Day 122 - 05 May 95 - Page 23
1 remember where, the premium hours rate has now been
2 scrapped, has it not?
3 A. No.
4
5 Q. Maybe I got it wrong. Premium hours rate is an integral
6 part of remuneration of employees?
7 A. Yes, that is the hours between 11 p.m. and 7 a.m.
8
9 Q. That premium rate is to ensure that people get ---
10 A. More unsociable.
11
12 Q. -- proper remuneration for unsocial hours?
13 A. Yes.
14
15 Q. So if it had been scrapped -- I will have to check
16 that -- that would be something that would concern you, or
17 would concern you if you were still head of Personnel?
18 A. It has not been.
19
20 Q. If it had been scrapped?
21
22 MR. JUSTICE BELL: I think if he says it has not, then leave it
23 there. You can present the argument to me.
24
25 MR. MORRIS: We will check that.
26
27 MR. JUSTICE BELL: Yes, check it you can and argue to me later
28 about it. I do not think you have to put it to
29 Mr. Nicholson.
30
31 MR. MORRIS: I may have asked you before, but it is a very brief
32 question. When we were going through the disciplinary
33 matters that as head of Personnel you were top of tree, or
34 second top of tree, and we asked you whether you had
35 compiled any statistics, or whatever, on disciplinary
36 subject matters, and you said, no. But, as Ombudsman, is
37 the situation the same, that you do not categorise the
38 unresolved disputes so that you have a list each year of,
39 well, there were 400 unresolved?
40 A. I have only been Ombudsman for -- I am at the end of my
41 third year now -- two and a half years, and I have every
42 file on every case that I have dealt with in the office.
43
44 Q. How many would that be?
45 A. About 18 a year, it works out roughly.
46
47 Q. Eighteen?
48 A. Yes. They have dropped up whilst this trial has been
49 running because I have not been there to deal with so many.
50
51 MS. STEEL: When there was a pay rise in accordance with the new
52 minimum wages, crew who were on the higher rates, because
53 they had been good performers or won merit awards or
54 whatever, they would not always get the same increase as,
55 or the same amount of increase, the crew members who were
56 not high performers, would they?
57 A. They would get their performance reviews three times a
58 year -----
59
60 MR. JUSTICE BELL: I think what is being put to you is ---
