by P-NG Arbitration Court

Mr. Wood Makes His Decision: Most PSA Claims Rejected by P-NG Arbitration Court

A trial five-days week and a £73 yearly allowance to certain married officers is the total result of the recent claims brought before the Arbitration Court, by the Papua and New Guinea Public Service Association.

PUBLIC servants who crowded into the court-room in Port Moresby, on November 4. to hear the de cision of Public Service Arbitrator Wood were described as being “shocked” at this decision.

The Public Service Association which had brought the case before the Court following what was con sidered unsatisfactory treatment by Canberra early this year, had asked for salary increases, cost-of-living adjustments and a five-days week in the three main centres of the Terri tory.

Mr. Wood spent some time tour ing the Territory before the case began in order to get first-hand knowledge of conditions under which the PS worked. For the last few weeks he has been taking evidence from public servants and others in Port Moresby. Some of the evid ence submitted by some members of the public service was certainly harrowing (see “Territories’ Talk- Talk” this issue) but evidently it did not impress Mr. Wood.

The PS Association claims that the minimum Territory living wage for a family unit of husband and wife should be £1,045 plus a Terri torial allowance of £250.

The history of the P-NG public servants’ battle with the Common wealth Government goes back several years. In 1954 on PSA in stigation, a Conciliation Committee was set up to inquire into the cost-of-living in P-NG and conducted hearings over several months. It presented its report to Canberra in December 1954, but in February, 1955, Canberra refused to grant most of the claims made by the Public Service Association. (See PIM, Feb., 1955).

The Association later decided to take its grievances to the Arbitra tion Court. The results of the hearings before this court have just now been made public—still leaving the Association with most of its claims unsatisfied.

It is obvious from some of the evidence given before Mr. Wood, that the P-NG public service gener ally has some genuine grievances, particularly in the matter of hous ing. This lack has caused more dis content—especially amongst new staff—than any other factor and is the result of the muddled thinking

that began right after the war when Socialist advisers were determined to reform and rebuild New Guinea in a matter of minutes.

Although every Administration Department is working below strength housing has never kept pace with staff demands.

Although there is apparently no appeal to the Wood decision it is unlikely that the more militant of the Association’s members will now forget their grievances and accept the theory that, after all Canberra, “knows best.”

The Short Week

Planters will not be pleased about the decision to give the five-days week a trial. They say that plantations cannot be geared to the short week and they fear that once the prin ciple is established for public ser vants, native employees will want to follow suit.

It is unlikely that the five-days week will be abandoned after its six months’ trial. It might be re membered that when the 5-days week was introduced for Common wealth Public Servants in Canberra in the Depression years of the early 30’s, that also was a trial. However, the Commonwealth PS never went back to Saturday work.