AUSTRALIAN SHIPPING TRADE.

Lyttelton Times, Volume CVIII, Issue 12996, 11 December 1902, Page 5

AUSTRALIAN SHIPPING TRADE.

• A THREATENED STRIKE. United Press Association—By Electric Telegraph—Oqpyrigiit. (Received Dec. 11, 1.24 a.m.) SYDNEY, Dec. 10. Tlie conference of the Federated Steamship Owners and Seamen's Union met again to-day, but after a short sitting came to an abrupt conclusion. The Press was excluded, and nothing has'been aillowed. to transpire pending the issue of the official statement, which the Secretary of the Owners' Association is now preparing, and which, probably, will not be available before an early hour in the' morning.

The only authentic statement has emanated from Mr Appleton, representative of the Victorian owners, who stated that -they •had just parted from the delegates of the Seamen's Union without coming to a settlement. He regretted to say that there seemed every prospect of a serious strike,"and he could only hope that better counsels would prevail. Each time they had met before, the shipping companies had dealt with the men in a fair manner. He regretted that in view -of the present conditions of trade the representatives of the men could not see their way to do .something i?i return. At the termination of the conference the seamen met to discuss the situation, but definitely, refused to say any tiling until after the issue of the owners' promised statement. It is reported that the trouble arose through the owners wishing to enforce, owing to the depressed state of the shipping trade and the keenness of competition & reduction of a. pound as month in wages. This the men refused to listen, to. STATEMENT BY THE OWNERS. • (Received Dec. 11, 1.43 a.m.) , SYDNEY, Dec. 10* The official'statement'.'by the steamship owners in connection with the Conference was issued! late to-night. It shows that Mr Appleton, president of the Owners' Federation, presided, and l in his opening address pointed out that owing*, to the reduced volume of traffic and competition not only by foreign vessels, but through the enormous tonnage freed by the termination of the Boer war, it was necessary to make a rediuction in wages. Ho directed attention to the fact that owners, besides having terminated the charters of vessels "totalling something like 23,000 tons, had already laicll up a large number of vessels with a carrying, capacity of 28,000 tons. Mr R. S. Guthrie, replying on behalf of the seamen, controverted the owners' statements and urged that the falling-off in trade was not so great as was represented, llr Appleton called attention to tire-June conference, when the seamen agreed to accept a reduction of ten shillings per month from the end 1 "of January provided that there had been no improvement in the trade in the meantime. He then proposed a; reduction of a pound per month to date from the end of January next. The seamen's delegates emphatically refused to accept the reduction or .make any concession,- but stated they were willing to renew tho present • agreement. The conference thereupon! terminated with mutual expressions of regret that it had not resulted in an amicable settlement.