THE SHIPS' OFFICERS' DISPUTE.

Dominion, Volume 5, Issue 1247, 2 October 1911, Page 2

THE SHIPS' OFFICERS' DISPUTE.

+ —i — .' FEW RESIGNATIONS RECEIVED. CHANCES OF FILLING VACANCIES. From such scanty news as is available, ; it would appear t'hat the ships' officers liavo not all given notice to leave their , employment as it was thought they might. ' There was oertainly an intention on the 3 part of a number ci officers to leavo their ships, and tho others were expected to do • likewise, but .apparently things havo not 'turned out exactly like that: Some men have left their ships; so much the Wellington agents for the vessels know, but so far as their advices go, the nronctrtion of men who havo resigned is small. News of further resignations may bo re--1 ceived to-day. The company which seems j to bo most, seriously alTectwl is that con- ' trolling tho Anchor Line, for news was ' telegraphed by the Press Association from Nelson, inhere tho headquarters of the '■ company is, that all the officers of their ships had given notice. This line is the : most important in the local coastal trade. ; In tho other lines the Wellington offices havo been advised of very few resigna- , tions, not more than one in any company. Again, these numbers may be increased when tho ships are couimunicatcd with to-day. "Most Unfair." "So far, the thing is a small matter, but it may iu the end bo serious enough," said an owners' representative to a iJoin.yioi; reporter. "The guild's action in this business lias been most unfair. We didn't want any award; it was tho guild which forced us into Court, and Meause tho men were not all sntis(ied with the result tliey refuse to abide bv it. At any rate, the attitude the employers tako up is this; There is the award, and wo feel ourselves bound by tho terms of it.' They will not consider any proposal to vary it, and they aro hopeful that they may get men to take tho places of the men who havo gone out. If not, they are prepared to tie their be<its up. They should bo able to get tho men easily enough, for though tlioro is a domand for practically all the men offering, thero aro a number of men who have retired from, the sea,' who may . be . induced, to'take, the ..vacant positions for a ' tima at least; In any case, tho i -guild's.,claim., that its comprise ' liearly-'aU- the competent l men is not well grounded. There are any number of good men outside the guild. Tho Pay. "As to the pay against which the officers complain, there is not a similar service in the world which is paid so well. And whether the pay is good or bad, it simply can't bo increased. One company which has been in operation for four years has not yet paid a dividend, another has paid one dividend of 2\ per cent in seven years—can these companies entertain proposals to heap up more expenses? Nor. are these companies iu tho worst position., SoAo aro running at a loss in. tho hope,'no doubt, that things may improve. If thoy are called upon to lose more money, they must withdraw their ships from the trade. As things aro now, some steamers aro making • lieavy losses, and are liable to be taken off their running any time. All of which satisfies nie that this agitation can't do tho men any good. The Beginning of it All. "It is my opinion that it is not tho men interested who havo engineered this thing, but rather tho younger members of the guild. As a matter of fact, I know that sorao of our men did not know what demands were being mado when the caso was in preparation. It is my opinion that tho caso was simply preparatory to a bigger case. What put the fat in the fire in tho beginning was thai: award of Justice lliggins's in the Commonwealth. I don't think it will ever work. In fact, wo hear that it is already showing signs of breaking down." Tho shipowners hold a mooting to-day to discuss the position, and on the other side steps aro to bo taken to faka ft plebiscite of members of the guilil as to whether its, registration under tho Arbitration Act should not be cancelled. STEAMERS DELAYED. (By Telegraph.—Press Association.) Nelson, September 30. Dissatisfied with the arbitration award, the mates of the Anchor Steamship Company ceased work from last night. The Kaitoa, Waverley, and Kennedy' are hung up, and%the iMikau is likely to follow.