FIVE DAYS A WEEK.

Dominion, Volume 4, Issue 1031, 21 January 1911, Page 8

FIVE DAYS A WEEK.

" CARPENTERS AND JOINERS..' THE MEN'S DEMANDS CRITICISED. The Conciliation Commissioner (Mr. P. Hally) yeterday heard tlio . Carpenters' and Joiners' dispute. Tlio assessors were as follow.: —For the. union, 'Messrs. B. Blatherwick, J. Barras, and Ivor Hazell; for the employers, Messrs. J. Nicholson, A. AVilson aiid P. C. Watt. Mr. W. Grenfell appeared for tlio Wellington Builders' and Contractors' Association, Mr. W. G. Smith for the U.S.S. Company, Mr. C. 11. G.' Croll for the Wellington' Meat Export Company, Mr. ■W. G. Lodder for the' Gear Mea!t Company, Mr. N. F. Marley for tlio Wellington Timber Merchants' Association of. Employers. The chief feature of the . new demand (tho old. one having expired) was a five-day week, of forty hours. The. full text of the demand has already been published. The minimum wage demanded for all journeymen carpenters, joiners and carpenters was Is. Sd. per hour. At this rate the week's work of 40 hours would entail a payment of £3 6s. Bd. The demand was •also made that overtimo on Saturday .should bo paid double rate. This would cover tho liours now worked on Saturday at ordinary time. Ten shillings for apprentices for the first year, instead of Bs., was asked. | The. commissioner, in a .preliminary address, said ho thought the union had made amistake in asking for what they' had. They could not expect "tlio l'employers to agree to the 1 forty-hour-a-:week demand. If the request had been forty-four liours bo believed the employers might have met .them. As to the request for tho increase in the minimum wago from Is. -Id. to Is. Bd., jthough ho liad not spoken about it to anyone,, ho thought it out; of all reason ■to expect employers to agree to do as ;asked. Ho understood tlio demand was mado with tlio bona fide intention of getting employment for thosa who' had no' work now—to spread, employment over more men—but ho,, personally, was of tho .opinion that it would lmvo the contrary effect, because it \vould cripple '.industry and harass trade. '. Ho pointed put that tho Timber Merchants' Association had no representation, on. the ..council, and ho suggested that one of tho contractors' representatives might ;give way'to;-'that sectioji';of -the trade. He suggested;" before' tiie'y. tferit fur- . tlier, that he. be allowed to'meet tlio men's representatives without the presence of tho employers, and see if they could not bo persuaded to redufce their claims to something that .could bo granted.' Last year tho employers had 'said' they could not/give any increase becauso trade-was bad; that if things improved something might be done,' This, of course, was-not binding,, but if it could bo sliown that things'had improved it would bo only reasonable to-expect that tho men might benefit to.a certain extent. ; Tito commissioner's suggestion was complied with, and - a .brief discussion ensued between him and tho workers' representative's. On tho .council 'resuming, tho'- commissionerl said' 1 the workers Tiad "agreed to .demand to.'tho oxtcut of reducing fro'mi.ls. Bd. an hour: to . Is.' 6d.,;.and; to'-altcr tlio "hours' per week from .40 .to 44...' They; howovbiy. felt this difficulty: that, while they had. tho consent of their organisatitm to proceed on ■theso lines, " they understood tho em--plo.yers' .-representatives-, • wore -present jWith their- hands tied,'■ and with tho .'feeling-that unless tlio terms of the old agreement were granted tlio whole-mat-ter had better be referred to the Arbi-. ■tration Court. Ho asked-if it wore a fact, that the employers' representatives had their hands tied.

: Mr!'. Grenfell- wanted to-know'where 'this information had come from. At tlio' •same tjme.ho, said ho'.thought 'it 'would bo; vrojig for:.the assessors to-be authorised t-o settle tho matter. He'further said that unless the union was piepared to agree to. tho classification of workers and to modify tho prefereiico clause,:.then they (the employers) were determined •to stand- by. the. conditions in tho existing award;... that, was-,..0f • course, tentatively.'. There were, several mattors;in: the: award that'required adjusting, aj}d,if'nb basisco'uldJjjj,agreed ■to . the association ...,ivould - . determine whether they .should, make: "aidemandthemselves'for a new award,'br get the, modifications,,tliey desired. - •' ; Further- discussion was in'committee. ■After au informal discussion which' lasted all day it was decided to hold the questions of wages and. tho Jiours of. working in. abeyance.; .The . clauses relating, tfl piecework,, overtime,, and undcr-rato .workers wore' agreed upon, with slight modifications of the old award. "Tho clauses.,relating to suburban and country, 'work;..and';- preferenco yqt' re-" main to. bo'discussed. ' The meeting, was finally, adjourned until to-day. ... .....