MINERS’ DISPUTE

Nelson Evening Mail, Volume LXIV, 6 August 1931, Page 11

MINERS’ DISPUTE

POSITION ON COAL-FIELDS

GREYMOUTII; 4th August

Although tho executive of the Blackball. Miners' Union is reported to have held a. meeting oil Monday, ami reaffirmed, the decision to fight the tribute system of mining “to the last ditch,” mine officials on the West Coast who are closely in touch with the position agree that there arc signs of the monthsold dispute between the Union miners and the tribulers being allowed to drop. There was an echo of an early stage of the dispute to-day, when a number of men from the Wallsend mine were charged in the Magistrate’s Court at Groymouth. Shortly after the big demonstration at Blackball against tho tribute miners, a surveyor who was apparently connected with the tribute party at Blackball went down the Wallsend mine during a period it was idle, and as a protest, tho Wallsend miners took a day oil from work. As a result they were prosecuted, and since tho case .necessitated the appearance of many of the men, tho Wallsend mine was idle to-day. AT BLACKBALL At Blackball township the position is stated to be much moro settled, and many men who were thrown out of work following the closing down of the big Blackball mine after a protracted dispute between the management and the miners, are returning to work the new dip, which is being opened on a large scale. Yesterday over one hundred toils of coal was produced from the mine, this constituting a record since its reopening. There are now over forty men in the mine, which in its moro successful days employed three hundred. ’’[’here is a likelihood that unless tho conditions, on the Grevmouth bar moderate and allow several bar-bound vessels to enter the port to load coal, some of the mines will be rendered idle until the bins are again empty. —“Press.” AUSTRALIAN ASSISTANCE (United Press Association—By Electric Telegraph—Copyright) •♦(Received 6th August. 10 a.m. ) SYDNEY. This Day. The central council of the Miners’ Federation decided to do everything possible to assist members of the organisation who are involved in the dispute in New Zealand. It was pointed out that approximately 40 per cent, of the total membership in tho Dominion had been thrown idle.