PORT CHARGES

Wairarapa Times-Age, 24 October 1940, Page 6

PORT CHARGES

INCREASE IN PROSPECT AT WELLINGTON CHAIRMAN’S STATEMENT. PROTEST BY MR H. MORRISON. (By Telegraph—Press Association.) WELLINGTON, This Day. Increased charges were predicted at last night’s meeting of the Wellington Harbour Board after a. long discussion in which all members of the board joined. The discussion arose on the order of the Waterfront Control Commission providing for additional payments to watersiders employed by the board. Members expressed the opinion that’ the granting of this bonus to one section of employees would lead to friction. The order of the commission, dated September 27, provides that “the casual waterside workers employed by the board receiving cargo from ships’ slings and stacking such cargo to ships’ slings when a vessel is loading, shall be paid by the board, in addition to the wages prescribed in the commission’s order of June 6, 1940, an amount per hour equivalent to that distributed by way of profit, if any, to the casual waterside workers employed discharging and loading such cargo on vessels worked under the co-operative contract system.” The order came into force on October 1. In the course of a lengthy statement, the chairman of the board, Mr W. L. Fitzherbert, said that on October 2, the special committee, consisting of Messrs W. Appleton, C. M. Turrell and himself, together with the board’s chief executive officer and traffic manager, waited on the Minister of Labour, Mr Webb, to place the board’s position before the Government with respect to the commission's proposal. The Waterfront Control Commissioners were present. ESTIMATES OF HIGHER COST, It was explained to the Minister that the effect of this order would be to increase the board’s costs, which would have to be passed on to merchants, thereby increasing their charges without received any direct gain. A return was also submitted showing some instances of the estimated increased costs that would be incurred. These costs, as far as could be estimated, showed an increase on casual labour employed by the board at overseas vessels. Owing to the fluctuating extra rates of payment, this would vary considerably. This would be in addition to the recent increase in the waterside workers’ rate of 2d an hour which meant £6OOO a year to the board and the five per cent “cost of living” increase to the permanent employees, £12,000, and to the waterside workers. £5OOO per annum, to which must be added the cost of increased minimums under the Commission’s order in June last, and other contingencies, a probable increase in all of approximately £25,000. Also, with the information at present available, it was estimated that it would cost the board a further £5OOO to provide the bonuses each year for overseas vessels. The board had no information at present as to how the contract system would be applied to intercolonial and coastal ships. It must be pointed out that, if this bonus scheme was extended to include these ships, a further difficulty would arise, in so far as labour employed in transhipping cargo from overseas ships, and vice-versa, was concerned, as this cargo would involve two bonus payments. It would be impossible, the chairman continued, to assess the costs on cargo worked, as the profit payment would vary with each particular vessel. The extra amount to be paid to the men would not be known till some time after cargo had been delivered. INJUSTICE TO FARMERS. These increases fell on the primary producers, said Mr Hugh Morrison. The dairy farmers’ costs were going up and they were working 14 to 16 hours daily seven days a week. They got no rise. It was shown that the board’s casuals were making £6 2s 6d a week, but Government statistics disclosed that a large number of dairy farmers were not making that. Where would New Zealand or the watersiders be but for the primary producers? They worked all hours but got no consideration. He could not see the justice of it. The bulk of the extra £25,000 would have to come from the dairy farmers as the largest section of primary producers.