LITTLE PROGRESS MADE

Greymouth Evening Star, 11 February 1947, Page 6

LITTLE PROGRESS MADE

AUSTRALIAN WATERSIDE DISPUTE 4?* GENERAL CARGO PILING UP (Rec. 11.10 a.m.) SYDNEY, This Day. After conferring in camera until a late hour last night, representatives of the shipowners and watersiders adjourned their meeting until to-day. It is understood that though attempts were made to settle the dispute, which has seriously delayed the turn-round of ships in all Australian ports, little progress was made. Today the matter will come before Mr. Justice Foster in the Arbitration Court. The position on the waterfront remains the same, with the men refusing night work and incurring two days’ suspension for doing so. Deliveries of goods to the wharves have now been curtailed because of the amount of general cargo now lying in the storage sheds. A shipping official says that whereas before the war 20 men working for one hour loaded 20 tons, now a similar gang in a similar time would handle about eight tons. For this and other reasons the turnround of shifs has been slowed 60 per cent., even when the men work after 5 p.m. The waterside workers are persisting in their refusal of night work until their claims for a fortnight’s paid holidays at £B/16/- a week and for 16/- appearance money are satisfactorily settled. Waterside workers who refused night jobs in Sydney to-day received the customary two days’ suspension, which means that day labour, already short, will be more so than ever to-morrow. Although rates for day work on urgent ships on Wednesday would be £4/16/-, or two and a half times ordinary pay, there will be no takers, as the day is set down for the waterside workers picnic.

40-HOUR WEEK DEMANDED BY UNIONS (Rec. 1 Pjg£ BO uRNE, This Day. The Australasian Council of Trade Unions Has asked the Federal and State Governments to grant a 40hour week in industry, restore and increase wages and overhaul the arbitration machinery. In letters to the Governments the council states that these changes would help greatly in overcoming industrial unrest and restoring continuity of production. u . The proposals submitted for immediate implementation include a further increase of 13/- in the basic wage, equal pay for the sexes, increases in the rates of junior workers and apprentices, immediate abolition of wage-pegging, abolition, of taxes on incomes up to £3OO yearly, rigid enforcement and maintenance of price control, extension and speeding up of house building and re-drafting of the Arbitration Act in line with proposals previously submitted to the council.