MINERS ON CONTRACT

Evening Post, Volume CXXII, Issue 106, 31 October 1936, Page 13

MINERS ON CONTRACT

QUESTION OF HOURS

DECISION RESERVED

The case in which interpretation was sought of a section of the Martha Gold Mining Company (Wailii) gold # mineps' industrial agreement in relation to. an lorder" made by the Court on August 13----jlast, was concluded, in the' Arbitration iCourt yesterday.1 - i Decision was reserved. : The questions the Court was asked ■to' determine were CD Whether , the ico-operative contractors working below ithe surface of the: mine are workers, within- the. meaning of the agreement !and the judgment of the Court. ■ (2) Is it competent to> arrange for' broken" shifts in order1 to. spread the work over jsix 'days? C 3:) Is it competent as a 'result .of the -Court's order, to' re-. iarrange the "shifts so. as to- extend, the working hours;, on.' : a .Saturday beyond the' finishing time that was customary prior to- the date of the. order? 'r Mr. Justice - Page presided-,., and Associated-with him. were- Mr. W. Cecil■pifiroe and1 Mr. AL. Mqnteith. ■: : -'»: .'J..-J.. Sullivan. (Auckland) ■,appeared for the. miners, ahdi. Mr. F. L. G. West'-CAuGkland')' fbr\the company.. '■-■ The Court's order- of August- 18, 'directed -that -the. maximuaT number, iof hours:1 (exclusive, of overtime) .to- be 'worked: in any week by a worker iboundby the-agreement shall be 40: The- Court allowed Saturday worlc and istipulated that the ordinary rates of weekly wages were- not to be reduced, because of the reduction in- the: numiber bf working hours.. -,

I Robert Gracie Milliga'n, attorney in New Zealand for the Martha Gold Mining Company,, said that,the nature of •the work in the mine, had led to. the jnecessity pi a contract system. As far knew ;the members of the": conr feacting party .shared! alike^ and some Icpntractor's. filled; in the forms-, showing; ithe' amount payable' to each: <man. The [company did! hot .concern itself about it!he; payments, to: the men. -A. contract jparty .had the right to employ men on Kvages if they wished, to; .If. the men ishared alike it was. an. arrangement of jtheir own;. The witness detailed other linstances whereby the contractors were ioutside the jurisdiction of the comIpariy. ' ■,■"■■ .:■■■■•:. ,-.'Questioned by, Mr. Sullivan,.the' witness, said that the mine manager fixed the prices: the. company was.prepared i-to offer to' contractors; and the-price ;bf 15s'5d a day for miners had.some Ibeauing. oti this. ; The right to'say with 'whom .they'wourd undertake "contracts ,was retained By the company;". But" the manner-inI,which'.they Garried^out'their contracts-: was:-in;, the; hands of the co-operative:-wor leers. ■ ■■■: ... ■ ■. After- hearing, legal, argument, the Court reserved decision. ■ . •