WEST COAST MINES

Nelson Evening Mail, Volume LXIV, 19 June 1931, Page 9

WEST COAST MINES

UNION DICTATION AT BLACKBALL

THREAT 01 : BOYCOTT Pli-OMFT RETORT 15V COMPANY BLACKBALL. 17tl» Juno. Ono of the weapons of the miners in their campaign against any resumption of work here, whether by the Blackball Coal Company's employees m the party operating allegedly under the tribute system, is the. boycott, which the Cnion members are endeavouring to extend to every sphere, including entertainments and dealings with the business community, states a special service message to the Christchurch "Press”.

Acting under Union dictation, storekeepers "have refused supplies to members of the co-operative party and men working in the Blackball ( ompany s mine.

Prompt action has been taken by tho manager of the Blackball mine, who has informed the storekeepers that if they maintain this attitude the company will open a store and supply the men with the necessaries of life. Stocks have been accumulated, and the company is well prepared for the next move. AH was quiet in Blackball to-day, and the co-operative miners continued the worlc of development on the freehold. It is now anticipated that the demonstration against the men working at. the Briandale colliery, near the seacoast in the vicinity of Runanga, will not eventuate until next week. There was no sign of trouble to-day at the State, Dobson, or Wallscnd mines. The charges laid by the police against Blackball residents in connection, with the demonstration here yesterday and tlie incident near Ngahere on Saturday night will be heard in the. Greymoutli Courthouse on Monday. While the Blackball mine has been idle practically since New Year, _ the Paparoa colliery, where production is on the co-operative system, has not lost a shift for many months. The Blackball Company has received no offers yet from co-operative parties willing to prepare the No. 2 dip for production, but it is anticipated that sufficient labour will be available shortly to commence work there.

DISPUTE IN BULLER

i! A HAVA Y.MEN MAY BE INVOLVED

WESTPORT, 17th June,

An urgent meeting of the Westport branch of the Amalgamated Society of Railway Servants was called for last evening to receive a communication from the National Council of the United Mine Workers, enquiring what action the railway servants propose to adopt in regard 1.0 the handling of Charming Creek and Cascade coal, which is being produced under the tribute system. As the Westport Waterside Workers' Union had declared this coal “black, the local secretary of the Amalgamated Society of Railway Servants communicated with the head office of his Society and expected instructions in sufficient time to place them before the meeting, which was to be hold ,at the watcrsiders' shed. The railwayman, will confer with the waterside workers.

The steamers Kaloa and Komata are due to-day at Westport to take cai'gocs of coal from these mines. The matter is viewed with considerable interest, as so far no objection to sailing with tribute coal lias been publicly expressed by the seamen. The handling of the coal at the ship s side is carried out entirely by railway servants. No further action has vet been taken by the coal mine organisations against the tribute minors.