THE RAILWAYMEN'S DISPUTE.

New Zealand Herald, Volume LVII, Issue 17459, 1 May 1920, Page 6

THE RAILWAYMEN'S DISPUTE.

General disappointment will be felt this morning that the end of the railwaymen's strike which was confidently anticipated has not been reached. It is an important gain that an agreement to return to duty has been concluded by the executive of the Amalgamated ("Society of Railway Servants, and it would appear that the terms arrived at with this body are such as might be expected to prove acceptable to all the interests involved. A tribunal consisting of three representatives from each side with power to select its own chairman, no enforcement of penalties against men who now return to work, and the reservation of the right to resume the strike if the decision is not endorsed would seem to cover every point that could be reasonably insisted upon as pre-

lirainary to a full resumption of railway" services.' By such a proceeding the railwaymen waive nothing and they have opened to them the probability of a wholly satisfactory settlement without further injury or loss to themselves or to the public. But meantime the termination of the strike awaits the consent of the locomotive men. Although their conference with the Prime Minister proved abortive the possibility of further negotiation remains and the studied reserve of Mr. Massey's statement encourages the assumption that he has not yet abandoned hope of bringing the whole service back to work, It is unfortunate from the public point of view that these negotiations should be of a duplicate character, but the organisation of railway servants is their own affair. Unless he is able to resume discussions with the locomotive men with some prospect of success, Mr. Masscy will doubtless state the one point which prevented an agreement, so that tho public and other sections of railwaymen may judge between the Prime Minister and the Enginedrivers, Firemen and Cleaners' Association. Until this information is available final judgment will necessarily be reserved.