LAWBEATH DISPUTE

Greymouth Evening Star, 26 October 1929, Page 5

LAWBEATH DISPUTE

WATERSIDERS’ ATTITUDE,

(Per Press Association.)

DUNEDIN, October 25.

The London steamer “Lawbeath,” which arrived at Port Chalmers this morning from Lyttelton, where she was delayed for a fortnight, owing to trouble with the crew, was delayed again to-day, as the aftermath of the trouble at Lyttelton. The trouble at Lyttelton was owing to the European deckhands and Lascar firemen declining to continue at work unless they received the wages and conditions ruling in New Zealand. They were brought to Court and convicted on a charge of impeding the ship, and were sentenced to a month’s imprisonment, with a proviso that they would be liberated when prepared to resume work on the old conditions. The Lascars and two of the Europeans capitiulated and returned to work after two or three days in gaol. Three of the men refused to resume work, and seamen were shipped in their places at Lyttelton. ' The waterside workers held a stopwork meeting and they declined to start discharging the 4000 tons of Nauru phosphate which the vessel had on board for this port. It is understood that the matter has been referred to the Union headquarters at Wellington and that the working of the cargo to-morrow depends on the nature of the reply.