WORLD OF LABOR.

Mataura Ensign, 16 January 1914, Page 5

WORLD OF LABOR.

HOBART PRINTERS. BY ELECTRIC TELEGRAPH COPYRIGHT. PER UNITKD PRESS ASSOCIATION. Received January 16, 10.45 a.m. LAUNCESTON, Jan. 16. The printers now demand the same terms as those awarded other branches of the trade and have declined to ao i cept the masters' terms. Both papers are still being produced in reduced form. WATERSIDERS TURNED DOWN. Received January 16, 10.45 a.m. MELBOURNE, Jan. 16. j • A conference of the Ship Owners Association and the Waterside Workers' Federation has taken place. The former refused to increase wages, and claimed that the Federation's new log was too extravagant to be entertained. There is no indication of the Fed-] eration's next move. Mr Hughes l refused to cite employers to appear before the Arbitration Court. { DISTRESS AT AUCKLAND. PKB UNITED PRESS ASSOCIATION. i AUCKLAND, Jan. 16. Much distress exists among the married men who went on strike at Auckland and have since been unemployed. The amount of money in the hands of the Strike Committee is small and far j from sufficient to relieve the pressing cases of distress. Small sums are being i paid out to prevent actual hunger, but ' no attempt has been made to ass'st the strikers to pay house, rent. Bailiffs have i been put in possession of numerous (houses and some tenants have been evicted, but there is no case of agents (taking possession of furniture. DRIVERS' DISPUTE. ' PENALTIES OF STRIKING. CHRISTCHURCH, Jan. 16. Judgment was delivered in the Arbitration Court to-day in the caso brought |by the Canterbury Motor-car, Horse I Drivers and Livery Stable Employees' | Union. It stated that after leaving j for a while the dispute under consideration it was reported by the newspapers ; that members of the union had engaged in a strike. The court caused inquiries to be made and obtained a. written statement from Mr (Hunter, secretary of the union, who said the strike was ordered by a majority- of the members on November 24. It was called off as far as most of the men were concerned three days later. These facts, adds the judgment, show that the union was guilty of an' offence under section B of the Act and wan liable to have its registration suspended. The court was of opinion that under the circumstances it should refuse to make an award. If the case were dismissed is might be that workers immediately concerned in the dispute and opposed to the strike would therefore be suffering for the blunders of others. The drivers of motor delivery vehicles could join the new union and obtain an award through it, but no such union was available in the case of livery stable employees. The i court recommended the employers to pay these workers the minimum wage fixed by the last Auckland award—£2 8h weekly.

MARINE ENGINEERS. WELLINGTON. Jan. 16. It is understood that a ballot is be- ; ing taken of members of the Marine i Engineers' Institute to deckle whether f or not branches of the institute at Wei- j lington and Auckland shall he separated ] from the main body. The ballot, it is 1 said, has been ordered by the executive < council of the institute in Sydney to ] satisfy some Australian members who j dissented from the action of New Zea- 1 land members with regard to the late I 6trike and other matters. It is under- > stood that a four-fifths majority is re- ] quired to bring the proposed separation ( about. The ballot should be completed about the end of March. Another rumor is that the engineers 1 are taking a ballot regard ng the work- j ing agreement which exists with the ; members «f the Merchant Service Guild. ; A desire to cancel the agreement is said \ to have manifested itself among some - members of the Engineers' Institute. SEAMEN'S UNION. j j PER UNTT'7-ri PPESf ,',SCOCT»TION WELLINGTON, Jan. 16. j ! The membership of the Seamen's Union is 1600, and it is the largest union registered under the Arbitration Act. The agreement is similar except in one ' or two not very important particulars , : to the old one." . | NO VICTIMISATION. ! AUCKLAND, Jan. 16. j An objection has been raised in regard to a request made by the Auck- ; land Labor Department to local bodies ; and other employers for information as to the employees who had taken part in the recent strike. Some suspicion existed that the information would be used in the compilation of a black list. The chief inspector of the Department here repudiated the suggestion of victimisation. The information asked for was required in the ordinary routine duties of the Department. As to breaches of the award all that concerned the Department was the observance of law. Without the information asked for it was impossible to report on a number of the breaches of the Act comI mitted. It was possible that such information would be followed by prosecution but most decidedly the names would not be filed for the purpose of victimisation.