AN ANGRY LABOURIST.

New Zealand Herald, Volume XLVI, Issue 14143, 19 August 1909, Page 6

AN ANGRY LABOURIST.

In' an interpretation given at Auckland in October, 1908;, Mr. Justice Sim, President of the Arbitration Court, ruled that men on out-port work need not be paid for the time spent in travelling during overtime hours, on the ground that the word "day" meant working day, or from eight a.m. to live p.m.

This decision moved Mr. D. McLaren to

strong language on Monday before the * Waterside Workers' Conference at Wel-

lington, in his annual report. " I consider," lie said, "that this interpretation is of the nature of an outrage on commonsense, and it is hard to understand how it can bo justified on, either legal or industrial lines without absolutely murdering the principle of equity outright. As it stands, it means that the Judge has read into the award something that is not stated therein; that he has ignored the fact of a ' working day' in stevedoring work being different from the day in most trades or occupations, inasmuch as a man's day's work (in stevedoring) does iust as well commence at eight p.m. as at eight a.m., and that he has set up the most vicious ruling that an employer may take an employee's time and service during overtime hours without payment in return. I urge the conference to protest- against this unjust decision.