The Press. Thursday, December 11, 1919. The Coal-miners.

Press, Volume LV, Issue 16703, 11 December 1919, Page 8

The Press. Thursday, December 11, 1919. The Coal-miners.

Tho only conduHion that can bo reached after reading the telegraphed summary of the communications that havo passed between the Ooal-mino Owners' Association and tho Miners' Federation is that tho latter body does not want peace. Tho ownors offered to meet tho representatives of tho federation in another conference, provided that tho "go-slow" policy bo abandoned at once, and that tho normal output has boon maintained for two weeks, that tho conference bo limited to delegates of tho Coal-mino Owners' Association and tho Miners' Federation, and that tho matters to bo discussed bo restricted to certain questions which aro set out in detail. To this offer the Federation has replied, repeating the former refusal by tho alliance of Labour to agreo to another conference unless all tho questions brought up at tho last conference aro discussed. Tho dcndlock therefore continues. It will bo remembered that in August last tho two partios to the dispute mot in conference at Wellington. The Federation then presented a long Beriea of proposals for .1 national agreement, which included tonsiderablo increases in wages, tho abolition of tho contract system, tho immediate reduction of hours to soven per day, bank to bank, »»nd their further reduction in January, 1921 to six per day, fivo days only to bo worked each woek, and only ono shift in the twentyfour hoars, » fortnight's holiday at Christmas and four days at Easter, lioth to bo paid for, besides a number of other demands of a more or lew technical character. Tho owners gavo the demands careful consideration, but found themselvos unable to proceed with tho conference unless somo of tho principal items in tho list referring to tho abolition of piecework, tho reduction of working time, and tho payment for holidays and timo lost were withdrawn. It waa pointed out that tho concession of these demands would involvo the reduction of the output by quite one-half, and that the price of coal to the public would thereby bo j w <w*«ad lor M# Per *». or •

total of over a million and a half a year. The owners wero prepared to grant a further increase of 10 per cent, to pieceworkers aud lo per cent, to wages men, making a total increase of iio por cent, to the former and 4o per rent, to the latter over pre-war rates. This would result in the eoal-miner.s receiving an additional £150.0D0 a year in wages, for which the public would have to pay 2s 6d or .°is per ton more far its coal. Tin- miners, however, tlmn. as now, would listrn to no susrestion that they should reduce iheir demands, and the conference ended. It was made clear that the Miners' Federation was fimf.lv acting as tho mouthpiece of tin- National Alliance of Lah'nr. otherwise the Transport Workers' Federation, nnd it was the latter ot!',:Miis,itinn which subsequently intervt;< I the Ministry on the subject of tie ''i-pute. In their present demand ib.-r. am- ne-.v agreement shall bo dis- < u~=i'd only with the Miners' Federa-

tion. the owners, we feel sure, will have 1 he sympathy of the unbiased secrir.n of the public while a very proportion of the people must with their advocacy of the settlement of tho dispute by the Conciliation Council ,-tnd Arbitration Court, the constitutional means provided for dealing with such matters. We are afraid, however, that they are appealing to wilfully denf ears, nnd that the Dominion is only .it tho beginning of its trouble in connexion with the coal simply. In at least one important mine, representatives of the Federation have been at work arranging for the extension of tho "go-slow" policy to take place after the elections. In view rtf the comparatively small profits which tho Hoard of Trade report showod to result from the operation of tho mines, it is impossiblo to see how tho owners could make still further concession to a claps of workers who could earn pood wages nt the present rate of pay if they chose to work. For their tyrannical attempts to force their will upon tho mine-owners tho wholo of the public nnd tho industry of tho Dominion must suffer.