ENCLOSURE NO.1
(Item 3 )
(Statement by European Dockyard Employers 5th September, 1947)
5.9.47.
38
1.
OFFICIAL STATEMENT BY THE EUROPEAN DOC.YARD EMPLOYERS
The original offer of the European Dockyard Employers which was published in the Daily Papers on 23rd August is designed to meet what they believed ma the real wish of the employees; that is, a rise i: Basic Wages was offered to all tradesmen employed on a time busis with added benefits for skill and experience.
2.
As a result of discussion on this offer it secmed that the employcos believed that their overall wages (including Rehabilitation Allowance) did not cover the cost of living, and on this account demanded a further rise on a sliding scale dependent on cost of living.
3.
The employers then considered what they could do to meet this now approach. However they believe that the present Reimabilitation Allorneo, as it stands, is as big a proportion of unges as it is desirable to have on a sliding scale, and that a fixed increase on Basic Wage, to ascist towards the more stable costs of living, would be a fairer compensation.
40
Therefore, the next offer of the European Dockyard Employers, which was presented in writing through the Labour Officer to the representatives of the Chinese Engineers Institute on 2nd September, was to add a further, fixed
per hour to the Basic Tage of all skilled workers on a time basis. In this offer it was also stated that if a settlement was reached on this basis, an appropriate fixed increase would be given to the other grades.
5.
At no time had the employers ever said or suggested that either offer could be regarded as a percentage increase in basic wages, and if in fact the employees ever believed that gach offer represented an all round increase of 20%, making 40% together, this was purely the result of misinterpreting the statements,
6.
As a result of the second offer of the European Dockyard Employers, direct negotiations between employers and representatives of the C.E.I. were commenced in the Urban Council Chamber at a meeting at 2.30 p.m. on Thursday, 4th September.
7.
At this meeting, and as a first concession the European Dockyard Employers agreed to cancel both their offers and, to substitute an all round increase of 40% to all tradesmen on a time basis, representing (a) a regrading allowance of 20% on present Bacic Wages, (b) a further 20% on present Basic Wages in lieu of any increase to the Rehabilitation Allowance or the establish- ment of an additional sliding scale. This was done to simplify the concessions and to meet the desire of the C.E.I. representatives that the offer should be 401 line with what the workers had understood it to be. In fact this change in the framing of the offer produced a slight further increase of the Basic Tage of the higher paid men.
B.
་
The C.E.I. representatives then said that although the new offer van further concession, it would not be recognised as such, rince their members. would believe (vrongly) that it merely represented that had already been offered. The representatives felt that their members would be mɔs: disappointed with the result of the negotiations if they could not persuade then that they had obtained some advance.
9.
The Dockyard Employers then cxplained that the offer as it how stood was the result of very serious consideration of all econo de factors, na? that. in the interests of the workers, it woulû be very wrong to go to higher wages as this would result in higher changes for work done. This in turn would mean a loss of work and reduce the numbers that could be employed in the Dockyards, resulting in many vorken being discharged and great hardship being brought upon them.
10.
However
No comments yet.
Private notes are available after approval.