“BACK SATURDAY”

Greymouth Evening Star, 16 September 1922, Page 5

“BACK SATURDAY”

EVIDENCE FOR DEFENCE. DECISION RESERVED.

ig All day yesterday Mr W. ’ Meldrum, - 1 ‘ S.M., was occupied with the hearing of a test case against the Blackball Miners’ d Union, and finally he reserved his deciis sion. On the ground that it was contrary to u a recognised custom and interfered with 0 their social’ life, the Blackball miners .8 have, since the existing award came into force, refused to observe the provision c stipulating that the full eight hours e should be worked on pay Friday and back •- Saturday. With the object of having the matter finally settled, the Department of 1 Labour instituted proceedings (under section 5 of the Industrial Conciliation and r Arbitration Act), against about 109 of the miners for participating in an unlawful / strike. n Mr 11. T. Bailey, of Wellington, Inspec2 tor of Awards, appeared for the Department, and Mr W. J. Joyce represented the defendants, whose names were given r in yesterday’s “Star.” - Nir Joyce, before caling evidlence for the ’ defence, said that for a number of years past it had been the custom as was borne out in the evidence, of the other side, for 1 1 the Blackball Mine to work a- short shift ( on pay Friday and back Saturday. J_> ' although it had been the custom, it was I apparently found by the company to bo

inconvenient in some respect and was cut out entirely from the present award, in the drafting of which the miners (through their own omision, he admitted) were not represented. In that award provision was made for the shifts for one fortnight, but the evidence was clear and conclusive that the company could not provide work for the number of days stipulated in the award. An award as between the parties was an agreement and could be varied, and had been varied by the company in the case of “holing.” This was a regulation under the Mines Act incorporated in the award as a special provision, and had been stated by experts to be of the utmost importance for the protection of the lives of those working in the mine. Yet because the company had found that holing interfered with the wages, a mutual agreement had arisen by which the provision was laid dormant. Mr Joyce went on to deal with other provisions which, he contended, had been ignored or varied. He concluded by saying that no demand had ever been made by the company to Balderstone, representative of the workers, to work on the back Saturday. The custom had grown up among them, and the Blackball Aline was in an entirely different position from other mines on the Coast. -Maurice Fitzgibbon, president of the Blackball Miners’ Union, said that in 1909

on back .-Saturdays men worked until crib time. Only very rarely did they work more than six hours, and they never had any trouble from tne management. The truckers were paid lull time. The practice 1 was the same in 1911 when lie returned to Blackball after an absence of about 15 months. An arrangement for a six hours’ shift was made in October, 1920. When the award was made, his union was not represented, and after the award came into force they commenced to work under it. No work was done on pay Friday or back (Saturday. They had never been asked to work full time. On one occasion the manager of the 'mine handed him an amendment that was proposed to be incoroprated in the Millerton award, and said that Jje was willing to make a similar' 1 arrangement for the Blackball Mine. He passed on the amendment to the union for consideration. He had not known more than a few’ fortnights in which the full 11 days were worked. The average was about 9 days Joseph McQuilkin, miner, said when he started working at Blackball in 1916 the miners would go into the- mine on a back Saturday, work three or four hours, and come out. They did not ask the management to leave, and were paid for the coal hewn. The truckers also got their share. He had asked the manager why the provision for holing coal had been put in the award, but he did not know. He was present at the meetings at which the.resolution respecting the management’s suggested amendment to the award had been made. The Secretary and President were instructed to interview’ the management with a view of reverting to the old agreement. He had received the notice from

the Labour Department respecting the re--3 quirements of the award, but he took no i notice of it because he did not think the • 1 inspector was conversant with the facts. To Mr Bailey; He hac} never been present at an interview of the union officials . with the management, in which a stateI ment was made to the effect that if the management did not come to term's the , union would “make it warm..’’ He did not hear that statement made nor any- < thing that would give that construction. Angus McLaggan said that with the ex-.., ception of an absence of 14 months he had been a miner at Blackball since 1911. Miners and truckers were at that time . paid full time, for a short shift. To Mr Bailey: The reason for not pre- . senting himself for work on back Satur- ■ days was that as far as ho knew the short ■ shifts were still in operation. He thought they were entitled to it. He received the communication from the Labour Department informing him that he was liable to prosecution for not presenting himself on pay Saturday. He did not acknowledge the letter, as he did not think the Department expected a reply. “It didn’t have R.S.V.P. at the bottom?” said the Magistrate. William Richardson, shiftman at Blackball, said that shiftmen generally put in 11 shifts outside of pay Friday and back Saturday, and they thought that they were entitled to the time off on back Saturday. Mr Bailey quoted further authorities in reply to the contentions advanced by Mr Joyce, and urged on the Magistrate that if he found for the Department he should inflict a salutary fine, which would serve as ’an example (o other unionists that awards were to be treated in no light fashion. The Magistrate said that as it. was a test case, and as he would have to deal with all the defendants at the one time, he would take time to consider his judgi merit; Decision would therefore be re- ■ served.