OPTIONAL ARBITRATION

Evening Star, Issue 19844, 18 April 1928, Page 5

OPTIONAL ARBITRATION

EMPLOYERS' FEDERATION PROPOSALS INTERESTING SUGGESTIONS TO INDUSTRIAL CONFERENCE At the Industrial Conference, which was resumed in Wellington to-day, Mr Bishop road an interesting paper on the Arbitration Act, setting forth tho views of the New Zealand Employers’ Federation. its main point was a suggestion to remove compulsion from the Act. Tho paper may be summarised as under ;

L. The Arbitration Act has given ns a greater measure of industrial peace than has been enjoyed by any other British community during the period of its operation. 2. It has broken down tho old hostility of employers to trade unions, and produced a friendly atmosphere of collective bargaining. .1, It lias acted as a governing factor over wages, regulating the rate of increase and 1 of decrease, preventing too rapid fluctuation in cither direction—a national evil, as causing corresponding excessive fluctuations in prices. On the other hand 1. Tho arbitration system is not compulsory, but operates in any industry at the option of the workers. 2. All hough the great majority of unions accept awards made by the court, experience lias shown that awards are not enforceable against

strong unions against their will. d. Awards of tho court arc unavoidably inelastic and restrictive as to details. Lack of elasticity in times of severe trade depression is apt to impede recovery. 4 Tho system does not prevent, though it may lie an influence against, tile making of agreements between employers and their employees, contrary to public interest.

On the whole, during the last thirty years, tho advantages of the arbitration system have outweighed its disadvantages. It must bo admitted, however, that, except for brief periods, trade conditions have been favorable to its operation. Even so, the weaknesses already discussed have become apparent, and under unfavorable trade conditions the effect of these would be greater than hitherto. In the case of all systems much depends upon the users. Whatever success has been achieved in the past, a correct appreciation by both sides of tiiese weaknesses and a joint determination to remedy them would yield better results. During the last two years there has been expressed a general demand for tho removal of these weaknesses. Many suggestions have been put forward, but none have boon acceptable to all concerned. Tho problem still remains io be solved.

FEDERATION’S PROPOSALS The following proposals arc submitted for consideration :—• (1) Since the application of arbitration to any industry is not compulsory, but depends on the decision of the workers, and because it is not wholly enforceable, even when it does apply, remove the compulsion and make it wholly optional, To bring this about, amend the Act so as to provide that if no agreement is reached by a Conciliation Council in any dispute, reference of the dispute to the Court of Arbitration shall require a unanimous agreement of the assessors on both sides. In any case in which no agreement is reached by a council, and the assessors do not agree to refer the dispute to tho court, the existing award or agreement shall cease to operate as from the date of its expiry, or the date of the council .sitting, whichever is the later. The existing provisions for conciliation are the best machinery that has yet been devised for bringing employers and workers together for the settlement of disputes. This machinery should not be disturbed in any way. Tho present proposal will not disturb it. On the other hand tho responsibility of the assessors on both sides will lie increased since they will know that failure to make an agreement may result in a deadlock.

(2) 'file Court of Arbitration to be retained and in its present form. It must be retained because the only alternative would he a special tribunal for each dispute, an impracticable suggestion because of the difficulty of obtaining arbitrators. The qualities that go to make a. successful arbitrator are many, and are rarely found in business men. In England, where arbitration in industrial disputes is purely optional, the procedure in any grave dispute has been strike or lock-out, followed in most eases as a final result by arbitration. There the Board of Trade has been able to supply as chairman of the arbitration tribunal men of the necessary natural ability, high character, and economic and business knowledge. In New Zealand there has been no opportunity to train such officials. and none such are available. The present constitution of the court, an arbitrator from cadi side and a judge as umpire, ensures the confidence and goodwill of both sides, and should be retained. The Act already provides that a special expert assessor from each side may bo added to the court in an advisory capacity in any case calling for expert technical knowledge. G!) Provide (hat for the purposes of ' the I.C. and A. Act nil unions, whether registered nndor that Act or anv other Act. or not registered at nli, shall lie deemed to be registered under that Act. Under the Act as it stands now some unions have declined to register because they have objected to being compelled to refer disputes ta°tlic court, and have preferred to soldo them by direct negotiation with their employers. If proposal No. 1, giving either side the right to a conference with the other side and making reference of a dispute to the court entirely optional, bo adopted, this objection will be removed, and there will lie no reason why all unions should not automaticallv come under the same Act. The penalty for a union convicted of a serious breach of an award or agreement should be de-registration, depriving the union of all rights under the Act and of the right to collect fees or to enter into any collective agreement with a union of employers.

(4) To meet the ease erf no agreement being reached by a Conciliation Council, amllv refusal of the assessors to refer the dispute to the Court of Arbitration, incorporate in the I.C. and A. Act provisions similar to those contained in the present Labour Disputes Investigation Act for the taking of a secret ballot precedent to a strike or lockout (5) llepcal the Labour Disputes Investigation Act. ((if Amend the section of the Arbitration Act dealing with strikes or lock-outs as may be necessary in view of the foregoing (proposals.

THE ADVANTAGES Summed up, the proposal amounts to a combination of the Arbitration Act and the Labour Disputes lnvestiga:ion Act, retaining the best provisions of both. It would make this paper unduly long and cumbersome to set out in detail the various amendments widen will be required to give effect to these proposals. If the principles be adopted, the details will not present any great difficulty. Briefly the advantages which may be looked for if these proposals are adopted are (1) A decrease in the number of disputes filed. (2) An increase in the number of complete settlements arrived at by

direct negotiation between the parties. (3 Tlio restoration of lire Court or Arbitration to the position it was originally intended to fill—that of an arbitrator in real disputes—instead of that of an industrial regulations factory. (4) A greater freedom or the parties in any particular industry to embody in an agreement provisions designed to meet special conditions peculiar to the industry. On the other hand a deadlock may he reached in some cases. However, this has happened during Ae last few years under the present law, and there is no reason to think that under the proposed system it would happen more frequently.' Neither employers, assessors, nor workers’ assessors would accept lightly the responsibility of refusing to refer a dispute to the court for settlement if serious industrial trouble were threatening.