13.
Sec. Ref. 40/1536/46.
SAVINGRAM
Juswie (18)
55.
To the Secretary of State for the Colonies.
From the Governor, Hong Kong.
Date
20th.
May 1949.
No.
205.
STAFF.
(19) on'
148.
Your savingram No. 1150 of 13th November, 1948: Entry points into gazetted Police Officers' scale of officers promoted from non-gazetted ranks.
2.
As was indicated in paragraph 3 of my Staff 6640 C.R. Savingram No. 107 of 19th March, 1949, on the subject of
Mr T.E. Clunie's salary, I have decided to adopt the rule that half the officer's service in the non-gazetted ranks should count for increments on the scale for gazetted ranks. I agree with your proposal that credit due to an officer with an odd number of years' service should be adjusted by moving his incremental date forward by 6 months.
Hai
3.
I am not in favour of disregarding the entire probation period on the new scale when applying the half service rule as I think that this would be unduly generous and would lead to discontent on the part of other Assistant Superintendents of Police. To disregard the probation period altogether would, in fact, mean that a non-gazetted officer promoted within his first six years of service would obtain a more favourable position on the gazetted scale than a gazetted officer of equal service, and this anomaly would be aggravated more acutely the earlier the promotion of the non-gazetted officer took place. It would suffice to apply the half service rule on the basis that only the initial point on the new scale should be disregarded. As you have pointed out in paragraph 2 of your saving ram under reference, the more junior promoted officers, who alone are likely to be affected in the future, face no anomaly on entering the higher scale.
None
4.
I attach a table which shows the effect of the above proposals in the five cases under consideration. of the officers concerned will convert on the Superintendents scale on the date of promotion, but you will note that Mr. L.R. Whant, whose retirement was approved in your Staff savingram No. 76 of 8th March 1949, will cross the promotion step between the Assistant and the full grade on 1/1/48. I have assumed that you will have no objection to this promotion, which I recommend, but I should be grateful for confirmation of your approval before allowing him to proceed beyond the maximum of the Assistant Superintendent scale.
Promotion from the Assistant Superintendent to the Superintendent grade is not dependent upon a vacancy, as you have approved the principle that there should be an overall establishment of the two grades.
5.
With regard to the question of applying the half service rule to gazetted police officers transferred from the Palestine Force, to which I referred in my Staff 6/640 CR savingram No. 107 of 19th March, 1949, I appreciate that it may be undesirable to do this in cases where the wide overlap of the gazetted and non-gazetted scales did not exist in the transferring Colony. Unless the half service rule is adopted as standard practice elsewhere in the Colonies, its adoption in respect of Palestine officers may lead to requests for the readjustment of entry points into the gazetted scale by all present and future transferred Superintendents and Assistant Superintendents. I consider,