§ Mr. T. GRIFFITHSasked the Chief Secretary for Ireland o nether in October of last year a Return of the overtime performed by the clerks and schoolmasters in the Irish Prisons Service, which had not been paid for by time off in lieu, was called for by the Government then functioning in Ireland and, seeing that the overtime so performed was performed under most exceptional circumstances and has not yet been paid for, will payment now be made of this outstanding British Government liability?
§ Sir H. GREENWOODPrison officers of the grade of clerk and schoolmaster are not entitled to be paid additional remuneration for overtime duty performed by them in an emergency or during periods of pressure. A claim to be accorded exceptional treatment in this respect was made last year by a number of officers of this grade of the Irish Prisons Service, and after very careful consideration it was decided that the claim could not be admitted. It was recognised that under the conditions then existing the prisons staffs, in common with many other Irish civil servants, were subjected to a heavy strain, and were required to work long hours, but it would not have been possible to grant special monetary rewards outside the terms of their service to one particular 1909W grade without injustice to the public servants in other grades and in other Departments who had responded with equal loyalty and readiness to every demand made upon them.