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Serial No., From af to whom, Despatch No., &c., and Date.

Subjoel and Page No.

CEYLON.

CORRESPONDENCE [November, 1920, to May, 1923)

RELATING TO THE

CEYLON SALARIES COMMISSION, 1921.

1922

16. To the Governor

313

17. Ditto

Confidential

Amplifies No 15....

43

June 1

June J

18. Sir A. Wood Renton

June 7

Concurs in view expressed in No. 14, and is prepared to agree to an addition of £500 year to the Governor's entertainment allowance, if the Legis. lative Council are prepared to vote such increase. For reasons given suggests reconsideration of the pro- posal made by the Governor in No. 18 to allow an appeal to the Governor on the part of an "aggrieved officer on the first instead of, as the Salaries Cam- missioners recommended, on the second occasion that the head of his department decided that he was unable to pass the Efficiency Bar.

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56249

(No. 820.) MY LORD,

44

19. To the Governor

395

July 18

Transmits copy of No. 18 and expresses concurrence in views contained therein; makes further observations on the Commissioners' Report.

20. The Governor

Telegram

September 80

(Rec. Sept. 30)

... 44 Forwards telegram sent at the request of Mr. Peiris protesting against the use of votes of officials to pass the Salaries Scheme

...

46

21. Ditto

Telegram

September 30 (Rec. Sept. 30)

Furnishes statement of the facts with regard to the passing of the Salaries Scheme in the Legislative Council

45

22. To the Governor Telegram

***

October 17

28. The Governor Confidential

October 8

(Rec. Oct. 98)

Requests, in reply to No. 20, that Mr. Pairis be informed that salaries proposals have received the Secretary of State's approval and are urgently neces sary; considers that increased taxation is necessary, and that proposals are moderate; is unable to con- sider request for delay, but will give careful con- sideration to any proposals for modification in detail put forward by any body of opinion in the Council... 46

Reports the proceedings in the Legislative Council regarding the Salaries Scheme and the Taxation Proposals for 1922-28, which resulted in the depar ture from the Council Chamber of 18 Ceylonese and 1 Indian member

48

14. To the Governor Telegram

November 1

Requests, with reference to No. 20, that Mr. Peiris be informed that the Secretary of State concurs in views of his predecessor both in regard to the ques- tion of the salaries of the Civil Service and the taxation proposals

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25.

Ditto

Confidential

November 24

Conveys approval of the action taken by the Governor described in No. 28, and commente generally on the Rituation

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L

1923

26. The Governor

190

March 29 (Rec. April 23)

Submite for approval the recommendation of the Salaries Scheme Committee that the Chief Justice be allowed a house in Colombo free of rent

27.

Ditto 191

...

TH

March 29 (Bec. April 23)

28. To the Governor

280

May 9

29.

Ditto

281

May 9

Reporta further action taken regarding the new Salaries Schorne and encloses Report of a Committee appointed to make a final revision of the proposals of the Salaries Commission and to work out details for bringing the scheme into operation; concurs generally in the Committee's recommendations and forwards observations on certain points dealt with in the Report

59

+

68

Conveys general approval of Committee's recommen

dations enclosed in No. 27 and expresses hope that the improvement of the position of Civil Servanta has now been brought to a satisfactory conclusion.... 66 Approves proposal in No. 26

No. 1.

THE GOVERNOR to THE SECRETARY OF STATE. (Received 15th November, 1920.)

WITH reference to the correspondence which passed between us while I was

Ceylon, 27th October, 1920. in England, on the subject of the appointment of a Salaries Commission, and to your subsequent telegram of 16th September, in reply to Sir Graeme Thomson's telegram of 3rd idem,† intimating that in your opinion, which was shared by me, there were strong reasons for not attempting at the present time to fix permanently the salaries of the Civil Service and that you prefer a more flexible method of meet- ing existing difficulties, for which you would be glad to consider proposals made after my return to the Colony, I have the honour to address you further on the subject.

2. Since my return I have made further inquiries in the matter and find that, while the economic conditions, both present and prospective, are not altogether favourable for undertaking a general revision of substantive salaries, the present condition of public departments, viewed from an administrative point of view, urgently calls for a general survey and revision of salaries and conditions of service, in respect both of grades and of specific posts. It is nearly eight years since the laat general revision of salaries was carried out and, even in normal times, the lapse of this period would have brought about so many changes affecting the posi- tion and prospects of public officers as to necessitate a general revision of conditions of service the last revision, in 1912, was undertaken seven years after the pre- vious revision, in 1905-but the eight years which have passed since the last revi- sion have been so abnormal and have so radically altered conditions affecting the public service that a general revision has been for some time overdue, action in the matter having been deferred owing to the policy of retrenchment necessitated by the War.

3. It is true that the chief disturbing factor in the situation, viz., the increased cost of living, has for the time being been dealt with by the grant of temporary allowances, viz., the War Allowance, originally granted with effect from 1st April, 1918, and revised in November, 1918, which was, after the War, replaced by a scheme of temporary increases to salaries and pensions, originally granted with effect from 1st January, 1919, and since twice revised, in October, 1919, and January, 1920, respectively. The increases provided for in these schemes are based on a sliding scale of percentages which are applicable to groups of officers included within certain limits of salary. This method necessarily did not admit of the considera- tion of special circumstances affecting specific posts or grades, and thus left untouched many anomalies, in regard to salaries and other conditions of service, which had arisen, with the effluxion of time, owing to various causes, such as increase of work, variations in importance of particular posts, creation of new posts and even new departments, recruitment of officers on enhanced rates of salary. etc. The Committee appointed to inquire into the increased cost of living recog nized that anomalies existed and required early investigation, but expressly reserved them for a Salaries Commission, realizing that the investigation would involve » general review of the emoluments of the Government Service as a whole, such aș the Committee had neither the time nor the authority to undertake (vide para graph 9 of Sessional Paper IV of 1920). If efficiency in administration and con- tentment among the staff are to be secured, these anomalies must now be dealt with

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and, owing to the close inter-relation of many departments, this can only be done satisfactorily by a general survey of all departments whereby corresponding grades in different departments may be co-ordinated.

4. The difficulties of the present situation are very clearly reflected in the delays which have occurred in connexion with the recruitment of technical officers from England to fill vacant posts in Ceylon. As you are aware, it has been neces- sary in many cases to offer salaries appreciably higher than the approved standard rates, and even such offers have in some cases failed to attract the class of officer desired. This is due to the greatly improved remuneration now obtainable by such candidates both in England and elsewhere a fact which is fully appreciated by the officers in Ceylon and consequently every such increase of salary creates a number of anomalies in respect of other posts of similar standing, the holders of which naturally feel dissatisfied when they see salaries offered to newly-appointed and younger officers as high as, or even higher than, those paid to men who have already served Government for a number of years. The starting salary offered for a new Assistant Master of Method is the same as the maximum salary of the present Master of Method, and new Irrigation Engineers have been appointed on salaries of £450 per annum plus temporary increase, whereas Mr. Biddle and Mr. Kennedy with seven and six years' service draw only £440 and £420, plus temporary increase, respectively. The only effectual solution of the problem is to reconsider the salaries of all such posts with due regard to existing conditions and to pay such rates as will fairly remunerate both existing officers and new entrants for the work required of them, and the need for a Salaries Commission to deal with these cases is, in my opinion, imperative. In this connexion the recent increases granted to the Government Services elsewhere, particularly in India, the Straits Settlements, and the Federated Malay States, have led to very adverse criticism of the rates of pay in Ceylon, even when the temporary increase is taken into consideration, and have accentuated the dissatisfaction which already existed. I annex a memorandum on some of the cases which have recently come before me.

5. As regards the locally-recruited subordinate staff, a large number of memorials has already been received from these officers from time to time, praying for amelioration of their impoverished condition due to the inadequacy of the salaries fixed in 1912 to meet the greatly altered conditions of the present day. The grant of the temporary increase has, of course, materially helped to relieve their immediate needs, but the necessity for adjusting differences and removing anomalies which have arisen from various causes during the last eight years is as great in their case as in that of the superior officers, if not really greater by reason of the larger number of officers involved. I do not wish to burden this despatch with details of the questions involved, and will therefore only say that these are as numerous as they are complicated, and that their satisfactory settlement can only be effected by means of a general investigation covering all departments.

6. I would further point out that at the present moment far too great a pro- portion of the time of the senior officers of Government is taken up with the investi- gation of the complaints of their subordinates in the matter of pay and prospects. So long as it was possible to hold out the prospect of an early Commission, the detailed consideration of the memorials could be postponed, but this is no longer possible in view of your telegram of 18th September, and unless a Commission is appointed at an early date, the time both of Heads of Departments, and of the Government, will be still further encroached on at the expense of their important executive duties.

7. As a further reason for early action, I would mention that when the present scheme of temporary increases was introduced, early this year, the value of the rupee stood at about 28, 4d., and this fact was taken into consideration as consti- tuting a very considerable advantage to an officer with financial responsibilities in England, and to an officer dependent largely on imported articles. As you are no doubt aware, the rupee has since fallen to about 18. 7d., with the result that the advantage to the officer recruited in Europe is rapidly disappearing, the cost of remittances and the prices of imported articles having risen in proportion to the fall of the rupee.

8. After careful consideration of all the circumstances connected with this important question, I feel impressed with the necessity for dealing with the numerous questions which await consideration and which, if indefinitely postponed.

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inust increase the present difficulties of administration and impair efficiency at a time when the highest possible efficiency is necessary in all departments. I quite realize that the Commission appointed at the present time may be unable to find a permanent solution of the salaries question, but their findings should serve the very important purpose of bringing the administrative machinery up to date, by removing anomalies and placing details in proper perspective, and thus affording an up-to-date basis on which it should be easy, should the necessity arise, to frame fresh proposals for meeting any further developments.

9. I would therefore submit for your favourable consideration the desir- ability, and indeed the necessity, of appointing, without further delay, a Commis- sion to investigate generally the pay, prospects and conditions of service of the staffs of all departments, and particularly to make recommendations for an equit- able revision of the salaries and allowances now paid to public officers. In doing

so, the Commission may be able to discriminate between conditions which, so far as can be seen at present, are likely to be permanent, and those which are likely to change, and make recommendations for permanent salaries and temporary allow- ances accordingly.

10. If you approve the above proposals, it would be possible to have the work carried out by a Commission or Committee locally constituted, but, having ascer- tained the views of unofficial members of the Legislative Council, I am satisfied that the recommendations of a local Commission would not carry the same weight as those of a Commission sent out from England. It appears also to be the wish of the higher ranks of the service that their case should be investigated by a Commis- sion from England and, in view of the fact that many of the questions to be dealt with require some familiarity with conditions in that country, I agree that it would be desirable to appoint a Commission from Home. If, as suggested in your letter to me of 6th August last, it is possible to secure the services of Sir Alexander Wood Renton this Government would welcome the appointment, and would agree to the terms of remuneration therein suggested. services should not be available, it is felt to be very desirable that at least one If, however, Sir Alexander's member of the Commission should be personally acquainted with the conditions of life and cost of living in the East as compared with England.

I have, &c..

W. H. MANNING,

Governor, &c.

P.S. Since writing this despatch, I have received information that another Police Sergeant has applied to resign to take up a post at nearly double his present pay and that Lieutenant-Colonel Summers, Economic Botanist, (salary £400 plus temporary increase) has received the offer of a post under the Ministry of Agricul- ture carrying emoluments of £619, rising to £1,120.

Enclosure in No. 1. MEMORANDUM.

Education Department.

Mistress of Method. Miss Daly, who was appointed to this post in Decem- ber, 1914, on a salary of £250-£25-£350 per annum, and in 1918 had her maximum raised to £400, resigned in November, 1919, on grounds of health. As Director of Education considered it unlikely that a suitable successor could be got for £300- £25-£400, an enhanced salary of £400-£25-£500, plus temporary increase, was offered in February last, but a successor has not been appointed yet.

Assistant Master of Method. This is a new post, first provided for in Esti- mates 1919-20 on a salary of £300-£25-£400 per annum; owing to difficulty in getting a suitable candidate, an enhanced salary of £400-£25-£500 per annum, plus temporary increase, was offered in February last, but no one has been appointed yet. The sanctioned salary of the Master of Method is only £300-£25-£400.

in

Inspectress of Girls' Schools.—Miss Carter, who was appointed to the 1917, on £300 per annum, having resigned in April last, an improved scale of £400-

poet £25-£500 per annum was offered for a suitable successor. This having failed to secure a suitable candidate, an enhanced offer of £450-£25-£550, plus temporary increase, has been recommended. No appointment has been made yet.

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