Sessional_Paper_1930 — Page 73

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Paragraphs 153 & 154. Public Works Department.

Paragraph 153: Assistant Director of Public Works. For reasons that will appear below it is recommended that the minimum for, this post shall be raised to £1,300.

Engineers.The Government, while agreeing that the system of Charge Allow- ances is objectionable, is nevertheless of the opinion that these allowances now payable to the Engineers in charge of the main sub-departments of the Public Works Depart- ment were paid in recognition of a very real access of responsibility to the officers concerned. Moreover, with one Directorship and two Assistant Directorships as the only higher posts in the department, the prospects of the fifty odd engineers both for promotion and for acting pay are extremely poor compared with those of other branches of the Service (cf. Education Department, two Headmasterships, two In- spectorships and three Senior Masterships). It is. therefore, recommended that the grade of Executive Engineer intermediate hetween that of Engineer and Assistant Director be revived with a salary scale of £1180 to £1300 by £40 annually and that 8 posts on this scale, corresponding to the eight chief branches of the depart- ment should be created. Should the constructional side of the Waterworks cease to be in the charge of an officer with the rank of Assistant Director and still remain a separate sub-department, a further appointment on this scale may be required. In allotting salaries on the new scale to existing staff due regard will be had to the fact that the forfeited allowances could only be drawn during actual duty in the Colony and were not pensionable. The insertion of this new grade renders it necessary that the new minimum of the Assistant Directors scale shall be raised to £1,300-vide supra.

Technical Secretary. It is doubtful whether this post requires an officer of Executive grade; but, as its present holder is eligible both by seniority and qualifica- tions for Executive rank, it is recommended that the salary indicated above, £1.180 -£1,300, be allotted to this post unless and until the present holder can be trans- ferred to take charge of one of the eight sub-departments.

Land Bailiffs. This branch of the service is very much a cul-de-sac even with the amalgamation into a single cadre of the New Territories and Public Works staff. The three officers at the head of Class I have all well over fifteen years total service and their prospects of further advancement are limited to a single post, which is not likely to fall vacant before 1934. It is, therefore, recommended that a second post of Senior Bailiff, common to the cadre, be created with salary of £475--£575 by £20 annually as in the Report.

Wireless Staff. It is recommended that the Wireless Telegraph Sub-Engineers should receive the same salary as the Telegraph Sub-Engineer namely £475 to £575 by £20 annually. One of these officers, not the most senior of the cadre, has already, on the transfer of Wireless staff to the Post Office, been granted the present equivalent of this salary.

Superintendent of Crown Lands and Superintendent of Surreys.

These officers now draw a charge allowance of £100 per anuum and for reasons similar to those indicated in the case of the Engineers-in-Charge it is considered that some improvement on the scales in the Report should be given, the allowance being at the same time abolished. It is, therefore, recommended that their scales should rise by one further increment to £1,240.

The First Assistant Superintendent of Crown Lands is now eligible for 3 maximum higher by one increment of £25 than the Assistant Superintendent of Surveys. It is recommended that this mark of seniority he preserved and that the revised maximum shall be £1,050 instead of £1,020, but the matter should be re- considered on the post falling vacant.

Paragraph 154.-The Junior Engineering Assistant (Port Development) received promotion while the Commission was in session, and the salary awarded to him in the Report takes no account of this. It is recommended that his revised salary should be the same as for First Class Assistant Land Surveyors, i.e., $3,800 to $5,600 by $200 annually.