COAL MINERS' DISPUTE

Evening Post, Volume CVIII, Issue 118, 14 November 1929, Page 11

COAL MINERS' DISPUTE

STRIKE DECLARED OFF

(By i'elegraph.—Press Association.)

GREYMOUTH, 13th November.

Following quickly upon the decision yesterday of the organised miners on the "West Coast fields to strike in support of the Blackball Union's stand against the employment of non-unionist engine-drivers at the- Blackball Mine, the trouble was settled to-day.

There is general satisfaction at this result, as the stoppage had involved almost 2500 men in the Buller ana Grey districts.

The settlement came unexpectedly early as the result of the intervention of the Blackball mine directorate. Today Mr. W. W. Gibson, the new secre-tary-director of the company, arrived in Blackball, and there was a hurried call for a conference between the executive of the Miners' Union and representatives of the company, Messrs. Gibson, W. Parsonage (mine manager), and Thompson.

The conference proved an amicable one, the outcome being that the miners' demand was agreed to, with the result that unionist enginedrivers are now in charge of the haulage engines and the .generating plant, while the nonunionist enginedrivers' services have been dispensed with.

The result of the conference -was notified to the West Coast Miners' Council secretary,. Mr. R. M' Gregor, at Millerton, who immediately telegraphed to the whole of the unions as follows: "Cause of stoppage removed, the two enginedrivers being discharged. Suggest all mines resume work immediately."

1 The result is that work will be resumed to-morrow at all the Buller mines, the State mines, and the Dobson ana Wallsend mines. At the Blackball mine the shift men resume to-mor-row and the miners on Monday.