asked the Minister for Posts and Telegraphs if he will state the rate of wages paid to labourers employed by the engineering section of his Department in County Dublin.
Ceisteanna—Questions. Oral Answers. - Post Office Labourers.
There are two types of labourers employed in the engineering branch of the Department (a) quasi-permanent and (b) casual.
Quasi-permanent labourers are in effect regular employees. Their scale of wages is 72/11 per week rising by annual increments of 1/6 to 78/8.
Casual labourers are usually taken on for short periods only for work in the area in which they reside. In Dublin City and County the rates of wages are those payable to unskilled and semi-skilled workers employed in civil engineering, public works contracting, etc., i.e., 2/4 an hour and 1/10 an hour according to the area in which they are employed.
Does the Minister think that £3 12s. 11d. is sufficient to enable a man with a wife and a family of seven to live in reasonable Christian comfort?
These workers, after one year's service, become entitled to free medical attendance and sick pay. They receive six days' annual leave in the first two years and 12 days thereafter. After 12 months' initial training, quasi-permanent labourers, if suitable, may be regarded as unestablished skilled workmen, and after three years they are eligible to compete for the post of skilled workmen, class II; these are established posts.
Will the Minister state whether the rates of pay recited by him debar a worker from the benefit of children's allowances if he has the requisite number of children?
That aspect does not come under my Department.
Will the Minister give an answer to the question put him by Deputy MacBride? Does he consider the amount paid sufficient to maintain a husband, wife and family?
That is a separate question.
asked the Minister for Posts and Telegraphs whether he will be prepared to recommend that the labourers employed by the engineering section of his Department in laying cables be allowed to proceed direct to the place at which they are working and that they be paid a travelling allowance for this purpose.
There are two types of labourers employed in the engineering branch, (a) quasi-permanent and (b) casual.
Quasi-permanent labourers who are regular employees report at their headquarters or other central point and are conveyed to their work in the Department's time and at the Department's expense by either official or public transport.
Casual labourers are normally recruited for work in the area in which they reside and on conditions similar to those applying generally to casual labourers. They report for duty on the site of the work.
I see no reason to make any change in these arrangements.
I would like to draw the Minister's attention to the actual difficulties that arise in some instances. A man living in Dún Laoghaire, working in Monkstown, has to go from Dún Laoghaire to the centre of the city near the Castle at his own expense and then, at the expense of the Post Office, he is driven from the City Hall to Monkstown. This means a waste of transport facilities and a waste of 8d. or 9d. a day for the worker. It imposes a liability on Post Office transport. Would the Minister consider the possibility of examining the place of residence of employees and when they reside near their work that they should go directly, thus saving the Post Office money and saving travelling expenses and time to the worker?
We should have the details of the individual cases, but in exceptional circumstances if a hardship is involved, arrangements are made to convey the workers to work in the Department's time and at the Department's expense, but the Deputy could give me details of any particular case.
I should like the Minister to tell what yardstick is used in order to determine what is a reasonable rate in the case of workers in rural areas and small towns. Is it the agricultural labourers' rate or the road workers' or the general builders' labourers?
That is a different question, but it is the local rate which would correspond generally.
Would the Minister tell us what trade would correspond with a man laying cables?
That would depend on whether he was actually unskilled or semi-skilled. If he were semi-skilled he would get the trade union rate of the area and if not he would get the agricultural labourers' rate.