USE OF FOREIGN SHIPS.

New Zealand Herald, Volume LXVII, Issue 20620, 19 July 1930, Page 13

USE OF FOREIGN SHIPS.

CHARTERING BY GOVERNMENT STRONG PROTEST TO MINISTER. MANY SEAMEN OUT OF WORK. [BY TELEGRAPH.—OWN CORRESPONDENT.] WELLINGTON. Friday. An emphatic protest against tho chartering by the Government of foreign ves-sels-in tho phosphate, fruit and hardwood trades was made to the Minister in chargo of tho Cook Islands, Sir Apirana Ngata, by representatives of the Seamen's Union to-day. Sir Apirana said ho would place tho matter before Cabinet, as many of tho points raised were outside his jurisdiction.

Mr. P. Fraser, M.P. for Wellington Central, who introduced tho deputation, said that for some considerable time the fruit, phosphates and hardwoods required in New Zealand had been brought into tho country mostly by foreign ships, on which the seamen were paid a much lower wage than on New Zealand ships, and worked under conditions that the Dominion would not tolerate. There were a large number of seamen out of work, and ho was sure the Minister would agree that it was a foolish policy not to employ New Zealand men.

Mr. J. Walsh, secretary of tho Seamen's Union, said thpy wished to protest strongly against preference being given to foreign ships, on which the wages were 50 per cent, lower than those on ships under New Zealand articles. There were five ships in the phosphate trade, and these would give work for over 180 men. Furthermore, if New Zealand ships wero employed they would bo overhauled in tho Dominion, and this would give employment to Zealand labour. On tho ships at present chartered there wero seamen from almost every country in tho world, and it seemed that tho Government had gone out of its way to employ cheap labour.

Kir Apirana Ngata: You want to justify tint.

Mr. Walsh said that in the Bunbury hardwood trade, supplying sleepers to the Railway Department, a Danish ship employing Swedish labour was used. As there were a number of seamen out of work they looked upon the question as a serious one. Many New Zealand seamen had fought in the Great War, and preference was now being given to their late enemies. Instead of taxing the workers to provido work for the unemployed it would be belter to find work for them on New Zealand ships.

Not a penny of the money paid to tho foreign seamen was spent in the Dominion, concluded Mr. Walsh. There were dozens of ships lying idle in New Zealand waters that could be chartered.

Sir Apirana said the question raised was a much bigger one than he had anticipated. lie had thought the deputation would raiso some aspect of the Maui Pornare. It was difficult to get the Union Company or the Northern Company to enter into tho fruit trade when all the fruit might bring was two shillings a. case.

Mr. Eraser: Surely it would be possible for the Union Company to take up the trade.

Sir Apirana said it was not a question of manning the ships. It was a question of costs, but ho would investigate the whole position and seo what could be dono.