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ARBITRATIO IN COURT.

ENGINE-DRIVERS' DISPUTE. QUESTION OF LONG HOURS. Thi! Arbitration Court resumed its sitting, .V before Mr. Justice Sim and Messrs. S." Brown and J. A. McCnllough, yesterday •' morning,, when the engine-drivers', dispute . was taken, 187 employers being cited. The union asked for a 48' hours' week, over- " time at the rate of,time and a-quarter for the first two hours, and time and a-half thereafter, double time on holidays, a . minimum wage of £3 per week for firstclass certificated engineers, £2 14s for second class, and £3 for locomotive, traction, and winding engine-drivers', and river engineers, engineers signing articles in the \ . .river trade to be paid not less than £14 per month and found, and preference to unionists. The employers stated that they were prepared to accept the old award, except . that it should not. apply to workers em- . ployed on any ferry boat, steam boat, or steamship, or to the New Zealand Portland Cement Company, or Wilson's Portland Cement. Company, so long as they maintained the existing conditions of employment, such conditions not to be altered without the consent of the Court. The employers were represented by Mr. C. C.'rosvenor, Mr. 0. Frasef appearing for. the engineers, Mr. T. White for the timber workers, .Mr. E. W. Alison for the Ferry Company, Mr. W. 0. Smith fur the shipowners, and .Mr. S. Ambury (in con- - junction with Mr. H. E. Pacey) for the dairy factory owners, amongst others. . The secretary of the union (Mr. Banfield), in conjunction with the president (Mr. T. Long), appeared for the union. Whittome and Co., Cambridge Dairy Company, Cousins and Cousins, Taupiri Coal Mines, and the Government Public Works sawmill, Kaheke, were struck out of the list of employers, His Honor stating that the Court had no jurisdiction in the latter case. The Auckland City Coim- • - til was exempted, as regards the destruci tor. waterworks, and electric lighting, so > long as present conditions are observed. ; v In opening the case for the union Mr. - Long submitted that it was possible to • - work eight hours all round. He drew attention to the statements that had been • made regarding the recent railway disaster in Victoria, that the drivers had been on duty continuously, for 18 hours. Men '' in the river trade in Auckland were worked for'lß or even 36 hours at a stretch, dnd then there was considerable Sundaywork. No increases in wages were asked, : lie pointed out, except to traction engine* ; drivers. ' , f A large number of witnesses were called • :?: to support the claims of the workers. Edward Hodson, an employee of the Ferry Company, said he had worked 842 hours in one week, for a wage of £3 10s. He would prefer to work a week of 48 hours for 10s i«ss. He was a river engineer, • ••'. holding a third-class engineer's certificate. , \Vm. Howley Entwistle, another employee of the Ferry Company, said lie. was ' called on to work 83, 78, and 4S hours per week consecutively. He received £3 10s ■;■■:,' per week. Asked if he would be satisfied with £4 a week , witness indicated that : that would be satisfactory. • George S. Harvey, holding a first-class certificate as engine-driver to the' Auck- •: land Gas Company, said lie worked 56 ;|r« hours a week, including 8 hours' on Sun-l-'i day. .Witness received no pay for getting : up steam on Sundays. Arthur N. Elliott, an engine-driver in ./■.the employ of the 'Devvnport- Ferry Com- . pany, said lie,got'£3 10s per week, and A he did not consider the salary sufficient. h~ He thought the service could be run on h eight hours shifts if an extra "engineer was,, employed, though if this principle V-' was introduced all-round it would mean . \ another captain, deck hand, and fireman. Other evidence having been given the . case was adjourned until this morning.

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Permanent link to this item

https://paperspast.natlib.govt.nz/newspapers/NZH19080509.2.82

Bibliographic details

New Zealand Herald, Volume XLV, Issue 13745, 9 May 1908, Page 7

Word Count
631

ARBITRATIO IN COURT. New Zealand Herald, Volume XLV, Issue 13745, 9 May 1908, Page 7

ARBITRATIO IN COURT. New Zealand Herald, Volume XLV, Issue 13745, 9 May 1908, Page 7