Special vetting for municipal pay claim
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THE claim for higher pay for more than 70,000 municipal busmen, which was submitted to the employers earlier this month, is to be examined by the special pay vetting committee of the TUC. At a meeting in London last week it was decided to have a closer look at it before giving it approval. No figure has been mentioned in the claim, which is for a "substantial" rise in pay. The chief reason why it appears to have been selected out of the 38 claims considered by the committee is that it has been submitted less than a year since the last pay rise of 15s. a week was awarded to the busmen. Further, a pay rise in this sector is bound to affect a similar claim by 100,000 company busmen, and in both cases a higher wages bill can be met only by higher fares.
Two of Britain's biggest unions are involved in the claim—the Transport and General Workers and the General and Municipal Workers. Both are also involved in the company claim, together with such other giants as the Amalgamated Engineering Union, the National Union of Railwaymen and the Electrical Trades Union. It will, therefore, be instructive to see how the "giants" react to counsels of restraint. TUC chiefs claim to detect signs of a greater awareness on the part of the unions for a need to be reasonable in their claims. One example which can be quoted in support of this theory is the settlement in the nationalized electricity industry, where some of the biggest unions agreed to a pay rise of 3-3,per cent for 140,000 manual workers.
DLeeds Computer In Commission ELIVERY was made to the treasurer's department of Leeds Corporation of an ICT 1904 computer on January 17, just five months after the order was placed.
Applications of the computer will include the weekly payroll for 10,000 Corporation staff, and the analysis of conductors' waybills and calculation of route statistics for the City's transport department.
Chesterfield Consults Colour Charts; A new livery may be adopted by Chesterfield Corporation Transport if experiments being undertaken at present are satisfactory. The colour scheme has been green and cream for some time, but a more colourful livery, with more cream paint, is being worked out.
Committee will Investigate Cuts: A special committee to investigate the threat of cuts to local bus services is being set up by the urban council of Kidsgrove, Staffs, and will meet officials of the Potteries Motor Traction Co. Ltd. The council has been told that a number of cuts are proposed, including the reduction of journeys on one route from 48 to 28 a day.
More Bus Fare Opposition: A fourth local authority in the East Midlands had decided to oppose bus fare increases proposed by local companies. Mansfield Corporation will join the local authorities of Warsop, Repton and Loughborough in lodging formal objections to the proposals. D. P. Drew, appointed general manager of Rhondda Transport Co. Ltd. on November 1 last year, has now left the company. He joined South Wales Transport Co. and Thomas Bros. (Port Talbot) as accountant in 1955, and was secretary of those companies at the time of moving to Rhondda.
The Coventry area of the TRTA has elected H. A. Beard (Lockheed Hydraulic Brake Co. Ltd.) as chairman for the ensuing year. J. H. Holbrook (Standard Triumph International Ltd.) was elected deputy chairman and J. Butlin (Alfred Herbert Ltd.) and J. M. O'Shea (Sam Robbins Ltd.) vice-chairmen.
J. M. Davies, formerly sales manager of West Midland Motor Co. Ltd., Shrewsbury, has been appointed by Peterborough Engineering Co. Ltd. as regional sales manager for the West of England and Wales to promote the sales of Pengco products.
Cummins Engine Co. Inc., Columbus, Indiana, USA, has reorganized its international activities into three areas under the direction of C. R. Boll, president-international and executive vice-president of the company. Local responsibility for the central area, operating from London and covering Europe. Middle East, Africa and India, will be held by Henry B. Schacht, vice-president and manager, central area. Working with Mr. Schacht will be Marion C. Dietrich, vicepresident and director—marketing, Joseph H. Dillon, director-administration, J. H. Steinberg, manager-personnel; J. Curran Freeman, executive director, and J. B. Lovelace, general manager of Cummins Engine Co. Ltd., Darlington.
At the a.g.m. of the Wolverhampton area, West Midland division of the TRTA last week, E. F. Brock was elected chairman, with G. F. Wildsmith a's deputy chairman and E. Hughes and W. French as vice-chairmen.
The express carriers' group of the RHA has re-appointed S. A. Main as chairman for the ensuing year, and H. A. Russett and P. R. Packham have been appointed vice-chairmen.
D. G. Latter, transport manager of Barnett and Foster Ltd., London, has been appointed distribution manager of Alexander Duckham and Co. Ltd.. London, and will take up his new position at the end of this month.
J. Lywood and J. M. Tudor have been appointed directors of John Thompson Motor Pressings Ltd., a major subsidiary of the John Thompson group. Both men are already general managers of divisions of the company. Howard G. Mallows has joined ERF Ltd. as chief designer. Mr. Mallows, aged 42, was for years with Westinghouse Brake and Signal Co. Ltd. as sales engineer and before that was for 22 years with Guy Motors Ltd., leaving as chief draughtsman. He fills the position formerly held by Frank Brooks who, as reported last month, has joined W. H. Dorman and Co. Ltd.
L. S. Higgins has been appointed general manager of The City of Oxford Motor Services Ltd., with effect from April 1. This follows the appointment of the present general manager. G. M. Newberry, as general manager of The Potteries Motor Traction Co. Ltd. Mr. Higgins has held various appointments with a number of bus companies and has been traffic manager of Northern General Transport Co. Ltd., since Apra, 1964.
George F. Richards, general manager of Leonard Green (Garages) Ltd., has been appointed chairman of the Sheffield section of the Motor Agents' Association for 1966-7.
G. H. Gardner (S. Gardner and Son (Transport) Ltd.) has been re-elected chairman of the Western area vehicle maintenance advisory committee and W. H. Sage (Ambrosia Ltd.) elected as vice-chairman for the ensuing year.
A local board of directors in London has been created by the Whessoe group of companies and has appointed as the first members D. S. Hudspeth, general manager—marketing, and D. W. Simmons, sales manager. Ex-officio, as main board directors, M. J. Noone, group managing director, will be chairman, and A. W. Wagstaff general manager—finance and administration, will be a member of this local board.
OBITUARY
We regret to record the deaths of Richard T. Gardiner, the Earl of Gosford and Stanley Watts.
Mr. Gardiner, a 22-year-old assistant public relations officer with the Perkins Engines Group, was killed in a car accident. He joined Perkins a year ago from Pilkington Bros. Ltd.
Lord Gosford, 55, was chairman of the British Road Federation. He became Parliamentary Secretary to the Ministry of Defence in 1956. Later he became Joint Parliamentary UnderSecretary of State for Foreign Affairs and, in 1958, assistant to and spokesman in the Lords for the Ministry of Transport, an appointment in which he combined his interest both in road transport and aviation. In the Lords and in his work with the BRF he was tireless in urging the need for improved roads and for a more realistic attitude towards the problems of Urban traffic.
Mr. Watts, 57, was a partner in the haulage firm of Watts Jnr. and Sons Ltd., with headquarters at Braunton, North Devon. The concern was started in 1911 by John Watts, now 84, with a horse and cart and now has a fleet of 28 vehicles.