WHAT ARE SUBURBS? INTERPRETATIONS OF THE ARBITRATION COURT.

Evening Post, Volume LXXV, Issue 46, 24 February 1908, Page 8

WHAT ARE SUBURBS? INTERPRETATIONS OF THE ARBITRATION COURT.

Two important interpretations of the 'Arbitration Court, have been given in connection with the Wellington General Labourers' dispute about to be heard before the Conciliation Board. The .Inspector of Factories is the applicant in both instances. The first question deals with the definition of general labourer in clause 5 of the award, that the following shall be the minimum rate of wa^es to bo paid to the several classes ot workers respectively : — Tunnel-work, tunnel men, and timber men, 10s por shift; all other workers employed underground, 9s per shift; quarry-work,, powder men, hammer and drill men, and jumper mm, 9s per day ; general labourers not hereinbefore specified, if employed for less than a period of a week, Is lid per hour. The question was as follows : — The dear Meat Company at its works at Petone employs a large number of hands at miscellaneous employment, such as is included in the summary hereunder : — Carrying, packing, and loading wool, unloading lime and salt, pushing trucks and barrows containing offal, stacking and loading casks of tallow, tarrying and stacking meat and skins, trimming coal in the engine-room, keeping walks and grounds in order. The question was : — Do the employees engaged at the classes of work enumerated come under the provision of the abovementioned award? Mr. Justice Sim, in his *'j-,wer states that at the hearing the dispute was treated as applying only to workers employed by local bodies, by contractors, and by quarry owners, and no evidence of any kind was given as to the wages and conditions of work of workers such as those specified in the application. The court was of opinion that the award did not apply to any of the workers specified in the application, and applied only to workers employed by local bodies, contractors, and quarry owners, and to workers employed by other employers when doing work similar to that done by local bodies, contractors, and quarry owners. The other question relates to clause b. which states that the preference clause shall not apply to the employment of workers engaged on the spot outside the City of Wellington or Ihe suburbs thereof. The qyoaiion asked was :—ln: — In the area. mcludeiF^vithin a radius of twenty miles from the Chief Post Office in Wellington, which places are suburbs of Wellington within the meaning of the above-mentioned scheme? The answer piven slates that of the places adjacent to Wellington only those which are contiguous or practically contiguous to the city are to be treated as suburbs for the purposes of the award. Thus, of the places named the following, for example, are to be treated as suburbs :—: — JCaiftma, JVliramar, Karori, and Onslow. On the other hand places such as Lower -Hutt, Peton.-, Johnsonville. S°atoun, and Day's Bay are not to be treated as suburbs. The interpretations are filed with the Clerk of Awards, Mr. A. Sf.ubbs.