CONCILIATION AND TRATION.

Evening Star, Issue 11167, 16 February 1900, Page 1

CONCILIATION AND TRATION.

There would seem to be a very genera consensus of opinion throughout the colony among employers and employed that the Industrial Conciliation and Arbitration Act might with advantage be amended in order to the removal of several anomalies which, under the operation of the law, have been found to exist, and with the view of making clear certain provisions which experience has proved admit of more than one interpretation. We are not disposed to agree with those who condemn the scheme as practically a failure in that labor disputes continue very frequent, and are occasionally raised on the slightest grounds. .Employers and employed alike, we believe, recognise that the working of the law is beneficial, and, as a matter of fact, industrial ruptures since it has been in force have been insignificant, only resulting in strikes, as recently at Westport, where a section of the workers are not organised. The Act not purporting to deal with unorganised labor, the area of disturbance is in these cases necessarily limited, and disputes cannot be of Ion" duration.

At a meeting of the Executive Committee of the Industrial Association at Wellington on, Monday evening, Mr Samuel Brown, the president, a wellknown business man, read a very interesting paper on the working of the Industrial Conciliation and Arbitration Act, a few leading points of which appeared in our telegraphic reports on Tuesday. Mr Brown commenced by stating that he thought a few words based on his experience of both the Conciliation Board and the Arbitration Court might possibly bring about a better understanding of the Act, the proceedings under it, and the general effect. The two things which employers objected to most were, he said, the preference of employment given to unionists and the limitation of the number of apprentices. It was asserted that there had been a tendency on the part of the present presiding Judge of the Court to give members of unions preference of employment, but it was only fair to say that out of the four cases more recently dealt with in Dunedin this preference was refused to the Seamen's and Wharf Laborers' Unions. At Eecfton Judge Edwards put the position thus to the mine-owners who were opposing the preferential clause: " Certain men spend " money and incur odium in getting better " terms for their fellow-workmen. Many "of them might lose their employ"ment if not protected ; and a great " many workmen, while willing to take "all the advantages, gainoj, are not " willing to contribute (id a week to the "men's funds." In answer to the mineowners' demur as to being tied clown by the unionists, the Judge declared that there was no obligation to employ those union men ; men could bo brought from Auckland or Australia and put to the works. All the employes had to do was to get them to join the union, which could be done in a few hours without ballot. Any union, Mr Brown stated, that now got preference Jhad it hedged with conditions. There was no meeting nor ballot necessary upon joining, so that it was impossible" to'make a close corporation, as was formerly the case. Moreover the union had to keep au employment book, open to inspection every working day, containing the address of every man who was out of work, so that employers may have no trouble in finding labor. On the question of apprentices, Mr Brown said that he had always held that no boy or girl should be debarred from learniug any trace or means of getting a living. In the plumbers' case at Cinistchurch the men asked one boy for three men, but the Court awarded one boy to one man ; and the same in the matter of the carpenters. So long as they were bound the Court had shown no disposition to impose limitation of the number of apprentices. Referring to the decision of Judge Edwards, that the Grocers, Livery Stable, Carriers, and Tramways Unions did not come within the scope of the Act as industrial unions, he understood, he said, that there was to be an Amendment Bill next session, and he hoped the anomaly would be removed, since on broad grounds, if the Act was good for ono section of the community, it ought to be made'good for all. He hoped that in framing the Amendment Bill "the Government would take the advice of those who had had experience in the working of the Act, and so avoid legislation which might restrict or harass manufactures and industries. In his experience tho greatest responsibility rested on the presidents and secretaries of unions, some of whom, he said, seemed to consider it their mission to make mischief. Others he had met took a great deal of trouble to prevent disputes, and not only had the confidence of their fellow-workmen, but also the goodwill of their employers. It is satisfactory to know that Ministers are quite alive to the desirability of amending the law, and that action to this effect is likely to be taken at the earliest possible opportunity. The Premier, on the 12th inst. met the representatives of several Wellington industrial unions, who urged upon him certain reforms in the Conciliation and Arbitration Act, which were considered, they, said, by the workers to be immediately required. The right honorable gentleman expressed himself quite in accord with the very reasonable demand that all unions should be placed on the same basis, so that the particular industries named should have the benefit of the Act equally with skilled trades.' The law, ho thought, should be made more explicit in the matter of preference of employment. There were certain trades where intervention was needed in regard to the scandalously long hours during which the employes were kept at work, and the practical remedy was to bring the unions of such employes within tho operation of the Conciliation and Arbitration Act, so that they might appeal to the Board and to the Court.