COAL SHORTAGE IN AMERICA.

New Zealand Herald, Volume XLIX, Issue 14947, 21 March 1912, Page 7

COAL SHORTAGE IN AMERICA.

UNITED STATES NAVY. (Received March 20. 11.25 p.m.) Washington, March 20. The coal shortage threatens the United States navy supplies. The Secretary of the Navy (Mr. G. Von L. -Meyer) has arranged a conference with the bituminous coal operators with a view to securing an adequate supply. MINIMUM AGE SCHEDULE. Reference lias several times been made in the cablegrams to the minimum wage schedule adopted by the Miners' Federation Conference on February 2. On that date the conference passed a series of resolutions setting forth in detail tho demand for a minimum wage, which were intended to furnish the basis upon which negotiations would be further conducted, not only in local districts, but also in tho national conference of coalowners and workmen to bo held in London. Tho resolutions were:

(1) That in accordance with the resolutions agreed upon at tho last meeting of this conference, held in Birmingham, and further confirmed at a conference held in London on November 15 last, the following claims be formulated for an individual wage in such districts for pieceworkers at tho face of coal :—Yorkshire, 7s 6d ; Lancashire, 7s; Midland Federation. 6s to 7s ; Derby, 7s lid to 7s 6d : Nottinghamshire, 7s 6d ; North Wales, 6s ; Leicestershire, 7s 2d ; South Derby, 6s 6d ; Somerset, 4s lid; Bristol, 'lid (whilst this is fixed as a minimum it is understood that it will not affect in any way a higher rate of 5s and 5s 3d already prevailing in the Bristol coalfields) ; Cumberland, 6s 6d ; Scotland, 6s; South Wales, 7s IJd to 7a 6d ; Northumberland, 6s to 7s 2d : Durham, 6s ljd ; Forest of Dean, 5s lOd ; Cleveland, 5s lOd. (2) No underground adult worker shall receivo a rate of wages less than 5s per shift. This resolution, however, is not to apply to Somerset, the Forest of Dean, and Bristol.

(3) Individual minimum wages for all pieceworkers other than those working at the. face of coal to be arranged by the districts themselves, and to bo as near as possible to the rates paid at the present time in each district.

(4) Seeing that the rates paid to the underground workers who are paid by day wages are so complex and difficult to deal with generally wo leave this matter to the districts, with instructions that they endeavour to arrange the minimum wages for each class or grade of those workers locallv in each district.

(5) Arrangements for a list of boys' wages is to be left to the various districts, but they are to be not less than present wages, nor in any caso less than 2s per day for any boy.