RAILWAY CONCILIATION.

New Zealand Herald, Volume XLIV, Issue 13625, 19 December 1907, Page 6

RAILWAY CONCILIATION.

•••■ '■.----:■.'.. • ' , .w INTERVIEW WITH MR. REEVES ■ FRIENDLY CRITICISM. ~ fFItOM OUR OWN CORRESPONDENT.] ) ; ytlft? London, November $,' It was only natural that when tho railway dispute had been settled on conciliation and arbitration lines the views of the Hon. Iff Pcmber Reeves should be sought. In conversation with mo this afternoon he referred to tho enormous number of geetional conciliation boards, and the coin. ' plexity of the system which has just been adopted. He thought that in full working - order there would bo something liko 166 ot ' these boards, and at least between 30 and ~ 40 conciliation boards, with appeals from ' them to arbitration or arbitrators. ." If tho Men's Society is the guiding ' spirit, and tho arbitrator is the same man *• «• ,• ' remarked Air. Reeves, "and ho is a really •■. - competent arbitrator who goes on taking - tho cases that come, 1 think there will be a certain uniformity and continuity of policy ' and that some sort ot a fair mouus vivenai " in luo way ot hours and wages will- be ' ' thrashed out gradually—very gradually-- v ' because you, have 3U or 40 companies to,. . • deal with. If Mr. Bell's society docs not ■ ' manage to impress the general policy,, op" if you have halt-a-dozen dirferent arbitrator* ->»'- you may get. a very considerable state of iriction and. confusion. A great deal, will . depend oil whether the best men will Lfrightened and unwilling to work on tR • boards with their own bosses. Generally <>->>"-';'• speaking, I think the extraordinary good iv sense and moderation shown by Mr. Richard'V4i' Bell and his people in accepting this, and' ' ■ the feeling on both sides, with the fact that "•■ > the public won't stand a big railway strike ' or lock-out, will all co-operate in favour of " their coming to some working basis, bo that '-' in that way 1 am fairly hopeful." -. •-,,,_, "On the face of it," Mr. Reeves continued, "this scheme is ostensibly a non-union 'i' system altogether. Our system in New Zea- A; land is absolutely based on unionism— "'. union of men and the union of employe™. %■' As the piecer-together of the Act, l.wat ".'■'. determined it should be based on unionism. ':' Here, ostensibly, you ignore the union ele* ■'■•'■*'"' rnent. If this system is not perfect from,., j a union point of view, however,' you. must - remember that this is a compromise wived ,' at between two contesting parties on the v verge of a strike. It would be unreasonable : • to expect an ideal system. The direct re- ,1 cognition of unionism is the first thing I "V aimed at in New Zealand; but if under 1 this system a powerful body like the.* ■ A.S.R.S. is able to make use of it to help - the men, that would go far towards the same goal in another way. ■•' '}- "One is immensely struck, of course,' by,V the extremely elaborate nature of the scheme. Consider the number of sectional boards there will be converging on ; the central arbitrator. In such a system &s < that there must be many openings for in- A consistency p.nd friction. Of course, the ; more the influence of the A.S.R.S. is felt, '' the stronger effort there will bo to bring'-' the decisions of the different companies into, * line. There can be no doubt that ite influence will be in favour of uniformity, while - , at the same time there will bo resisting powers trying to obtain particular advantages or disadvantages in the various coin'I panies. "At the present stage one has only the barest skeleton of the scheme to consider. W The thing is so elaborate that columns of rules will have to bo laid down.' Who Ml'".''.. draw them up? The Board, of Trade,* Ii hope 1 You have-had this proposal signed by 11 important companies. Are the rest '.. of the companies-coining in? Supposing; ~"■■■. some do not, Parliament would, I think, be 1 entitled to add them. > The questions «6 "bi * ' settled by this elaborate machinery are tot, be confined to wages and hours. Why, some of the most appalling labour disputes hanr *' turned on other questions. • ' , V ;,'.*',' "My opinion is that it■ woulds* nmobi ,1 better if other questions, as, welW"Vw*ge« , and hours, could be dealt, with. "Wwhspitf^ 1 "',"' they got that idea from the original drafl ■ of, the ■■ "Victorian Wages /Boards Aet,'»hicb confined the v questions to wages and hours.! But the object of that was not to put an en* to strikes, but to stamp out the' grbiaer! " forms of sweating. The ..'object '<£" this arrangement, on the other hand, ii'M%T prevent strikes. , V n ' , i "Of course, I regret that there is no te«4f $'*:$; compulsion for carrying the awards -ot f ws|l'> arbitrator into effect; but I do. not suggest it was possible, to insist upon it. However, , even without . legal compulsion . such^t^rti' soheme should t stand '>■ a-i better chance of' >,** working on the railways, ': : than'Hin^;tftlmci|^M any other form, of » industry, because .- uf%% $ pressure of-public opinion would be so Uw-^r? mendous against the party that caused 1 9 lock-out or a strike.'* ' J • ■■ • •• :* ■ ; ~..'■..-■".