CHRISTCHURCH TRAMWAY TROUBLE

Greymouth Evening Star, 20 June 1912, Page 5

CHRISTCHURCH TRAMWAY TROUBLE

EMPLOYEES ACT SANELY.,

BIG MAJORITY AGAINST STRIKE

(BY TEI.EGRAPH. —PER PRESS ASSOCIATION.) CHRISTCHURCH, This Day. A vote taken at two meetings of the tramway employees yesterday indicated that the proposal to strike on Monday next did not find favour even aioom; the members of the unions ihemssVis The morning meeting, composed of the night shift, was attended by 60 men, 38 of whom voted in favour of a str'ka and 22 against. That gave the strike party a majority of 16.

At the evening meeting, composed of the day shift, those present were almost unanimously against the strike. There were 105 men at the meeting, and of that number only six. voted for a strike, 99 recording their votes against it. In the two meetings, therefore, the figures were:—For the strike, 44; against 121.

Discussion at the meetings was, at times, of a very animated nature. The secretary of the Union (Mr Hunter) ■ strongly urged that the men should stick to tKeir first resolution to suspend traffic on Monday afternoon.

It might, he said, mean gaol, but, even so, that risk should be taken, and he himself would be prepared to share imprisonment with the men. A calmer view of the situation was, however, taken by the majority of the traffic men present. A number of those, who spoke, admitted that no fault could reasonably be found with the construction of the roster so far as that went, but what they wanted was that men employed on broken work and kept waiting about all day should be paid for eight hours each day. Even wiser counsels prevailed at the evening meeting, when a number of the older men urged the meeting not to precipitate trouble when it could be avoided. Peaceful methods should first of yall be submitted and, above all, the first thing to do was to approach the Board by letter or deputation to urge the claims of the men affected, and wait and see what attitude the Board would take up. That was a more proper course to follow than the one proposed. The reasoning of those opposed to the strike prevailed, with the result that the final voting was as given above. UNION SECRETARY’S DENIAL. Mr Hunter (secretary to the Tramway Union) denies having, at the meetings held yesterday, urged the men to strike. He says he advocated a peaceful approach to the Board with a view to getting the grievances remedied. He made no reference to gaoling at all.