R.H. Wages Rise Granted From January 1 Next
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FROM OUR INDUSTRIAL CORRESPONDENT IN a surprise move, Mr. John Hare, the Minister of Labour, signed an order on Monday granting higher pay and shorter hours to 130,000 Aand B-licensed haulage workers. His order gives effect to the proposals submitted to him by the Road Haulage Wages Council. They are for a three per cent. increase in pay and for a reduction of the working week from 44 hours to 42.
The new conditions take effect from January I, next. This is about six weeks later than they would normally have come into force.
Mr. Hare's aCtion—he also signed orders confirming the proposals of two other wages councils—represents the first major break in the Government's wages pause policy. But he made it clear in talks with representatives of the British Employers' Confederation and of the Trades Union Congress that this did not mean the end of the policy.
He justified his action by the fact that employers' and workers' representatives on each of the councils had agreed on a basis for the proposals before Chancellor Selwyn Lloyd introduced the policy on July 25. In his speech in the Commons, Mr. Lloyd left a loophole by saying that " where commitments have already been entered into they should be met."
Mr. Hare, therefore, regarded these proposals as a commitment, in spite of
New 6 x 2 From A.E.C.
ASINGLE-DRIVE version of their Marshal six-wheeled goods chassis has been developed by A.E.C., Ltd., and an example will be exhibited at the Scottish Motor Show in Glasgow next month. The chassis has been designed to accommodate a 24-ft.-long body.
As with the original 6 x 4 version (which continues in production. of course) the Marshal 6 x 2 is powered by an A.E.C. AV 470 six-cylindered diesel engine which, as announced recently, now has a, C.A.V. DPA distributor-type fuelinjection pump as standard. Th:s unit is rated to develop 112 b.h.p. at 2,000 r.p.m. or 126 b.h.p. at 2,200 r.p.m., the maximum torque output being 335 lb.-ft., at 1,200 r.p.m.
New Gearbox A new type of constant-mesh five-speed gearbox has been developed for this chassis, and this is available with a sixth overdrive ratio as an optional extra—the Glasgow exhibit will have the full sixspeed unit.
The driving axle of the 6 x 2 is a double-reduction unit, as offered on Mercury 4 x 2 chassis. The trailing wheels have York independent suspension. Braking is by straight air-pressure to the front brakes, with air-hydraulic operation of the bogie brakes.
The Marshal 6 x 2 has a wheelbase of 17 ft. 5 in. and its kerb weight, less cab II I 0
the fact that the proposals were not sent to him until after the Chancellor's statement. But in line with his powers under the Wages Councils Act 1959, he exercised a measure of delay by putting back the operation of the new pay scales until January I.
Nevertheless, union leaders were delighted at what they consider the first result of their determined opposition to the Government's policy. Mr. Frank Cousins, general secretary of the Transport and General Workers' Union, left the meeting obviously pleased.
"Never Worried"
"I have never been worried about road haulage," he said, after the meeting.
He clearly felt that his thinly veiled threat at the T.U.C. last month to call out on strike his lorry drivers unless they were given their" justified" wage increase had had its effect. It certainly removes a very dangerous threat to the country's economy.
is 4 tons in cwt.: this is 9 cwt. less than that of the 15-ft. 7-in.-wheelbase 6 x 4 model. The gross weight rating is the same-20 tons.
Also to be exhibited by A.E.C. for the first time will be a Reliance 470 36-ft.long single-deck passenger chassis, the example to be shown having an Alexander body finished in the livery of Scottish Omnibuses, Ltd.
On an adjoining stand Transport Equipment (Thornycroft). Ltd.—part of the A.E.C. group—will be showing a Nubian 6 x 6 chassis and an Antar Sandmaster oilfields vehicle, with turbocharged six-cylindered diesel engine developing 300 b.h.p. (gross).