aie not proof enough in the fart that Mr M i-l'O was Chii'f Commissi tier for the Christ church Lxhibilij'i ? The Press allewi;s he has liail.el things up considerably. Has lie? Mr Munro inot in the least to blame for taking any billet with a good salary attache- 1 to it. When, however, the great am much-advertised head of his Department (Mi* Donne) is away in Americ, and Europe fur xo long, comes but':and goes to Australia, comes bad and goes to Australia again, it seem.-ncce-saiv for someone with dignity and a largo salary to make thing hum And there, is not any douli that Mr Mumo has made things him like a beehive. in the meantime i> is not the Exhibition that is hum uiing. * * * * Tam ono little glance at that horn lof red tape—the Defence Department The headquarter s'a.T is a s'liickui; absurdity. The n>>rlmtmpf>:>i» whom the price of brcid en I pjtiio.. affects, ailvi.-e the heads and t.!i heads wag sig.ay. i.i 1 <il 1 bcit and Sullivan's operas i.- a- hr'.n; | as the Headquarter OtH-'o ol Defend iin New Zealand, la the " Bi; I Buildings" in Wellington it i possible to see offices ligliteup until ton or twjiie at night. Tii ton-shilling-a-day man is hard at it Ho is not getting pud overtime. •# * * * An'd outside the Government employ what of the clerk ? Wi-H, just as sample of what is happening fou senior clerks left ti.e employ of a hi, colonial insurance company's hcA' office just lately. Tho chief of tlia otiico get.-? -ClOvO- the main portio: of the sloggers £l5O each. Manage mentis an expensive luxury. Th company awhile ago interfered wit! the private work of clerks who wer trying to make a fow extra shilling to supplement their income. "Saddl backs," in most walks of life are no prohibited from making arNeoutsid their salary. Sir W. Ferguson, o the Wellington Harbor Board, is X1750-a-year engineer, and he is per niitto 1 to act as advisory engineer t Auckland or elsewhere. In fact, th jag is on lower-grade peisoris bosh ii private and Government offices. * * * # As fob bank clerks stme of then are in the most pitiable position of tin lot. They are not permitted t< marry until tl.ey reach the salary o £'2oo—and the banks which pa; )ur"e salaries to the higher officials see that, the i'iiOO minimum is no reached in a hurry. The ivithdrawa of Government arid private clerks ii all the great offices lately has beer must pronounced, Quite a 10l of rather large concerns isro doin< work very 1..u1!y with juniors becausi they have frozen tho seniors out. b) paying a miserly pittance for heav) work, lon ,' hours and iron discipline.