BREACHES OF AWARDS.

Dominion, Volume 1, Issue 285, 26 August 1908, Page 2

BREACHES OF AWARDS.

, LABOUR UNIONS AND FINES. . NEW RULE LAID DOWN. ' An important statement with reference to tho payment of the fines, in cases brought by unions was made by the Arbitration Courtyesterday. "• ' ■ "When the first of a number, of charg J laid against various employers , by-the C • penters' aud Joiners' Award was' under ' sideration, the president (Mr. .Justice ! >' remarked that the Court was of .opinion t all fines—whether the cases were brouff ; a union or by the Department of La should go into the Consolidated Funr Honour added .tliat it was, lioweve . ..I. sidered only right that a union sho be out of pocket in respect of a cast ..,.ch was proved. All fines would in future bo iria'do payable to tho Chief Inspector of Fac--tories, and in cases won by a union' he would bo authorised to pay but of the-amount. of the fine any;reasonable exponses incurred bv the union. ■ , - . "Mr. Lightfoot, who represented_tbe union. What if the expenses exceed the amount of the fine? - ' ■ His Honour: The union can have the whole fiiio in that event. (Laughter.) Mr. Lightfoot: It is exceedingly difficult to compute the amount of exponses to which a union has been put. Hitherto the Court has always made fines imposed at tho instance of a union payable to tho union. If a union loses a case it has to bear the expenses His Honour: You have the machinery of tho Labour Department at your command. Mr. Lightfoot: The Department is reported to be' undermanned,' and it should bo obliged to tho union for relieving it of tho trouble in connection with those cases. Mr. Lo Cren, who appeared on behalf of tho Department of Labour: It is not a fact that the Department is undermanned. _ Tho Department is quite prepared to investigate aiiy case which may be brought under its notice. If one officer is not sufficient to perform the work, [the Department will increase its staff. The Court decided that so far as the present cases were concerned, it would Hot depart from tho practice hitherto in Voguo. It desired to intimate, howevbr, that in future, when cases were brought by a union, and the Court imposed a fine, the fine would be made payable to tho Chief Inspector of Factories, except in cases in which the Department had refused to take action. Provision would be made whereby the union could recover'out of the Gno any reasonable expenses which it had incurred.