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By the Hawk
Page 59
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Looking forward to freedom
Bobbie Lawrence obviously relishes the prospect of becoming chairman of a private-enterprise National Freight Corporation. Chin jutting, he exuded confidence when, at a Press conference on the corporation's encouraging annual report, he spoke of the "robust character of our undertaking'„ which, he said, was "building up strength to move into the private sector."
He is not frightened of losing Treasury guarantees. On the contrary, he looks forward to greater freedom to build up the business without being tied to a fixed-interest structure. Equity capital will put the NEC on all fours with its competitors, which is all that Bobbie asks and expects.
When asked whether he foresaw staff taking a significant amount of equity, he said he was open-minded about the whole question of staff shareholding.
Managers stay
Whereas labour turnover in road transport is generally excessive, wastage among the NFC's 2,400 managers is ' almost embarrassingly small," says Peter Thompson, chief executive. This means that prospects of promotion for bright young men tend to be reduced, though there are many men of 25-35 in responsible positions. Perhaps, apart from saving up to £700,000 a year, the consolidation of NFC headquarters at Bedford will improve scope for promotion. The five group managing directors will become more involved in corporate policy decisions than in the past, which will give them less time to look down on their empires. The result will be greater devolution instead of the greater centralisation that the move might suggest, and capable young people may find themselves taking decisions that would previously have been left to their elders.
Jumpers and singers
Apart from sponsoring a show jumping team of five horses, Renault Trucks is now backing the Welsh National Opera by providing four trucks worth £95,000 to haul the company's scenery, costumes and props. The vehicles were handed over to Rita Hunter, the international star, at a reception at the Royal Festival Hall.
These two sponsorships offer scope for diverting confusion.
Imagine Rita Hunter on Mister Vee, Anne Evans on French Connection and Helen Field on French Mistress performing "The Ride of the Valkyries" against the clock at the Horse of the Year show, while Maureen Holden storms into the second act of The Valkyries as Brunnhilde, Wotan's favourite daughter, at the wheel of a Renault horsebox. The orchestra at least might enjoy the change.
Bore holes?
Fifty years of frustration, fury and good fellowship will be celebrated on June 5. The Transport Golfing Society, formed in 1930 on the inspiration of Harry England, chairman of the former West Riding Automobile Co Ltd, will hold golden jubilee meeting and tournament at Harrogate to which more than 20 companies have given money and prizes.
The day will be rounded off by a dinner at which dedicated golfers will be able to bore each other's ears off with tales of miraculous shots that would have come off if the hole had been bigger, the ball smaller, the green smoother, the distance shorter, the wind lighter and the sun the other way.
Below 1974 Par
"You're telling us," many transport managers will retort when told that, according to the British Institute of Management's national management salary survey, 1 980, the earnings of middle managers are still significantly lower in real terms than in 1974. There are certainly transport supervisors and even managers who are earning less than drivers and mechanics.
Perhaps they will find a mite of comfort in the survey's observation that ". . . it is highly unlikely that manual workers' earnings can go on outstripping clerical and managerial pay Mind you, managers will still be hard up, but at least they may be saved the indignity of being splashed by their drivers' Jaguars as they queue for the bus.
Penitence
An Australian journalist who visited Alice Springs was intrigued by the variety of coach destination indicators with legends such as "On Safari", "On charter" and "On tour." He gave the prize, however, to one saying simply, "Lost."
It recalls a tour of the 1951 Festival of Britain decorations in London which I made from Southgate in a double-decker. All went well until the driver crossed the Thames and then he was well and truly lost. He combed Southwark and environs, backed into side streets and performed various impressive manoeuvres for his weary passengers. At about lam, back in Southgate, an embarrassed and penitent bus driver was providing a taxi service to deliver passengers to their homes.