Dominion's Industrial System

Manawatu Times, Volume LIV, Issue 7270, 25 September 1933, Page 7

Dominion's Industrial System

VALIDITY OF REGULAR AWARDS NOT THREATENED. Per Press Association. WELLINGTON, Sept. 23. A statement dealing with the position created by the ruling of the Arbitration ‘Court, as reported from Auckland, that two awards were invalid in consequence of the Appeal Court’s decision regarding certain clauses, was made to-day by Air Bishop, secretary of the Employers’ Federation. He thinks that an altogether wrong impression may be created. After saying that the awards were obtained by unions entering into industrial agreements privately with a number of employers whom they canvassed for signatures, afterwards applying to the Arbitration Court to have them converted into awards, and still later applying to have joined a number of employers who were not parties to the making of the agreements, he said: “What I want to make clear is, that in my opinion neither the latest decision of the Court of Arbitration nor the decision of the Court of Appeal in the Hollaby case in any way endangers existing awards obtained in the proper way.”

Mr Bishop thought 1 -the statement that at least SO per cent, of existing awards and agreements were invalid was a great exaggeration; but, whether it was an exaggeration or not, l-e was conduced that the employers who were parties to such awards as had been properly made in good faith would observe them throughout their entire period. He added, “In the past system, our major industries have carried on for years at a time on an agreement honourably entered into, but which had uot been made legally enforceable by registration in any way, and which in some cases had not even been signed. The foundation of the industrial system of New Zealand depends much more upon good faith and confidence between employers, on the one hand and workers on the other than upon legal enforcement.”