CO129-449 - Governor Sir May & Acting Governor Claud Severn - 1918 [7-9] — Page 233

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THE APPEAL TRIBUNAL

Mr. Ross THOMSON-The answer is the

much easier in a smaller business. In a smaller business the man who is acting same as with regard to Johnstons. But you as a substitute can work out his own say "this junior clerk."

Will you permit salvation. In a large business, depart- me to say that that is a misnomer for a

mentally worked, the substitute man has to be a cog in a machine; he has to fit in and if he does not he not only does not perform his own work but be inter- feres with others performing theirs.

H.E. THE GOVERNOR--I understand that. At the same time there are strik ing examples of substitution in Hong- kong. Take a big institution-the Bank. Banking business is much more expert business than the business in a shipping office, and there have been polite very not- able examples of substitution there, and they are working very well, according to the reports made to me. They were substitutos taken at very short notice. I have in my hand a list of all sorts of people, men over-age who have had large business experience. One of theнe men had shipping experience in Butterfield & Bwire's for over 10 years, and yet you have not taken the trouble even to an- quire what local material there is to enable these three young men to go and do what is the most important thing in the world at the present moment.

Mr. Ross TROMSON--It is not a ques tion of taking trouble. I am not yet in A position to make such inquiries. I should like to consult my Head Office.

H.E. THE GOVERNOR-Very well, let us go on to the case of Mr. McIntyre. He is only 25 years of age.

Mr. Ross THOMSON-He has been work. ing in the business for eight years.

H.E. THE GOVERNOR-Twenty-five years of age.

In the Ocean Steamship office you have four Europeans now against six before the war. How many women have you taken on in that office since the wari

Mr. Ross TROMSON-One.

H.E. THE GOVERNOR-Again I have to put to you the question whether you have taken any steps to find a substitute for the junior clerk, 25 years of age, in the shipping office of the Ocean Steam- ship Company

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man who has had eight years' business experience and is 25 years of age. If he is not worth something by that time bo never will be. That man is doing im portant work and we have only men doing important work at the present time. All the subordinate positions, as I said just now, are taken over by women and Chinese. Á man 95 years old, work. ing in a large business, with eight years' experience, if he is not then competent to run important business he never will

bo.

men

H.E. THE GOVERNOR There are on the substitution list who have even more than eight years' business experience and there are men of considerable experi ence in the Government Service-which is not a bad training ground-who are available for substitution. Our experi- ence in other directions has been that these men pick up work extremely quick- ly and are giving great satisfaction.

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now going cu to the case of Mr. Rawlinson. What you have to say about Mr. Rawlinson is very striking. The firm says he was transferred to the office of the Taikoo Sugar Refinery to replace Mr. Davia. Mr. Rawlinson, the arro says, occupied a vary important desk in the shipping office, where he was in charge of the collection of all the freights earn- ed by steamers-I mention incidentally that that does not sound to me very technical work. To replace Mr. Rawlin. son, who occupied this important desk. the firm put on trial-the work being purely clerical, those are the words used in the memorandum-a trained capable business woman from Canada. The firm goes on to say that this lady has proved very satisfactory in the position. Now this Mr. Rawlinson had had no experi- ence in the sugar refinery work.

Mr. Rosa THOMSON-He had already worked in the sugar department.

H.E. THE GOVERNOR--Anyway he was doing in the Ocean Steamship Company's offion work which, though so very important. was purely clerical.

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