THE BOOTMAKING TRADE.

Press, Volume LXV, Issue 13454, 21 June 1909, Page 8

THE BOOTMAKING TRADE.

AWARD OF THE ARBITRATION COURT.

The award of the Court of Arbitration in connection with the Federated Boot Trade dispute makes several alterations in th»> existing award. Clauses 1 (preference of employments, 2 (departments), 8 (control of factory machinery), 4., 5. and 6 (control oF factory t are the same as in the existing award, except that instead of a committee being set up to deal with opplication for permits to work at home, this matter is left to the Inspector of Factories.

Clauso 7, dealing with the classification of departments, reads as follows: — (a) Clicking; (b) making commences with the operation of pulling over upper for lasters, stiffeners and toe-pieces being properly prepared; (c) finishing commences with the operation of edgetrimming, and ends with rubbing off heels or edges; (d) rough stuff. Clause 8 provides for the existing hours of work to be observed. Clause 9 provides for the following grades of workers: —(a) The first grade includes outside clickers, makers, finishers, out-sole cutters, and machine operatore ; (b) second grade—rough stuff cutters, and all other workers not included in first grade. Clause 10. —Workers in first grade to be paid not less than Is OJd per houT, and second grade not less than Is per hour. The wage is an hourly one, and paid only for time worked. Clauso 11. —Overtime is the saino as. in the present award. Clauso I*2.—Holidays. The holidays aro Christmas Day, New Year's Day, Good Friday, Easter Monday, Labour Day, King's Birthday: Work on any of these days, or Sunday, is to bo paid double rates. ■ Clauses 13 (workers partially employed) and 14 (termination of employment) repeat fhe old award. Clause 15 (under-rate workers). —Permits are to be issued by the Inspector of Factories!, instead of by the committee under the,old award. Clause 16 (apprentices).—Clicking department: In this department the proportion of apprentices allowed is one to three journeymen, two to six, etc. Boys may bo allowed as lining cutters. The period of apprenticeship is 6 years, bix months' probation being allowed. Wages begfn at 7s 6d per week, and rise to 35s per week. In the making and finishing departments, where indenturing is not compulsory, their term is also 6 years. One apprentice allowed to four men, wages rising from 6s to 30s a week. In tho rough stuff department one apprentice is allowed to two men, etc. Boys employed for five years bccotno journeymen. Wagesrange from 5s a week to 255. Provision is made for existing arrangements with apprentices to continue. Employers are allowed to employ boys to put in lasts, feeding heeling machines, and inking edges. The remaining provisions of the award are the same as in the present award. The award comes into force on 21st June, and continues till 31st December, 1911. The Teasons which have guided the Court are embodied in tho following I memorandum to the award.

MEMORANDUM. This dispute was referred to the Court after an attempt had been made, but without success, by the Council of Conciliation to settle it. After a hearing in Wellington which lasted for three days, the parties, by direction of the Court, held a conference with a view of settling the matter. They settled' a number of the points in dispute, but left the Court to settle (1) the grades of -worker, (2) wages, (8) overtime, (4) the term of the award. A report of the proceedings at the conference and the latest proposals of the parties were put before the Court. < The employers asked that there should be three grades of workers, as follows:—First grade to include outside clickers, makers, finishers, outsole cutters, and machine operators, with a minimum of Is o|d per hour. Second grade to include rough stuff cutters and all others not mentioned in first grade, not being lining cutters, with a minimum of UJd per hour, i Third grade to include lining cutters, with a minimum of IOJd per hour. The Union, on the other hand, asked for two grades only; first grade to be the same as that proposed by the employers, with a minimum of Is 2d per hour; the second to include

lining cutters with a minimum of Is Id per hour. As "will be seen, the Court has made only two grades of workers, and' has included the lining cutters in the second grade. The minimum wage for the first grade has been fixed at Is o£d per hour, and for the second at Is per hour. The principal ground on which the Union based its claim for an increase in wages was that. there had been an increase since 1905 in the duty on imported boots. The parties wejre not agreed as to the amount of the increased duty. Mr Ffostick asserted that the duty on the importations in 1905 was 24.69 per cent., and in 1907 was 25.52 per cent., giving a difference of only .83 per cent. A report made up by Mr Leslie, an actuary, was submitted to Mr Frostick, and put in after the hearing had closed. Taking the year 1908, and comparing the duty T>aid then with the old tariff of 22$ per cent, which was in force before 1904, Mr Leslie found an increase of 8 per cent, on men's boots, nearly 9i per cent, on women's boots, and 8| per cent, on boys' and girls' boots. It was also proved that there had; been a considerable decrease in the number of boots imported since the increased duty had been imposed. Taking this into consideration, and assuming Mr Leslie's figures to be correct, it is difficult to see thati these figures of themselves justify the i increase asked for by the Union. It is j reasonable to conclude from them that I the boot manufacturing trade is in a better condition now than it was before, but they are no guide as to the extent -to which the profits of manufacturers have increased by reason of the change. Before the benefits derived from the increased duty can be apportioned , between the manufacturers and their workers—if it be the function of the Court to apportion them— it is necessary to know what these benefits are. The Court cannot very well divide a fund before the amount thereof is known even approximately. On that subject the Court was without information of any kind, and the increase granted by the present award is based principally on the offer mado by the employers.

Great reliance was placed by the Union on the reasons given for an award made by the Arbitration Court in New South Wales in connection with the engineering trade in 1908. The wages of tho men were increased, and thus was done, it -was stated, on the basis of the increased duty of 1\ per cent. Four of this was treated as belonging; to the employers, and' about 2 2-3 per cent, was given to the men. If the duty collected were paid to the employers it would ho easy to understand the reason for dealing with the matter in this way. But- the duty does not go into the pockete of the employers, and the employers derive only an indirect benefit from an increased duty. That benefit may be large or small, according to circumstances, and there is certainly nothing in the present case to justify the Court in concludinc that this benefit bears any proportion to the amount of tho increased duty.

AVith resard to overtime, the Court has repeated the provisions contained in the last award, which was agreed on by tho parties themselves. This, in effect, makes forty-seven hours the hours of work at ordinary rates in any way. The Union asked to have fie

nours reauceci to forty-fire 'per ynSgw It seems quite incomprehensible «kSi workers who are paid by the hour ■Sβ •who complain that they are not ing enough, should desire to haye tEbl hours of work reduced, with the iSs tamty that m ordinary their earning also will be reducedW favourite demand of unions whoae »2PB bers are working at a weekly w«R£ increased wages and reduced at any rate, intelligible-they more money.for less work; but raand in the present case is quite & comprehensible. So far from tieWs ot work boms further reduced mST should be restored to fortv-eightSi' fixed originally by this Court, so w5'■ euablo workers to increase their ings. '"■f'Hii, It may bo desirable to point out tßri'l the boot trade has beeh befow ttJCourt on five previous occasions *.* •* in 1896, 189S, 1901, 1003/23' On the last occasion all the 1 o^' ard (Book of Awards, Vd*v p. 390) were agreed on by the wuiW' themselves. *^***"f;