"MINER'S COMPLAINT"

Feilding Star, Volume III, Issue 765, 30 December 1908, Page 3

"MINER'S COMPLAINT"

MR MILLAR DISCUSSES THE POSITION. THE PREMIER ON THE SUBJECT. . [PBB PRESS ASSOCIATION.] Wellington, December 29. Referring to the threatened trouble between tbe miners and tbeir employers, owing to tbe new legislation giving compensation for. disablement through " miner's complaint," the Hon. J. A. Millar, Minister of Labour, states that the Government cannot* do anything in the matter. Tbere is the law. Tbe insurance companies decline to carry the risk, but it was never intended that the Act should be retrospective. The premiums for insurance, which are paid by the mine owners, will probably be very heavy. It is purely a question between the owners and the men, and the Government can do nothing. The Act says that this is a disease for which compensation | can be claimed, and nothing can be done without the authority of Pariiament. The insurance -companies say that the extent of the risk is unknowu, and uutil they can ascertain the extent to which it affects the community, tbey cannot insure against it. It has been calculated, although of course it is pure assumption, that in the Waihi. mine alone the risk involved would amount to a quarter of a million, and the insurance companies are not going blindly to enter on a risk of tbat magnitude. Tbe only thing that can be done is to oome to a mutual arrangement between the men and the owners, either a temporary agreement until Parliament can deal witb the matter, or a permanent agreement. The Act anticipated that cases would arise where men would be debarred from getting employment unless they could contract tnemselyes out of its provisions that the employer would not atoept the liability wben he knew that a man suffered from the disease, and a clause was put in to enable tbe contracting out to be done* but $A the same time a provi--sion was made that theMfshould be no dummy form of contfacting out, as every such agreement had to be appointed by a Magistrate, so' as to "restrict the operation of the. Act to bona fide cases. Whatever may be the result Of the present position — whether those men already suffering from tbe disease are exempted from the operation of the Act or not — the law makes provision that in all future cases they will be able to claim compensation. Tbat is to say, from the lst of January every man who goes into a mine healthy, and who at any time thereafter contracts the disease will be entitled to compensation. Tbat is going a step turther than has been tbe case in any other part of the world. In Great Britain they were atraid to include this disease owiug to the difficulty in distinguishing it from ordinaary pnthisis. A compromise is the best way out of tbe difficulty until the matter can be dealt with by Parliament. The following telegrams have passed between bir Joseph Ward and Mr R. Semple, president of the Miners' Federation at Reef ton: — From Mr Semple to Sir Joseph Ward. — A mass meeting of Reefton goldminers was held on December 24, when it was unanimously agreed to resist the proposed medical examination. The companies are equally determined to enforce same. All probabilities of industrial conflict. Six hundred miners affected. Can you suggest way out of the difficulty ? Fropi Sir Joseph Ward to M.t Semple.—ln reply to your telegram of yesterday, 1 bave been making inquiries witb the object of trying to effect a settlement of tbis difficult question, but find it almost impossible without Parliament's sanction. The liability of miner's phthisis was thrown on the mine owners by Parhament, but tbe position is that the .insurance companies decline to accept any risk without examination, on the ground that the extent of tbe disease is .unknown, and that they therefore hare no other means of ascertaining tbe risk which they are asked to carry. This question does not affect Reefton alone. It applies to all miners in New Zealand, and the liability involved, ib very great. Without examination it is impossible to ascertain what really would be the responsibility, and it therefore appears tp me that in their own interests the miners would do well to allow the examination to take place. This would afford the necessary information requisite to consider tbe whole position, so that if neoessary tte. Government would be in a position to plaoe the question before Parliament, and allow Parliament an opportunity of seeing what can be done. 1 regret that, as far as one can see,, we have no power to go fuither than tbis, and I trust that you will endeavour to induce the miners to accept examination, and thus enable a temporary settlement, at any rate, to be arrived at. It can only be one examination, because if a man has not got the disease at the present time and goes back to work in the mine' any development thereafter entitles mm to compensation. lam anxious to help tbe miners, but they, witb you, will see that the position is an exceedingly difficult one. Wellington, Dec. 30. The Reefton Miners' dispute entered upon a new phase to-day. lne settlement hoped to be arrived at by the accident insurance companies giving low rates is squashed. The companies, including the • Government absolutely refuse to take poiilicies without medioal examination. As the position is becoming critical, workers are very indignant at the fUbverament Insurance Department refusing to take the risk imposed by the Government itself, and throwing tbe whole risk on the holders and employers. Tbe effect, if tbe men refused to work on the ground' of the nonrproduotion of a medical certificate, would be disastrous, especially to the smaller companies, which would be at a standstill, as they oannot take tbe risk.