A DEADLOCK

Evening Post, Volume LXXXVII, Issue 150, 26 June 1914, Page 8

A DEADLOCK

IN WOOLLEN MILLS TRADE A PROPOSED NEW AWARD. ALLEGED SACKING OF HANDS. The hearing of the application by the Wellington Woollen Mills Employees' Union for a fresh industrial award conceding higher wages and better conditions- was resumed to-day before tho Conciliation Council appointed to hear the dispute. Mr. P. Hally, Conciliation Commissioner, presided. The assessors for the employers were Messrs. W. H. P. Barber, A. Eamsden, and A. E. ' Donne, and for the men Messrs. A. Anderson, A. Walker, and T. Leadbetter. Mr. W. A. W. Grenfell appeared for the employers, and Mr. E. Kennedy for the men. Mr. Barber said that at the previous sitting an adjourment was made in order to enable a conference to be held at j Christchurch, at which both sides would be represented, for th>.» purpose of considering the dispute from a Dominion point of. view and bringing in a Dominion award. The Southern millowners, however,' had since notified that they Were not prepared to meet the representatives of the men in conference until they cited the whole of the mills ,in the Dominion to the dispute. This the union refused to do, with the result that the conference was not held. Mr. Kennedy replied that the adjournment had been made at the auggestion of the employers, and now the Southern millowners wanted the union to cite the whole of the rest of the mills of the Dominion. The union refused to do this because it was not part of the bargain made at the adjournment of the Council meeting, and for other adequate reasons, with which the employers were fully conversant. He considered that the employers were trying to place difficulties in the way of hearing the dispute.. < Mr. Grenfell denied this, saying that there was a prospect of a settlement being arrived at in the Dunedin dispute shortly, which would certainly go a long way towards bringing about a settlement here. I Mr. Kennedy said they dip 1 not look upon the Dunedin negotiations with favour. Employees down there were being "sacked for being identified with the dispute. They had information, for instance, that several men who had attended a meeting at Milton had all received notice and that the same thing had happened at Ashburton. Thus the people whom the employers said were going to settle the dispute were creat- I ing more trouble than anyone else. _ 1 Mr, Grenfell said he did not think it ■ fair to infer, because one or two small mills had acted in such a manner, that that was the policy of the whole organisation. | ' Mr. Kennedy : I maintain that I was justified in saying that, because the executive of the Woollen Mills' Association is down there. I am not blaming our employers here, to whom we are thankful tor getting us the previous conference. We, however, are not .going . to cite the whole of the miliowners of tho Dominion. If the employers want that they havo a perfect right to cite them then«eelves. Mr. Grenfell declared that the employers were not prepared to go on with the dispute locally, as they weTe in duty ! bound to act with the other centjes. No harm, he thought, could be done by adjourning the Wellington proceedings pending the sitting of the council vi Dunedin, with a view to making the dispute! a Dominion one. It wa6 the ' practice for the union ' to cite the employers. Mr. Kennedy suggested that the employers here shoula proceed to discuss the position. Mr. Grenfell : If the council decide^ to go on with the dispute all the employers can offer the men., is the present award. A conference was then held between the assessors in camera. It was ulti- , mately decided to adjourn the proceeding until the local employers receive de- ' finite advice from the executive of the Millowners' Association regarding a I Dominion award.