WAGES FOR WAITING.

Gisborne Times, Volume XXIX, Issue 3398, 13 December 1911, Page 2

WAGES FOR WAITING.

AN INTERESTING JUDGMENT.

At the S.M. Court yesterday, Mr. W. A. Barton, S.M., delivered the following judgment in the case of the Gisborne Waterside Workers’ Industrial Union of Workers (Mr. Nolan) v. the Union S.S. Co. (Mr. Stock) : The plaintiffs claim to recover from tho defendants the sum of £lO as a penalty for a broach of the Waterside Workers’ Award, dated tho 28tli day of May, 1908. The following .are the particulars of the said breach—The following men, viz., John Byrne, Joseph Gurzinski, Joseph Gooines, James Stevenson, Fred. Reynolds, and F. C. F. Binney, were ordered down to work tho defendants’ steamship Hauroto at 5 p.m. on Sunday, 22nd May, 1911. Tho said men were omployed from shortly after 7 p.m. till 11 p.m. on the said Sunday. The said men wore respectively paid by tho defendants the sum of 14s, being for two hours waiting time 4s 2d, and 9s lOd working time. The said waiting was paid at the late of 2s Id per hour, whereas under the terms of the said award the said men should have been paid tho sum of 3s per hour as waiting time. The facts of the case, which are admitted, are fully set out in the statement of claim. The question which I am called upon to decide is whether the men are entitled to bo paid while waiting at the ordinary overtime rate, viz., 2s Id per hour, or at the rate of double time, 3s per hour. My attention lias been called to clauses 2,8, and 9 of the award- Clause 2 runs, “Subject to the special provisions i hereinafter contained, tho minimum j rate of wages shall lie as follows: Ste- | vedore and general cargo work of all | kinds, at all places in the port and | roadstead and at the breakwater Is Gd , per hour for ordinary time, and 2s Id per hour for overtime.” Clause 8, “Men ordered down for work and attending between tbe hours of 5 p.m. and 9 p.m. to receive not less than one I hour’s pay; men ordered down for work! and attending between the hours of 9 | p.m. and 7 a.m. to receive not less than two hours’ pay : men ordered down for work and attending between tho hours |of 4 p.m. on Saturday and 7 a.m. on Monday, and for work on holidays to receive not less than two hours’ pay; men on' red down for work and attending between the hours of 7 a.m. and 8 a.m. to receive not less than one hour’s pay. Such payments to he made at the overtime rates for the class of work for which the men were to have been engaged.” Clause 9, “The following days shall be recognised as holi- j days: New Year’s Day, Good Friday,) Easter Monody, Labor Day, Sever-j eign’s Birthday, Peoples’ Show Day, I Christmas Day. and Boxing Day. All j work done on Christinas Day, Good j Friday and Sundays to be paid at the rate of double time; all work done on any of the other holidays to bo paid at the rate of ordinary overtime.” Mr. Nolan, counsel for the plaintiffs, contends that the men are entitled to be paid while waiting at the rate of double time, viz., 3s per hour, but Mr. Stock, on behalf of defendants, maintains that while waiting the men are only entitled to overtime rates, viz., 2s Id per hour, at which rate they have been paid by defendants. After carefully considering the award, I am of opinion that for the time the men were waiting they are only entitled to lie paid at the rate provided by clause 8 of the award, and I am further of opinion that clause 9 does not apply until the commencement of work. T do not think it is the intention of the award that the same rate of pay should be made for waiting time as for working time. P’or the reasons given, judgment will he for defendants, with solicitor’s fee £1 Is. Mr. Nolan was granted leave to appeal to the Arbitration Court. j