TRADES AND LABOUR NOTES.

Auckland Star, Volume XLVII, Issue 238, 5 October 1916, Page 8

TRADES AND LABOUR NOTES.

.v--- .;i_..(E3>USTBiAL IBAMP.)] -~-.; -~_ - iD ?'? O^: M - EE ™ s "eS E THE BNSTJING - r iOetober s—Xursery Employees. October 6—Bricklayers, Satlmakers ■ October 7—Bakers. •- . October!)—GuniworEers, Pointers '..<-. October 10—Saddlers, Carpenters -— . .October..ll^Gas Employees.

ON" THE WING. • «. % . " Industtial . Tramp" is again, on the 1. v ■- : wihgv this time" for Dunedin. Auckland' . '""'"l-Tvas-Ieft .bn.Friday,evening by the Main . train,, with its /usual complement ■:i!i ! ;'-?l .Soldiers Teturning to camp, and sleep l-:.1...j? "unobtainable until, we leave Te Kuiti -->...-.,at 1.15 a.m.- -Tβ Kuiti is- expanding into country town, and one notices ".r:"..''tHe , qxpa'nsibn. each, time one passes '- IJ.ZJferougn it. TY3ien daylight comes ire -•-.- axe , on the Waimarino Plains, ■ rushing "i: , .■through blinding rain, which, lasts until "»'e - reach Taihape. Eight through to --—--Wellington—there are plain indications That the rainfall has been heavY, but the sun is chining brightly, with a "cold wind n —Allowing; -T-he-further -south we go there is evidence that the climate is not so in the. North, for the lambe are '** smaller, aiid occasionally one notices the bodies of-the , ' little new arrivals, • starved by a cold inhospitable world. - . - "Wellington is reached in the afternoon, and the-city is triie to its reputation, for .5- "strong-cold wind is blowing, and it is 7 enough to make an Aucklander shiver. The traveller who has just run the gauntlet in Auckland on Friday of bands T bf'coHictori on behalf of the Children"s '. Hospital Fund lands in Wellington on Saturday only to be bailed up at each I etreet corner by Hallelujah Lasses, who .. i\sxe. collecting.on behalf of the Salvation Army self-denial fund. On at the wharf one finds that the Maori has been withdrawn from the Lyttelton ferry serthe smaller and elower.Pateena '„ "nasi'taken.her. The prospects of a .'. ,^conif prtable,".trip, to- Lyttelton are conZ rr. ?M.erably'minimised , "therebyin" the face . --.of-ia-southerly-gale- -that is .blowing. • "\>- arrives I ivE Lyttelton at 10.30 on Sunday morning, ; .but at' breakfast, which was:'served at • -8, a.ni., there -was plenty of room at the - -stable, and I-only saw two ladies present. 'On Monday morning the first-express for Dunedin left: Christchurch. and I joined illr. F. Ellis, secretary "of the >"".Z. Freezing Trades Federation, on the train. He was also.proceeding South to look after -Jthe: interests of the felhnongers at the I opening .of. the Court; —Theirun through was accomplished on a lovely day, and ; Southern/Alps-presented a beautiful ; rsightji being covered with snow down to the-lowest levels'." The members of the

; Arbitration Court have fixed the dates fqr the hearing of the different disputes. I "t Jrlearn , that the Court-will sit in.Auek- | next -month (November), so that union secretaries who have disputes •pending will do well to have everything in readiness. -i LABOURERS! - _ The topic amongst Labour men in the I3sS^6¥tS: Bland'iV the" fact that the South Canterbury labourers have been granted -'-—a-mimmum'wage of "1/4* per hour, bo '£&& tfcajLa. .labourer :in Tiniaru will- ior the same" pay as a painter ~~ Auckland. - This .is" rather unfair toj 'skilled painter,f : although/ _ from, reports published in the Press, Mr - - : 31as .declared • that the _~; Auckland painter is not such, a skilled -lre--x>ught--'to-be, "because tiheevidence taken ibefore the court in the \ painters' dispute showed that several of toe witnesses could dp house painting, , v but could , not do signwriting. I have jg always been under the impreeeion that these iwp jtccumprishin«ii Lα -\\ t»ie "sepa- • fate trades. The trend of modern indue- « trialism is in the direction oJE specialisa- .« tion, and, although painters, paperhangers, gfainers and 6ignwriter6 are all % included in the membership of a painters' )£ union, yet the average man is a epecialg ist in one or other of these branches; but, in order to (regain their prestige g as skilled tradesmen, the Auckland- % painters*will in future ihave to Income- „ - proficient in all four branches.

LNTERPBEEATIOXS. When, employers and employees are .Working under an award, it frequently .happens that there it a difference ot opinion between the two parties as to what should or should not be done without .committing a breach, of award. Sometimes both parties agree to submit -.the matter to the Court of Arbitration for an interpretation; but, on the other hand, the union may report the matter to the. Inspector of Awards as a breach, and the -Inspector, after investigation, may decide to ask for an interpretation in preference to citing the employer for the breach. SFhis is a more agreeable way of ascertaining the meaning of the provisions of an award, for as a general irule the Labour Department does not care to risk being defeated in a iion for a breach.

Quite Tecently the Auckland. Gas Company's Employees' Union complained to the .Labour Department that the Gas Company had refused to pay the men engaged on the maintenance of the Auck ■ land street lamps the award rate for •burner maintenance men, viz., £2 11/ per 'week.; The Department decided to ask the ;court for an interpretation, and last month the decision was given against the union. To enable the court to come to a just decision, the Gas Company on .the one hand, and the union on the. o.ther, were required to etatc their respective contentions on paper. This -was done, but the court ,decided that the men did not come under the deSnition-of burner maintenance men, as a glance a/t 'the q-uestion of hours clearly showed this. Thia seemed lather enigtaatical to the members of "the union, •who believe that the decision is the result of a misunderstanding regarding the nature of their duties, and steps are being taken to secure recognition by another process.

FUKSfITUfeE TRADES ORGANISESfi. At the Easter Conference of the Furniture Trades Federation further organising work was. resolved upon, and as a result Mr. W. J. Rustin has been -appointed Dominion organiser. His appointment dates only from the beginning of -fchis month. It is proposed that ■he should pay attention to the smaller centres, where there are no -unions, and ,tc the women workers who are now employed in the upholstering department. It may be noted that a Female Upholeterere' Union was registered in Dunedin recently. The tilthnate aim is the linking up of the Furniture Trades Federation with_allied industrial. organisations. The conference approved the principle of such consolidation, 'but considered it should, first perfect gsjPTO: ; srade organieatipii. '