§ 35. Mr. LANSBURYasked the result of the Advisory Committee's inquiry into the question of the rates of pay and labour conditions prevailing at Rosyth?
§ Dr. MACNAMARAOn Thursday last I received the following letter from the Fair-Wages Advisory Committee:—
I am directed by the Fair-Wages Advisory Committee to state that, after giving careful consideration to the question arising on your letters of 8th and 9th October, on the subject of navvies and general labourers' wages at Rosyth, and to the information which they have obtained from various sources, the Committee have to report as follows:—The Committee understand that Messrs. Easton Gibb and Son, Ltd., have in the past paid a minimum rate of 5d. an hour to their navvies and general labourers engaged on the Rosyth Naval Works, a considerable number being paid 5½d. or more, and that they are at present paying a minimum rate of 5½d. From the information before 19 the Committee it would appear that until recently 5d. an hour was the current rate, but that there has been an upward tendency, with the result that, while there are still a number of men employed at 5d., the generally accepted minimum rate for competent men may now be regarded as 5½d. per hour. The Committee are accordingly of opinion that the contractors have observed and are now observing the Fair-Wages Clause as embodied in their contract, dated 1st March, 1909. The Committee find that the same result is arrived at whether they take the small area included within a radius of about live miles of Rosyth or a considerably larger portion of the County of Fife. They do not consider, therefore, that any useful purpose -would be served by attempting a precise delimitation of the Rosyth 'district.'
§ Mr. W. THORNECan the right hon. Gentleman state the names of the contractors or employers of whom inquiries were made with regard to this difficult question?
§ Dr. MACNAMARAWhen the Fair-Wages Committee was asked to advise I said that their inquiry was to be perfectly independent. They were to make it in their own way, and I refused to have anything to do with it.
§ Mr. W. THORNEWhat contract was inquired into?
§ Dr. MACNAMARAAs the hon Gentleman will see from the last sentence of the answer, the Fair-Wages Committee were to deal independently with the inquiry.
§ Mr. LANSBURYHas not the Department itself in the last resort the final decision as to whether fair wages are being paid or not?
§ Dr. MACNAMARAYes, certainly; but my hon. Friend the Member for Stoke took the objection that we were not carrying out the Fair-Wages Clause fairly, I then said the fair way would be to ask the Committee to give us their own judgment quite independently, and their Report is that the contractors have and are now observing the Clause.
§ Mr. CROOKSWho were on the Committee?
§ Dr. MACNAMARAThe Admiralty had no representative at all. They had a very able officer, the Director of Contracts, who could have represented the Department, but I thought it advisable that he should not take any part in the inquiry at all.
§ Mr. W. THORNEWere there no navvies on the Committee?