WORK AND WAGES.

Evening Star, Issue 12766, 20 March 1906, Page 3

WORK AND WAGES.

THE SEAMEN’S AWARD. [SPECIAL TO THE StAE.] ' WEELJNGTON, March 20. V In- • TO; the award in the Wellington Scarfien’s dispute, the secretary of the Australasian Federation. Union, Mr Young, is om- \ - piratic... , Said he to a reporter of the ’Post’; “Diseatisfaction'. That is onr fueling towards it, It'« in mourning,” he continued,' displaying a. copy of the Dunklin award deeply bordered with black. '■ As far as we ate concerned, we are entirely dEßatisfied, and we think that the award has not. been given in accordance with the weight of evidence as specified in the Act itself. Wo have a fall note of the evadcuce taken in Dunedin, but not here. The biggest fight was at Dunedin. We That our opponents were holding track for the fight there, and we prepared to meet them. I am certain, ” Mr Young concluded,, "that the public of Dunedin were extremely astonished with tbo award, *nd I am mire that no one was more astonished than the shipowners themselves. It only shows that arbitration cannot please everybody.” Concerning an unintentional misrepresen- • tatkm, of certain; remarks of hie which wen: reported on Friday during the hearing of the above case, Mr Justice Chapman made to-day the following statement; —“ Tlie President of this Court has authority by an Act- of last session to take the opiniou of other Judges on questions affecting the jurisdiction of the Court, but- not on questions affecting trade usages and requirements. The authority of Judges to give advice is strictly confined to questions of Hus Court. What- I did state was that I proposed to draw up a case touching certain important questions arising upon the seamen’s award and the cooks and stewards’ award. Those questions are intemationsri, because those unions are formed of employees whose employers trade to ports and places outside New Zealand, and it is necessary to know the limits of the jurisdiction of this Court in matters o$ that sort—limits which coincide with the jurisdiction of the New Zealand. Parliament. It was that, and that only, to which I alluded respecting a case to be submitted to the Judges,” THE LOCAL LABOR MARKET. The following is the .report of the Department of Labor on the labor market in Dunedin during the month of February : Unfortunately, anticipations of last month in respect to trade and business have not been realised as fully a,s expected. This is particularly the case in regard to all outside workers, who, on account of the unseasonable weather experienced during the last few weeks, have been unable to make even fair time. To the same cause may be attributed the general dulness prevailing throughout the whole of the retail trades. Nevertheless, provided favorable conditions prevail during the ensuing month, it is confidently expected that builders and others whose occupations necessitate working out of doors will be amply compensated by the abundance of work now on hand, and. as a sequence, retailers will benefit by the money brought into circulation. In the agricultural implement manufacturing it is found that, owing to seasonable and other causes of an ordinary trade character, a scarcity of orders is being experienced. The employees, however, are kept going, but it is more than probable that retrenchment in the number of hands employed will take place within a week or two. The building trade is not quite so busy as during last month. A number of good carpenters and other classes of tradesmen are partially idle. This is due principally to the fact that more than one large contract remains unlet owing to the prices submitted by the builders being in excess of the estimates, hence the delay and consequent idleness. Plumbers, painters, bricklayers, and plasterers are still fairly busy, while masons are retarded on account of the various large contracts still remaining in architects’ hands. Boot manufacturing: Reports from those interested in this particular industry confirm the previously-expressed idea that considerable improvement would take place during the month. All hands are now fully employed, and there is every prospect of a fairly busy season. Furniture trade; Badness is exceptionally brisk. Hands are fully employed, and a few factories are working overtime. A number of meu from the Old Country and from the Northern towns of this colony were placed in employment locally with very little difficulty. Engineering tmies, etc. ;' There is a falling off in the matter of employment in this particular industry. No contracts of any magnitude are in hand, ! and where special lands of work are under way only a few of the shops participate. The'only particular line that appeal's in any way busy is the blaofcsnuthing branch. In connection with this slackness it may bo stated that the ordinary trade of the district is still held by local firms, but owing to the extraordinary rush of business done during the dredging boom, necessitating the calling into existence of a number of new firms, there are now so many carrying on operations that competition has naturally become verv keen, and the spreading of the usual everyday business over a large number of shops lessens the turnover of individual firms; hence the dulness complained of. Coachbuilding : No rush of business; hands employed fairly well. There is room for great improvement. Saddlery and harness making: This is now the off season; however, it is noteworthy that only 3 per cent, of the employees in the district have been out of employment during the past month. Cycle and light engineering: All interested are still busy, and in some instances overtime is being worked to cope with the incoming orders. Bookbinding and manufacturing stationers: Operatives are fully employed, and a considerable amount of extra time is being worked. Clothing trade (factories); Owing to the unsettled conditions in respect to the new award prevailing throughout the whole of the local factories, only medium business has been done during the month. Some manufacturers contend that they have been put to no inconvenience whatever, while others state that, owiim to the fact that in other centres the award is bring received with more favor than with local employees, trade has not been disturbed to the same extent as in Dunedin. L rom what can be gathered, however, it is expected that in the course of a few weeks preparations for the incoming winter trade will monopolise the whole of the available labor. Timber, and joinery trades; All hands are still kept going. Retail manufacture® : Milliners and dressmakers A very large number of employees have been idle during the past month, and there is every prospect of their remaining so for some time to come.. Tailoring trade—We find, contrary to expectations, that the past month’s business baa been very much better than it has been, for the same period for soma time; only a few competent bands are out of employment. Retailers; Grocers, Kitchens, drapers, etc., all state that the month’s turnover has not come up to expectations, but it is fully anticipated that the coming season will be up to the usual standard. Owing to the lateness of the harvest it is more than probable tliat money wffl not be quite as plentiful as it would otherwise have been. Unskilled laborDuring the past month this office has been exceedingly busy in assisting this particular class of labor. . It is not, however, to there is no opportunity of obtaining' work, as numerous applicants could, with personal effort, have obtained employment without recourse to the department. During the month repeated iuquiries have been received for good farm hands and flax-mdl workers, hut there exists a decided objection on the part of many applicants to accept this class of work. . ARBITRATION COURT AWARD At Wellington yesterday the Arbitration Court gave their award in the dispute between the Wellington section of the Australasian Federated Seamen’s Union and the shipowners. -The award is ih the same terms as the one issued' recently at • Dunedin. The only special clause is. No. 45 which iptovides exemption for the owners of the steamers Ahuriri, Tangaroa, Rum, Fanny, and. Weka, provided they .paytheir,:iinp%ee3 the.wages which they are how paying,. and so long as tho conditions of unaltered. The reasons

for this award, as stated,, are the same as t for the award made in the Otago and ! Southland district on February 14. Mr Slater’s dissent from the conditions of that award applies also to tins. The Court have extended the, conditional exemption granted to small Vessels at Napier and to others, in the same position. It was stated that some of tlu&e occasionally trade to Wellington, and when so trading exemptions will not. of course, appOy. The secretary of the United Furniture Trades’ Union of Christchurch writes as follows:—At a meeting of the Christchurch Furniture Trades’ Industrial Union, of Workers, held here on the 14th inst., the sum of £5 was voted towards the assistance of the Dimed in Tniloresgcs’ Union to uphold the justice of their claims in their endeavor to secure a fair value for the labor of their members. In the case of the Wellington Drivers’ Union against the city cab proprietors and various employers of drivers, it is stipulated that the drivers of cabs and carriages shall work, without payment of overtime, for 280 horns, per month of four weeks, including Sunday work. Wages are to be £2 5s per week. All time worked in excess of 280 hours in any month shall be compensated with time off or paid for at end of the month. The award made in the case of the Palmerston North Gap Stokers and Cokers’, Union against the Palmerston North Gas Company states mainly that the stokers’ shift is to bo eight Itonrs. including time neccs'.-ary for one meal. Minimum wages are to be 8s 6d per shift for stokers and”7s l«r day of eight hours for lamplighters. Each employee is to be allowed one week's holiday-on full pay during the year. ( At a meeting of the Christchurch City Council last night a letter wns received from forty-eight retailers in the city drawing attention to the threatened influx of barrow hawkers, and points out that hardships would .accrue to the writers, if hawkers were allowed to obtain a footing there. They understood that a hawker’s license fee was only 20s per year, while retailers had to contend with "high rents and restricted trade. Hawkers would therefore be able to sell at considerably less than what was a fair living profit to retailers. The petitioners prayed the Council to consider seriously before granting licenses. The Mayor said he hod been told that a Wellington gentleman, who was something of a capitalist, intended making a descent on Christclnrrch in the direction indicated. He had doubts as to the Council’s power to refuse licenses. The matter was referred; to the By-laws Committee to it port .