ARBITRATION BILL.

Dominion, Volume 1, Issue 248, 13 July 1908, Page 11

ARBITRATION BILL.

FURTHER CRITICISMS. INDUSTRIAL COUNCILS AND EXERTION "U AGIOS - ' (»Y TELEGIUrit—PRESS ASSOCIATION-) " Christohursli, Julv 11. . Interviewed on ,tho now Arbitration Uill, Mr. H.; Broadlioad, secretary of the Cantor- • bury Employers' Association, said: •" Tho proposal/ that -tho ..employer should collcct tho fino imposed on an emplnvco is, .I think, one which would givo tho employer a lot oi \vork •which..ho, should not have to do. . It is ' prac'ticajiy-making . him a fine . collector,: and - putting on him a , duty which should: bo carnod out by tho Inspector of Awards. It would bo. apt to causo some friction, and .an unscrupulous workman would take caro that he did no more work than would bo fully piud.-for by .his -reducecl wage. Tho. employers might thus be compelled'to pay tho fines." • • v i.Speakirig in regard to the proposed industrial councils, Mr. Broadlioad said that tho ; a| good one,.' but ljo tlipught' that;, two or. three assessors should bo allowed from each i side,-instead of one. only. This was specially desirable where the assessors on cither, side had- not had experience in tho ' Bettlomdntrof nidustrial'-disputes.... .. Tho em-' plovers .would bo pleased to note that the' Bill proposed to mako tho chairman a, pertelduent. official, and a man : who. possessed some lcgabtrainmg. . This would do..away, with- the:evil winch, was apt to anso when there wis an inesporieneod chairman. .. • "-The proposal to introduce tho ('needs! and. 'exertion- wages is new ground,":-Mr.-.Broad--head'continued. "It misht bo difhcult for ilro Court-to-determine what a .needs wage is. i . Probably ,it: is a term used to desenbo wkat.is 1 now known as the minimum. If the 1 Court 'so fixed- conditions that an'-''exertion wage-can be also fixed for any work which, owing . to., arnount- and quality, is ovor - the. standard, iit .will bo a very : good thing. ■ It will do , away .vwith tho . tendency to level down; the good man to tho: inferior,'and it. will also be an-incentive to tho, inefficient man' .to ■' take - a . little " more '. interest, in - his ; work.-.!- It is not always • a question, of a mail beni" unablo to do the work.. Inclination should also be considered." THE,'WORKERS' TOINT OF VIEW. .-. (Mr. -RUslibndge, of the-Trades, and Labour Council, -said that ' lie had -not. seen- the- Bill, ■ and ho'could not discuss -its - proposals atatiy"l6rigth. - ' He did-; not - approve - of' - the penalties ' provided for striking being applied 1 to-Strikers where an industry was not con-' trolled\(by an award or an agreement. Ho' also 'disapproved -of tho proposal that, the emploj-er^snould'collcct tho fines -.inflicted' by the. Arbitration Court." ' This-should bo-done by-the; State • official)-who : was now, respon- , sible.SvvAs to the; "exertion; wage," he was not: clear., as: to what; was meant,-but if-it. w'as'.on'jtho .same-lines as tho .premium bonus- ; system-llo; didnot support it. -Hc also op-:' posed ';the, increa'se - in-; tho humber ::of' mem- . oersirenuired. to. form a union. - ■ Thero-.were industries, in which a very small number of men: were: employed,, and'lii some places the : .^w , M:''scattßred.? ; >->Tho ! intention of the original Act'in ,making the-required number as low as seven encourage the forma- : tipii. of : unions,"and.tho,proposed increase to twerity-jfive would- be, a* severe blow- to unionism if .giveri.'.elTect to;. - As to ;the industrial said that he fav- . oured :tn'e|?propo'sar made in. last -year's Bill.' Thorp^should '■ Bb' ! atrloas't two-'iassessors-'dn each side. He was in favour, of the magis-' trate'beiiig chairman,of 'tlus council.' 7 The reinforcement of the Arbitration Court benchbona fide engaged in-the industry; concerned, but-'not parties: to the dispute, a rather;puzzling proposition...< It, • whs difficult to : see' how thdy" could- be engaged :in the industry and yet not be parties to the dispute.: He had no objection to'theVappointment'of the assessors; but thero. was some'explanation wanted as to tho qualifications. joj'l c'il-Wi)' 6ilj ... , - AUSTRALIAN COMMENT.: •: TRADES-UNIONISM .AS WRECKER. ' • ,Much: attention has-been attracted in.Australia by the chaos into which tho New .Zea-land-industrial arbitration system has fallen.; The 'Radical newspapers avoid reference to the ;: matter ; as,fa.r:as.they are able..- -.. -j; The/MelbourneArgus," in a leading' arti-, cle}:lastfweek,-quoted a passage from Mr. Millar's• specch at': the -complimentary, •? gathering: on the Ist inst., and commented: "This;,looks like a confession of failure from the,;quarter, .whence; ; it.- was 1 -loudly ■ proclaimed -that Labour would abide by awards representing the full sense of justice, of tho. community;. The. statement that industrial, arbitration-law in New Zealand was break-: ing y.dowh-.' ; has ' been met . with • strenuous "" denial,,rbut- in-,Mr.- :Millar .has appeared a, witness ,;h'ard to bo. confuted,: against whom no. • th© law ■ can .bo assorted. He is.,;Minister-'of Labour ; he was aii officer . of tho ;Maritime;, Workers'; Association,- .and helped i-.-,to .;6rganiseWtheni in their - ; great. " strike;-he.lias "received the confident support; of: ; organised labour.::. Yet oven.'he has .to';.confess tho breach of; faith 'by which unionism ;has- .been-, dishonoured' throughout Aus-tralasia,-in .that;-, it. cries for; "tho intervention-.; of :Jaw.: on its behalf, but deliberately defies/ithe/.law when : its'-own full - demands are. not,Conceded..'lt calls for a truce, thendeals sits--.blow, after. the truco i has..'been declared. • The latest act of this uature ■ -was . tile '..bakers',striko. in Wellington (N.Z.). whose .sole cause was dissatisfaction with an. Arbitration Court award.- . New Zealand's, experiehceiis:not different .from that of Australia'niStates. Time-and again it has-been-, demonstrated that the unions want decisions' • albtKeii-; own way or not at all. Jf, courts of, law, prove to bo convenient instruments ' for'-,raising wages; they will"act legally: if they can see a chauc© of-illegally, squeezing employers .further, they'take the chance and let. the law, go hang." ■"... ''^. r 6 us '' concludes with two pithy sentences:—v' The only foundation-for an industnaj.'.tribunal is a guarantee.'that both sides will obey it, either .from honour or from . compulsion.-. Experienceilia's shown_that com- - pulsion, oii the workers is impracticable,-while honour,"unfortunately, seems to be want-' ing." . : Tli .®".i'Sydney_ Morning'. Herald" also devotes an'editorial to tho subject. It -notes that . New,., Zealand unions,, in defying :the Courts. have been: so ruthless as some of : thel unions fh New-South Wales,!' but'adds • that vtheir,.-attitude' towards the :Court on. several: .occasions has not been such, as to~ c6nlirm;the: initial hope, that once t tho arbi-'-tratiori.-principle.had:the force of law, industrial, war, would bo at an end. The '(Herald" ■ pbint's-'ont;that ,tho unions cannot plead that , • the'Ac.tlhas beeii "unsympathetically admin--' Millar,:;tho'. Minister for La- 1 " the. administrator of the Act, is: a raaii:j3f-pr6hpunced labour leanings;. Previous.i to his|ehtry into Parliament he i had- been ; 'a ■ labour j union official, . and 'tho " bias 'with ,- whicK v be commenced,.his political cateer-has/ remained. with him in. his advanced .-position. He is;,n,pt, an enemy, but a warm -friend, - of compulsory ; .yet his- most tender administration of the Act: has .-not', preserved • him ; from the results whichvled. to the break-' down; of,.the Act lioro.. In'the bakers'.case Mr. Millar is putting penal clauses of, - the. Act into operation against :the offending unionists."^.ln : nis own ,words, he is : endeav-:: ounng,.to., save, labour .from itself, and wo hopo;'ho;rnay. bo -successful.. Tho first Presi-. dent of tho Nev/. Zealand-Arbitration Court, Mr..Justice Cooper, some time.ago observed that, .the/test ot the .Atbitration Act would come- Tvlioii' tho -period of phonomonal prosperity. had passed, and when tho. inevitable' period.;. ; of: .lower . prioes- and- consequently] small; profits arrived. That period has arrived that New Zealand has to sell, tb the: world con command such a price • aswas- possible a year ago. Thus it is that the' 'paradiso of labour'- which New Zealand has so often and so; long been represented to be,, must, undergo a certain discount. New Zealand lias resorted' to tariff expedients to - encourage' her/manufacturers.-'.- But in-a country whoso'populatiqn.is not much above , of a million, manufacturing development at'its'best is scarcely worth con-" flideriti|;: Tho fortunes of New Zealand rest primary_industries.',;,Outside them theS'new: Dominion,.is nothing,: ihkide them it"is .an.^Appreciable:something.:; This , citadel of.' New Zealand wellbeing has, however, beon' attacked by unions."