"BOUND BY LAW"

King Country Chronicle, Volume XXXI, Issue 4957, 18 February 1937, Page 5

"BOUND BY LAW"

MINISTERS OF CROWN. FREEZING DISPUTE. Strong criticism of the action of the Minister Of Labour (the Hon. H. T. Armstrong) in varying the freezing workers' award was made by the Leader of the Opposition (the Hon. A. Hamilton) in the course of an address at Martinborough on Monday night. Mr. Hamilton said that the previous Government had abolished compulsory arbitration in industrial disputes in favour of a system of compulsory conciliation and voluntary arbitration. He believed in voluntary arbitration, but recognised that there was something to be said for both systems. The Labour Party had reinstated compulsory arbitration, and he had no objection to the Government adopting that policy, provided both sides abided by the decision of the Court. However, what did they find? The butchers in the freezing works asked the Court for a new award and the Court made a decision. That award was not acceptable to the butchers, and not only did they stop work, but occupied the works, an unconstitutional act without precedent in the Dominion. "The Minister Acted Differently." "What is the next step?" said Mr. Hamilton. "The Minister of Labour commences to get them out of their difficulty, and I want you to remember that the Minister is bound by the law of the land the same as anyone else. The Minister administers the law, and cannot change it until Parliament changes it. I thought that was what the Labour Party stood for, but the Minister acted differently. He amended a Court award when he had no right to anjend it. Parliament had agreed to a system of compulsory arbitration, and once an award is fixed the Minister has no right to alter it unless there is an agreement between the two parties. The parties did not agree to an alteration, but the Minister . made amendments and used as an excuse something that happened twenty years ago. The cases were not parallel, because twenty years ago both parties agreed to leave the decision to Cabinet. On the recent occasion the employers did not agree, and the Minister forced new rates of pay upon them. "These things are significant. If the men do not abide by the law of the land, the Government comes to their aid. This is certainly a new state of affairs in New Zealand.

"The increase given by the Minister of 3d an hour means an increase of from 6d to 7d per sheep. I would not object if the men were entitled to it, but when the Court has made its decision they should be made to comply with it. If the Government is going to undermine the laws, it is also going to undermine confidence in the justice of the Courts which has been a great feature of our legal system."