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Mr. Westbrook,

Mr. Fiddian,

Mr. Dixon, Mr. Kennedy, Mr. Head,

Mr. Greenhill,

Mr. Fiddian, Mr. Williams,

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Clerical Officers' Grade Committee.

Official representatives. Official

Representatives of the Grade.

Temporary Clerks' Grade Committee.

Mr. Wilkinson,

Mr. Stapley, Mr. Read, Mr. Foster,

Official representatives.

Representatives of the Grade.

Messengers' Grade Committee.

Mr. Davis,

Mr. Dixon,

Official representatives.

Mr. Creed,

Mr. Eglinton,

Mr. Holland,

Mr. Battley,

Mr. Ives,

Representatives of the Grade.

On the motion of the Vice-Chairman, seconded by Mr. Fiddian, the Council agreed that the Special Committee appointed to consider the staffing and organiza- tion of the Colonial Office should be continued, but that the words relating to the training of the staff should be omitted from the terms of reference, as it was desired to refer this matter to a separate committee. The following were nominated to be members of the former committee:--

Mr. Scoffham,

Mr. Fiddian,

Mr. Dixon,

Mr. Wiseman,

Mr. Westbrook, Mr. Kennedy.

On the motion of the Vice-Chairman, seconded by Mr. Fiddian, the Council agreed to the reappointment of the Registration Committee and that paragraph (a) of the terms of reference should be altered to read as follows: "That a Committee be appointed to consider and report upon all suggestions that may be made from time to time for improving the system whereby papers are dealt with in the Colonial Office." The following were nominated to be members of the Committee:-

Mr. J. F. N. Green,

Mr. Howell,

Mr. Fiddian,

Mr. Westbrook,

Mr. Harman,

Mr. Harper, Mr. Head,

with Mr. Bickle as Secretary.

On the motion of the Vice-Chairman, seconded by Mr. Fiddian, the Council agreed to the reappointment of the Refreshment Committee, and that it should be asked to inquire into and report upon the extent to which the facilities afforded in the Colonial Office for obtaining refreshments are availed of by the staff. following were nominated to be members of the Committee:-

Mr. May,

Miss Atkins,

Mr. J. F. N. Green, Mr. Fiddian,

Mr. Boyse,

Mr. Farmer,

Mr. Edmonds, Mr. Waterman.

The

On the motion of the Vice-Chairman, seconded by Mr. Fiddian, the Council agreed to the appointment of a Special Committee to consider and report on the question (a) of the further education, and (b) of the training of members of the office staff. The following were nominated to be members of the Committee:-

Mr. Mächtig, Mr. Kennedy.

4.

Mr. Westbrook,

Mr. Fiddian, Mr. Scoffham,

The Chairman regretted that, owing to delays which were not attributable to the Colonial Office, he was unable to give any information regarding the scheme for the reorganization of the staff of the Copying Department.

On the motion of the Chairman, seconded by Mr. Westbrook, it was agreed that a Special Committee of the Council should be set up to deal with the matter.

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The following were nominated to be members of the Committee:-

Miss Atkins,

Mr. Harper,

Mr. Fiddian,

with power to add to their numbers.

5. Mr. Westbrook moved: (1) That the present Staff Officers and Staff Clerks should, as in the case of other Clerks in the Colonial Office, be given assimilation terms as from 1st January, 1920, and that they should receive an advance of £60 per annum from that date; (2) that, inasmuch as the 2nd Division Clerks in the Colonial Office have been transferred to the Executive Class, Staff Officers and Staff Clerks in receipt of salaries under £500, who before promotion were 2nd Division Clerks, should also be transferred to the Executive Class; and (3) that Staff Clerks now in occupation of posts at £300-£400 should be transferred to the Higher Executive Grade on £400-500 in addition to receiving the assimilation advance; and asked that the Authorities would approach the Treasury in the matter as, he understood, had been done in other Departments.

The Chairman pointed out that the Staff posts in the Colonial Office carrying salaries not exceeding £500 a year had already been dealt with in the reorganiza- tion scheme, which had now received the approval of the Treasury; and that the grant of assimilation terms to Staff Officers and Clerks was a general service matter and therefore not one for departmental action. For these reasons he regretted that the authorities were not prepared to make any representations to the Treasury. The Vice-Chairman suggested that Staff Clerks on a salary of £300-£400 should be given the same annual leave as 2nd Division Clerks now received under the assimilation terms, and the Chairman stated that the suggestion would be considered.

6. Mr. Westbrook also moved: That the Staff Officers and Staff Clerks be afforded prospects of further advancement in the Colonial Office, and that this could be effected by (a) promotion to posts equivalent in pay to the grade of Princi- pal in the Administrative class; (b) improving the status and pay of the senior posts in the Accounts Department, Library, General Department, and Chief Clerk's Department to £550-£700 scale.

·

The Chairman stated that he was prepared to agree to a discussion of the motion, but without prejudice to the question whether the Council was competent to discuss matters relating to posts the salary of which was in excess of £500; and after discussion he pointed out that to concede (a) would involve the creation of special posts purely to afford a means of promotion, a proposal which it would be impossible to justify to the Treasury. With regard to (6), the Chairman stated that in so far as the posts referred to have been dealt with in the reorganization scheme the authorities were not prepared to reopen the matter; but that as regards the posts not so dealt with the authorities would consider the matter.

Mr. Westbrook expressed the dissatisfaction which would be felt by the Staff Clerks in the Colonial Office at the announcement.

7. Mr. Kennedy drew attention to the Treasury circular with regard to the grant of privilege holidays at Christmas and Easter, and pointed out that an extra day was given last Christmas in a number of Departments, but not in the Colonial Office, he urged that uniform action in the various Government Departments was desirable. The Chairman expressed his personal opinion that there would be no objection to the grant of these privilege holidays, provided that an adequate staff were present on those occasions, but said the matter would be considered by the authorities and a decision taken. He stated that a decision with regard to the privilege holiday at Easter, 1921, would be published in the Bulletin.

The Chairman also referred to the resolution at the First Meeting of the Council relative to the question of closing the Office on Boxing Day in each year, and suggested that the matter would have to be reconsidered. The Vice-Chairman pointed out that the Council had unanimously recommended that the Office should be closed on Boxing Day in each year, and that the staff were justified in assuming that the recommendation was accepted, since the Office was closed on Boxing Day, 1919, and no further communication was made to the Council. He suggested that the first notice issued in December, 1920, to the effect that the Office would be open, was due to a misunderstanding, and pointed out that the authorities were already safeguarded as the resolution provided that the arrangement is liable to be rescinded in case of necessity, The Vice-Chairman also called attention to the absence of any

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