MINE DISPUTE SETTLED

Press, Volume LXXXV, Issue 25741, 1 March 1949, Page 3

MINE DISPUTE SETTLED

RENOWN COLLIERY STOP-WORK MEETINGS IN HUNTLY AREA (P.A.) AUCKLAND, February 28. A dispute about minimum rates of pay, which has resulted in the Renown mine being idle since last Thursday, was settled to-day, and work is expected to be resumed in the morning. The terms of settlement were not announced, but it is known that the dispute concerned the payment received by five pairs of miners. Two other mines in the district were idle to-day as a result of the Renown dispute. Stop-work meetings to discuss the dispute were held at the Glen Afton and McDonald mines, and the men did not begin work. There w’ere similar meetings also at the Pukemiro. Rotowaro and Alison mines, but at these three the men worked as usual after the meetings

The exceptional number of stopwork meetings at the Huntly coal mines recently has been causing concern to the management. It was stated that, in a recent exceptional period, the first 12 working days of February, there were no fewer than 16 stopwork meetings, causing delays ranging from 10 minutes to a full day. at two mines alone. The loss of working time at the two mines amounted to nearly 24 hours, representing more than 1500 tons of coal. In only one case was a stopwork meeting associated with a dispute with the management. The death of anemployee resulted in two meetings. The man’s funeral resulted in the two mines being idle for a day. The balance of the stop-work meetings were all associated with union business. Under the agreement between the mine-owners and the union, the men were entitled to one stop-work meeting of two hours’ duration each month.