§ MR. MAURICE HEALY (Cork)I beg to ask the Secretary to the Treasury, as representing the Postmaster General, whether he will make inquiries as to the number of the staff employed on night duty in the parcel office of the Cork Post Office, and the amount of work to be done by them; whether three men have to discharge duties very laborious in 1467 their nature which would require five men to perform adequately; and, in view of the fact that the officer in charge has to do exactly the same work as his subordinates in unloading baskets and disposing of parcels mails, including the work of carrying baskets from one part of the building to another, will he state whether it is usual to couple duties of this kind with the responsibility of general supervision; whether the hours of duty (including an interval from 10.30 p.m. to 1.45 a.m.) are from 7.30 p.m. (and in one case from 6.30 p.m.) to 5.30 a.m.; and whether complaints have been made that the room in which the work is carried on is ill ventilated, and even in the day time ill lighted.
§ MR. RITCHIE (for Mr. HANBURY)The following telegram has been received from the District Surveyor:—Cork Parcel Office. It is not a fact that three men have to discharge duties which would require five men to perform properly, nor does the officer in charge do exactly the same work as his subordinates. The staff on night duty consists of three sorting clerks, one of whom is the officer in charge and one postman acting as packer. Two sorting clerks attend from 7.30 p.m. to 10 30 p.m. and from 1.45 a.m. to 5 a.m., and one attends from 6.30 p.m. to 10.0 p.m. and from 1.45 a.m. to 5 a.m. The packer attends from 7.30 p.m. to 10.30 p.m., and from I.45 a.m. to 5 a.m. The officer in charge performs no duty but that of supervision from 7.30 p. m. to 10.30 p.m., and from 1.45 a.m. to 3 min. From 3 a.m. to 5 a.m., in addition to supervision lie assists in sorting parcels and entering them on the X lists; he also deals with the registered parcels. There is no pressure of work except between 3 a.m. and 5 a.m., but the present staff with the assistance of the officer in charge is sufficient to cope with it. The room in which t he parcel work is performed is not well ventilated, although there are four windows and two doors, and it is badly lighted in the day time, but no complaints have been made by the staff to the Postmaster or to me. These two defects will be remedied in connection with the enlargement of the premises now in hand. I may point out that the average attendance of the four officers named is 6 hours 50 minutes.