THE SHEARERS' DISPUTE.

Manawatu Standard, Volume XLI, Issue 8535, 16 March 1908, Page 2

THE SHEARERS' DISPUTE.

The recommendations of the Conciliation Board in the shearers' dispute are as follows: — That the dispute be ■ formally referred to the Court of Arbitration,. and that the parties thereto make joint application to the said Court for an award in terms following, as agreed to at a conference of the parties by their representatives:— Rates of Pay.—The shearing rate shall not be less than 20s per one hundred sheep, with rations supplied. If rations are not supplied the rate shall not be less than 22s 6d per hmy dred. The rate for shearing adult rams shall be double the foregoing rates, and the rate for shearing stud sheep | shall be mutually agreed upon. At the commencement of the shearing the employer shall fix a day on which his shearers shall have the right to receive weekly progress payments, not exceeding 75 per centum of the amount then due. Payment may be made to each shearer himself or to his order, and either by cheque, in cash, or by order, and, if the cheque is on any bank of which there is no local branch, exchange shall be added. Provided that any cheque which the payee requires to remit to the place on which it has been drawn shall be deemed to be a local cheque. Subject to previous payments and to any sum legally due the employer, all sheep shorn shall be paid for 'in full at the end of the shearing, provided that a shearer or his administrator shall be entitled to and shall receive payment in full on the termination employment through illness or death in his family. Hours of Labour. —The hours of labour shall in every case be subject to agreement between employer and the shearers' representative. " Cut-outs" shall likewise be the subject of agreement.

Accommodation, etc.—With respect to accommodation the following provisions shall apply:—(l) The employer shall provide free grazing for one horse to each shearer. (2) The employer shall provide a grindstone if and when the same shall be required. - (3) When machines are used the employer shall provide all machinery and oil; provided that every shearer shall pay cost price for combs and cutters. (4) Where rations are provided it shall be the duty of the employer to provide a sufficiency of good food, including butter and jam; provided that one and a quarter pounds per week shall be and deemed to be a sufficient weekly allowance of butter for each man. (5) The provisions of the last preceding paragraph shall apply whether the cooking is done by contract or otherwise. (6) Where a dining-room, is provided the same shall be sufficiently lighted until 9 p.m. / No Discrimination, etc.—No employer shall in the conduct of his business or in the engagement or dismissal of men discriminate against members of the union, nor shall any employer do anything for the purpose of injuring the union directly or indirectly; provided that nothing herein contained shall prejudice the right of the employer to dismiss any man for incompetence or misconduct. Any shearer absenting himself from work without leave or without other reasonable grounds, or found bringing intoxicants to the premises shall be guilty of misconduct within the meaning of the last-preceding clause. When members of the union and non-members are employed together there shall be no distinction between them, and both classes shall work together in harmony and shall receive equal pay for equal work.

General Provisions.—Every shearer shall with all reasonable dispatch shear the sheep requiring to be shorn, and in good time and in a workmanlike manner to the satisfaction of the employer. The number to be shorn shall (approximately) be agreed upon by and between the employer and the shearers' representative at the commencement of the shearing. It shall, be the duty of the shearers to elect a representative on whom shall devolve the duty of settling all disputes between themselves and the employer; provided that the employer if he considers the sheep too wet to be shorn may turn them out. > All sheep shall be taken carefully from the catching pen, and no sheep shall be "legged out " unless by permission of the employer. No shearer shall kick or otherwise illtreat any sheep. If, and when a sheep has been seriously cut, it shall be the duty of the shearer who has shorn the sheep at once to report the fact to the employer. The employer may require any shearer who has turned out a sheep badly cut or insuiuciently tarred to sew and tar the wounds or otherwise to treat and dress the wounds. But, except in so far as by this clause provided, it shall not be the duty of any shearer to tar sheep. No shearer shall-be required to shear any sheep suffering from any infectious disease. It hall be ■ the duty in every case of the employer to "dag" his sheep, but sheep dagged three weeks before the commencement of the shearing shall be deemed to be clean, and a maximum of fifteen per centum shall be allowed for sheep that have been missed by the employer. There shall be no limitation to the number of learners in any ehed. An agent of the union duly authorised in writing shall have the right to visit any shed during the shearing. Such agent shall notify the employer of his presence in every case, and he shall have no right to interfere with the shearers during working hours. Subject to the provisions herein contained, every employer shall have the fullest control over the shearing shed, and may make rules as he thinks expedient for the proner management Sf the same. Nothing herein contained shall be deemed to apply to the members of any employer's family who may be employed by him to shear his own sheep. Duration of Award.—This award shall come into operation on th§ fourteenth day of April, 1908, and shall remain in operation until and including the thirty-first day of March, 1910, and thereafter unless and until superseded by another award or industrial agreement.