COMPULSORY ARBITRATION IN NEW ZEALAND.

New Zealand Herald, Volume XXXIX, Issue 11854, 4 January 1902, Page 5 (Supplement)

COMPULSORY ARBITRATION IN NEW ZEALAND.

JUDGE / BACKHOUSE'Sv REPORT.

SIR. W. P. REEVES' COMMENTS. [from OUR. OWN . CORRESPONDENT.]

London, November 23. Much ;attention has been attracted in England to the report of District Judge Backhouse on the New Zealand. system of compulsory arbitration in labour disputes.

■-■,-■■ Reviewing the whole subject, the; Westminster Gazette says: —" It has long been felt that the system of compulsory arbitra-. tion of trade disputes, inaugurated in New -Zealand by Mr. W. "P. ' Reeves' ; Act of 1894, was one of the curiosities of '• the British Empire. : The interest iii it has been not so much serious as affectionate, New Zealand being regarded as a peculiar, and unique place, and the thought of such a scheme being applied to our vast industrial system being calculated to stagger the imagination. ■'; To Australia, however, New Zealand is, '■. comparatively speaking; a next-door neighbour; her bold experiments excite a constant desire for emulation on the .' Australian Continent. ' Labour,' there is organised in political 'parties,' and has become a great political force seeking for outlets. Its originality and inventiveness are extremely small, and it tends to press on wherever an individual spirit elsewhere has pointed the way. The question of copying the example of New Zealand has consequently been much to the fore in New South Wales.'' s ; After detailing the circumstances of Judge Backhouse's mission, the Westminster Gazette says:— cannot be said that Judge Backhouse rose to the full possibilities of his great opportunity. He might have collected a mass of facts and documents which would have been of the greatest sociological interest to the whole civilised world. Instead of this he contented himself with digesting his general impressions, and presented a report which, deducting formal ••parts,-' is of , the dimensions and character of a readable but somewhat lengthy magazine article. ' Even so, his impressions de voyage are of very great interest, and should not be passed over by persons in this country who are watching the New Zealand experiment." In conclusion the same journal says: — " The verdict of the Judge is on the.whole favourable, but he adds some significant cautions. ,It is too soon to judge. ,'Since it came into operation in New ; Zealand everythiiig has been in favour of an increase in the emoluments and of an amelioration of the conditions of labour, and there cannot be the slightest doubt that wages would have risen if there had been no Act.' . The Act has not yet touched the export industries—wools, frozen mutton, kauri gum, etc. What will happen when a time of depression supervenes and the awards begin to cut down the rates of wages? Will they be loyally accepted by the workmen? On this point the Judge is apprehensive; and the two eases he cites certainly seem to justify his apprehensions. One thing that strikes us as extraordinary is the establishment of the principle of preference for members of unions. It should be remembered that this means industrial unions, registered under the Act, and not necessarily trade unions as industrial unionists only number 26,000 out of 18,000 workers, that fact does not help us much. Moreover, Mr. Seddon now proposes to put trade unions on the same footing as industrial unions. Finally, what about the Conciliation Boards? These, it seems, are doomed. They did not give general satisfaction, and an amendment has just been carried to the Bill now before Parliament giving direct access to the Arbitration Court." The Daily Mail says: -" The adoption by New South Wales of a system of compulsory arbitration based on the New Zealand law is attracting some attention to the latter. Some months since Mr. Seddon, • the Premier of New. Zealand, was reported as being seriously discontented with it. He denied the correctness off this. 'General satisfaction prevails respecting the present labour laws,' he says. 'Some fault has been found with the administration of the Conciliation Boards, as, unduly citing ; witnesses, and thereby protracting' the proceedings, but nothing more.' Mr. Pember Reeves, father of compulsory arbitration and Agent-General for New Zealand, declared to a Daily Mail representative that the law has been a complete success. There has been no strike of organised labour during the past six years,' he said. 'There have been a few petty cases by unorganised labourers, varying in numbers from 16 to 50. jln no case has there been ;> strike affecting more than 50 men during these six years. It must be remembered that the Act deals only with organised labour. In no case has there been any stoppage of industry. Work has gone on all the time, and goes on all the time. There has simply been a revision of wages to be compared with the work of a sliding scale at Home. New Zealand has attained to very great prosperity, and in this process the wages have from time to time had to be altered to suit improved conditions. It is quite a mistake to call such applications as have been made for such revision labour battles.'

"Asked.to explain the reason of delays in New Zealand in settling arbitration cases, Mr. Reeves replied: ' The explanation is simple. By the Consolidating and Amending Act of 1900, a number of new occupations were brought into the arbitration system. The unions in those occupations hastened to register, and in the following year several of them brought cases before the arbitration tribunals. At the same time the President of the Arbitration Court happened to resign owing to private reasons, and there was a little delay in appointing a successor. These things brought about something in the nature of a block of court business in two or three districts. I understand, however, that »the arrears of business have ; been completely '; wiped out ; now. Three months ago the new President said publicly they would all be disposed of by the end of the year. It must be remembered that the President is a judge of the Supreme Court, and cannot give his whole time to the arbitration work.'"