Wages, Condafscms For British Seamen (P.A.) WELLINGTON, This Day

Northern Advocate, 14 March 1947, Page 4

Wages, Condafscms For British Seamen (P.A.) WELLINGTON, This Day

With the receipt of information describing the actual terms ol the new agreement for wages and conditions of British seamen, threatened trouble among the crews of British ships at present in Wellington was avoided yesterday. The president of the New Zealand Seamen’s Union (Mr F. P. Walsh), at a meeting of the British crews held on Wednesday night, advised the men to cable their union in Britain and ask for the full contents of the agreement reached with the shipowners. Mr Walsh read the reply at a stopwork meeting yesterday of the crews of all British ships then in port, and tho men unanimously expressed satisfaction with the new agreement, and thanked Mr Walsh for his services. The cablegram from the British Seamen’s Union stated that the war risk bonus had been transferred to the basic wage. The arrival and sailing-day clauses had gone out of the agreement, which confirmed holidays with pay. Sick pay was now guaranteed, and tho 43-hour'principle was confirmed with compensatory leave or payment. Overtime rates were increased. All concessions regarding wartime hours were retained, and there were certain increases. The agreement would be operative from April 1.