NEW ZEALAND'S LABOUR TROUBLES.

New Zealand Herald, Volume XLIX, Issue 15056, 27 July 1912, Page 8

NEW ZEALAND'S LABOUR TROUBLES.

THE STRIKE AT WAIHf.

CONCILIATION COMMISSION.

MR. GILES UNABLE TO GO.

TOO MUCK WORK IX AUCKLAND.

i I —^—— i , | • Osxr two of the Conciliation Commls-1 j ekmets (Messrs. I*. Hally and J. R. | | Trigg*) are going to Waihi to investigate ! : | the position regarding the strife. Mr. T. • " j H&rla Giles seal a telegram to the Secre- i , j t&ry of the Labour Department yesterday, ; i stating that he had several sittings of the ; I Conciliation Council already arranged for, i ■ J the parties Laving ail been given notice of , | the meetings. The disputes fixed are:' ] i Iromuoulders*, Tuesday, July 30 3 - bakers', . ) Thursday, August 1; farriers', Monday, ■ August 5; coschworkerV, Thursday, August 8; plasterers', Monday, August 12. In. view of these fixtures, he asked ' Mr. Lomas if a deputy-Commissioner could . be appointed to take over his duties in , Auckland. lis received a reply from toe Secretary, stating that it was impossible to appoint anyone to take over his duties, * and that Mr. Hally and Mr. Triggs would * proceed to Waibi and carry oat their in* , vestigatjons. t The decision not to take Mr. Giles away from his heavy duties in Auckland, while decreasing ihv strength of the ComrnisJ »ion which is to investigate affairs at r Waihi, will be much appreciated locally.. i for about a thousand persons are conl cemed in the various industrial disputes fixed for hearing, and had they been post- ! poned, much inconvenience would postponed, much icconvenienoe would have " been caused.

PEELING IN WAIHI.

STRIKE LEADERS DISSATISFIED. [BY TELEGRAPH. --own cob&esponkent.]

W.uhi, Friday.

The announcement; that the Conciliation Commia&loners will visit Waihi and investigate the dispute, with a view to submitting a report to the Premier (Hon. W. F. Massey), does not find favour with the strike promoters., and supporters of the Labour Federation, who are strongly opposed to action from outside, and contend that it must grove futile in that neither legislation nor "other means can force the men to return to work.

There are however others who will welcome the investigation, in fie hope thai the report of tha Ckmsinissioners will impress upon the Government the necessity for the introduction of legislation enabling those prepared to go to work to do so. If the report serves this parpse raining operations -will, no doubt, be resumed at, no very distant date. "There may, of course, be a shortage of workers at the outset, but this difficulty would be overcome with lime.

FEDERATION TAKING NO PAST.

PREPARED TO KEEP STRIKE

GOING.

[BT TELEGRAPH.7P.ESS ASSOCIATION.]

Wzluxgtos'j Friday.

Mr. Laracy, of the Federation of Labour, told a reporter to-night that the federation is taking no part in the conciliation proceedings that appear to be pending at Waihi in connection with the miners' strike. He says that the federation is quite prepared to carry on the strike. 31oney is coming in plentifully from Australia and various parts of New Zealand, and there will be no difficulty in carrying on for two months at least.

END OF TEE kaitangata DISPUTE

ALL WAGES RAISED.

[Br TET.EGB.IIPIT,— ASSOCIATION.]

DcxEDnr, Friday.

A new- agreement has been arrived at between the Kaitangata Miners' Union (registered under the Arbitration and Conciliation Act) and the Kaitangata Company. The agreement shows that the latter were- willing to give the workers a " square deal," and has been received at Kaitangata with general satisfaction. The hewing rate is fixed at 2b 3d per ton, an increase of 3d ; brushing boards (where a two-men shift is engaged), 2s 6d per ton; shift men's wages, lis (increase Is) 3 first-class shiftmen, 12s (Is increase) ; night shiftmen, 6d extra all round. Truckers' wages are advanced 6cl per shift all round up to the age of 19: trackers, 19 or over, with five years' experience, 10s 6d per shift: firemen, 93 per shift (increase of 6d; ; banksmen, 9s per ehift (increase of Is). One clause allows dip work in a mine being done by contract, tenders to be approved by the union executive. The agreement will be ratified by the Arbitration Court,

WAIEI BOBOCfGH COUNCIL.

DEPUTATION TO PREMIER.

[BY. TELEGRAPH.—PRESS ASSOCIATION'.]

Wellington, Friday.

A deputation from the Waihi Borough Council waited on the Prime Minister (Hon. W. F. Massey) privately yesterday. The Council is not directly concerned in the strike as parties, but they are affected very seriously by it, most of their revenue being from gold duties. As there is no gold being won. they get no duties, and yet have to maintain the services of the borough. Exactly what the deputation asked has not been disclosed.

PREVENTION OF STRIKES

THK "MOXF.Y UL'AHANTEK.

As a means of preventing strikes, the money guarantee, explained' in an article in yesterday's Hee.uju, was discussed with approval by several employers, whom a reporter interviewed yesterdav. The j-cueine depends for its success on the settlement of all disputes by conferences between lepresentatives of*the two parties, both of which place substantial deposits in the hands of trustees as guarantee that no violent measures will be adopted to enforce, a demand.

A proposal of this nature was hinted at during the conference between the Mineowners' Association and the Federation of Labour over the mining disputes. Tho position in Waihi is that the mining companies and their employees were una/jlo to agree upon a method of maintaining a stable condition in the industry, and during the conference the miners' were given an opportunity to propose a monetary guarantee that they would observe the letter of any agreement entered into by the parties. The opinion was expressed to the reporter yesterday that had the system been adopted in Waihi when the Miner.-*' Union withdrew from the Arbitration Act, trie present strike would probably never have occurred. -Mr. D. Goldio, president of the Auckland Employers' Association, said the scheme was perhaps on the whole a good one. It was not a new idea, and most recently was proposed in connection with the dockers' strike in London. It was certainly preferable to any system under which the penalty for a strike fell upon individuals, as the fines might frequently be irrecoverable. The system would be greatly improved, Mr. Goldie suggested, if legislation was enforced demanding that any proposal to call a strike should be

decided by a secret ballot. The most serious objection which presented Itself to him was that only two parties, employers and unionists, would be involved, so 1 that independents "would be forced against their wishes to join a union. That was cot desirable, as every man should be free to sell his labour without the intervention of either a union or union officials. Another objection matte against the system was that, it could not be enforced by legislation. To be effective, the money deposit must, be substantial—£looo was mentioned in the article published yester(3av—and it was. obvious that, a very large number of workers' unions could not raise such an amount from their funds as a surety of their good faith. Several' employers expressed the opinion thai freedom of strikes would be secured if no union was allowed to call a strike unless the proposal was approved by a majority of its members, voting at a secret ballot. | They alio said that the ballot should be ■ conducted by a State official.