REWANUI DISPUTE

Greymouth Evening Star, 29 June 1922, Page 5

REWANUI DISPUTE

STORY OF THE STOPPAGE.

SETTLEMENT SECURED.

i The Rewanui Mine is being worked as : usual to-day. The six men who were suspended for a breach of the agreement, in leaving work before the appointed time,. interviewed the min e manager as required, and were allowed to resume.

The following clauses of the agree ment are worthy of note, as thej apparently have been ignored by th men in the recent dispute: — “Go-Slow” and Stop-Work Meetings 39. The adoption of a “go-slow’ policy or the holding of a stop-worl meeting without the permission of th manager at any mine shall be regard ed as a breach of this agreement, am all participators in such “go-slow” policy oi- employees absenting themselves from work for any S'.ch meeting shall be liable to dismissal wiihout notice in addition to any cihei penalties to which they .may b e liable. Disputes Committee. 40. (a.) Any dispute concerning any matter specifically dealt with in this agreement or any matter not herein provided for which cannot be settled by the executive of the union and the management of the mine, shall be immediately referred to the Dis-

putes Committee. (b.) The Disputes Committee shal consist of one representative appoint ed by each side and the local Magistral or other person agreed upon by tin representatives as chairman, or in de fault of such agreement appointed by the Court as chairman, and shall dea. with any matter which has not been settled by the means provided in subclause (a) hereof. A majority decision of the Disputes Committee shall be final and binding on all parties. (c.) Work shall continue in all respects pending the decision of the dispute as before the dispute arose. The dispute occurred as the result of men leaving the No. 1 Liverpool Mine on Monday afternoon before the appointed knock-off time. The man-

agement therefore stopped the lamps of six offenders, and the mine was then rendered idle through the action of the remainder of the men returning home in sympathy (with those who were suspended. For years it has been the practice to allow the men to leave the junction in the Alorgan seam at 3.40 p.m., thus allowing them 20 minutes to walk out a distance of 35 chains. On Alonday it came to the knowledge of

the management that the men intend ed to knock off at 3.30 p.m. Aleasure were therefore taken to secure tin names of the first six men who left This was done and their lamps wen stopped on Tuesday morning. The same evening, the President o the Union rang up the Superintendeir and asked if the men would be allow ed to return to work. He was inform, ed that the men would be allowed tc resume on the following morning, oi the understanding that they first in terviewed the mine manager at the mine mouth, so that he could warn them that another similar offence would render them liable to instant dismissal. When the mine manager arrived at the mine about 8.30 a.m. he found all the men outside the mine and they refused to enter because the six men had not received their lamps, despite the arrangement that they were only to get their lamps after they had interviewed the mine manager. The men went home and the mine remained idle. . The Secretary of the Union later rang up the Superintendent and asked if he would receive a deputation from the men. He was then at the Aliddle Brake, and informed the Secretary that he would not be down at Rewanui again until the afternoon. If the men returned to the upper terminus, however, he would meet them there, and the matter could be dealt with on th G spot. This course was agreed to by the Union Secretary’, but the Superintendent waited until nearly noon and the deputation did not

appear. With two companions, the Superin tendent then went into the Morgai seam in order to walk the distance from the junction where the men star! at knock-off time to the mouth of the mine outside. The three each timec themselves and found that walking leisurely, it took them nine minutes to walk the distance, for which the men want to claim 30 minutes for covering. After leaving the mine, the Superintendent waited until after 1 p.m., but the deputation did not arrive. ' . . On returning in the evening tram, the Union Secretary interviewed the Superintendent and the mine manager and asked if they had arrived at a settlement with the deputation. He seemed surprised when told that the deputation had not materialised. In reply to a further question, the Secretary was informed that the men would’be allowed to work on Wednesday (yesterday) on the same understanding that they interviewed the mine manager before resuming. The Secretary then wanted to make out that it had not been made clear to him that the men would be given their lamps only after they had seen the mine manager, It appears that a section of the men are making a determined attempt to ignore the agreement and defy the management. Ten minutes or a quarter of an hour lost per day, when 70 men are involved, means a lot in a fortnight. If the men stayed at their work until the appointed time, instead of beating the clock, it would have a tendency to overcome the minimum wage trouble.