PRINTING TRADES' AWARD

Evening Star, Issue 17482, 13 October 1920, Page 3

PRINTING TRADES' AWARD

REPLY TO UNION'S STATEMENTS.

[Pan United Pmss Association.]

WEIJJNGTON, October 12. Mr F. Pirani, secretary of the Welling ton Master Printers' Association, male the following reply to the union's allegations and protests against the delay in the operation of the last award:—■'' Apropos of the motions passed by the Wellington Typographical Association, allow me to give the public an explanation of the position taken up by my association in reference to the new award. It is unfortunate that the awards have been held up by the_ Government Department for reasons which I know nothing of except what has been volunteered to me by one of the workers' most trusted representatiyea, and yet I can have no sympathy with the workers in the matter, as the hold-up is due to an attempt to introduce a new provision into the preference clause without specially directing the attention of the Court to it, and the provision is quite foreign to an Arbitration Court award, and which many of the workers .themselves object to. Indeed, we were assured at the conference that there was nothing new in the preference clause. It is only fair to the employers to state that they have, as -usual, more than kept faith with the workers in every sense. They need not have paid more than the old rate of wages until the decision of the' Court on September 13, yet they voluntarily increased the pay defined in the old: awards by from £1 Si to £2 a week from April 2 in anticipation of the award. Probably the workers will retortthat the amount would anyhow, have had to be given as back pay; but against that philosophic. argument let me point out that the same reason should have prevented the workers concerned making an untenable demand until the Court "had settled the knotty points at issue. With the exception of the linotype operators every section of the trade had been paid within Is 3d and 3s 9d of the amount awarded by the Court.

" In regard to the allegations of a ' conspiracy ' to defeat the award, the secretary of the Typographical Association was supplied with a copy of the letter sent to the Court for an interpretation of the points at issue, and when the reply is received the employers will naturally comply with, the decision given. ' Until then they have a perfect right to wait. It" is no fault of the employers that the award has not been circulated so that a complete understanding could be arrived at. As I have pointed out, it is entirely due to the introduction by the workers of a provision considered by those in authority to be contrary to the law. The employers are quite aware that their own interests demand an honorable understanding with their employees, and the absence of friction in the trade is a sufficient guarantee that they have always observed that policy. Such* attitude as that shown in the motions referred to is not likely to persuade the employers in future to act as promptly and considerately as they have in the present case and to voluntarily take steps to help those upon whom they think the Cost of Living presses unduly; but I do hope that the motions passed do not reflect the matured opinions of the majority of the workers in the trade."