SHIPPING STRIKE

Evening Star, Issue 18851, 28 January 1925, Page 5

SHIPPING STRIKE

MEN RETUBNING TO WORK. WAITING FOR COURT AWARD. RUSH AT PICKING-UP OFFICE. Frew Association—By Telegraph—Copyright Australian and N.Z. Press Association. SYDNEY, January'27. A mass meeting of the Seamen’s Union decided to observe tbo Federal Arbitration Court’s award, and go to the Marine Shipping Office to bo picked up. There was such a crush at the office after the decision was reached that masters were unable to engage crews. All the idle ships will be manned on "Wednesday. BRISBANE, January 27. The seamen have commenced manning the idle ships. MELBOURNE, January 27. A meeting of seamen decided to abide by the Arbitration Court’s awards, and have commenced manning the vessels. A HITCH REPORTED. TROUBLE OVER SIGNING ON. ONLY ONE VESSEL MANNED. ULIMAROA TO SAIL ON FRIDAY. SYDNEY, January 28. (Received January 28, at 10.10 a.m.) A hitch occurred in the signing on of crews on various vessels, but it is not expected to prejudice a settlement of the trouble. By 2 o'clock (the hour fixed by the court) about 800 men were in attendance within and about the office. So great was the crowd that it was impossible for the officials socking crews to pick them without being rushed by waiting men. Accordingly the picking-up_was carried out among the crowd as quietly as possible, thews for eight vessels were obtained. The signing-on of these men provoked trouble. Although the award lays down the hours of picking-up as between 2 j o’clock and 5 in the afternoon, it places | /io restrictions upon the timo_ of sign-j jng-on, which is invariably within office hours. The men, however, placed the in-1 terpretafion upon the, award that the | sivning-on must be completed at 3 o'clock. Accordingly all tried to crush into the. building at once. Everybody was hampered, and as a result the men adjourned to a nearby hill, where a member of the executive addressed them. , He asserted that picking-up, according to_ the award, must be done in the shipping master s office, and not in thoroughfares near by. He also told the men that the inadequacy, of the accommodation for signing-on | would have to be considered by the ox- J ecutive. He advised all those picked up | not to sign on before 9 o'clock in _ the 1 morning, pending the consideration of the position. The result was that only one. vessel obtained a crew. The move is taken as demonstrating! he fact that the seamen will take every irritation point within the award to impress the court with their dissatisfaction. The Ulimaroa is to be manned and despatched to New Zealand on (Friday. SYDNEY WATERFRONT. TROUBLE STILL ACUTE. SYDNEY, January 28. (Received January 28, at 10 a.m.) With the apparent settlement of the searpen’s strike and the return to_ the port of the normal working conditions, the struggle between the Watersiders’ •Federation and the Returned Soldiers Watersiders’ Exchange is to be actively renewed. The Management Committee of the federation arrived from Melbourne to take charge of the matter. It will meet the general body of the men at a stopwork meeting during the morning. MOERAKI AND MANUKA. MELBOURNE, January 28. (Received January 28, at 11.40 a.m.) Threats that further trouble is likely before the steamer Moeraki leaves Melbourne have,been made in union circles. It was definitely stated that, upon the release of the thirty-four men from gaol to-day, if the company attempted to man the Moeraki and Manuka with a similar complement as the company previously desired the Moeraki to sail with, the men would absolutely refuse to take the steamers to Rea. HITCH AT BRISBANE. PICKING-UP POSTPONED. BRISBANE, January 28. . (Received January 28, at 11.40 a.m.) A hitch occurred over the picking up of crows. When the men demanded to be paid for yesterday, though their services were not required till to-day, the owners declined to accede to the demand. The picking-up has been postponed until today. NO MOVE AT ADELAIDE. PICK-UP OFFICE EMPTY. ADELAIDE, January 28. (Received January 28, at 11.40 a.m.) No men have so far applied to the Mercantile Marine Office, although vacancies for a crew were posted there. It is stated that tho members of the union are not likely to attend the office.