WALLSEND MINE

Press, Volume LXXX, Issue 24371, 25 September 1944, Page 4

WALLSEND MINE

STOPPAGES LAST WEEK STATEMENT BY UNION SECRETARY An explanation of the hold-up in production at the Wallsend State mine is contained in a statement received from the secretary of the Brunner Mine Workers’ Union (Mr R. Scott). The statement is as iollows: “On Wednesday morning of last week the second cage of men was descending the shaft when the cage became ‘fast’ on the guide rails. The winding enginema'h pulled the men back to the surface as soon as he realised something was wrong. It was apparent to everyone that the men in the cage had received a severe shock. On being asked what had occurred the men involved informed us that two severe jolts were experienced just before the cage became ‘fast’ and that the chains lastening the cage to the winding rope rattled down on top of the cage. The cage tipped Over on one end and the men were almost thrown off their feet. They were still approximately 500 feet from the bottom of the shaft “Whoever it was that described the accident as ‘trivial’ seems to be quite indifferent to the seriousness of such a dangerous occurrence, and to the shock experienced by the men involved. “The Coal Mines Act and regulations state that the cage and shaft must be examined every morning before the men descend the shaU. It was found that a new rubbing strip had been inserted on the cage runners, and when the cage came to the part of the shaft where the guide rails were thicker it had jammed at a bad joint. As this cage had given a lot of trouble, the men came to the conclusion that it should be taken off and another cage which was being overhauled put on. This change-over could have taken place that day. “The manager was told that the men were concerned about the safety of the cage, and they asked that the new cage go on without delay, instead of waiting until Saturday to make the change-over. The manager refused to consider the request on the grounds that the cage was safe and could wait until Saturday. He also stated that the union was not going to dictate as to how the mine should be run. “The men decided that it would be safer to wait until after the cage was changed before they travelled in the shaft, and that if the manager was determined to keep the mine idle until after Saturday, when the change-over would be made, nothing the union could do would get the position remedies more quickly."