UNION ACTIVITY

New Zealand Herald, Volume LXXV, Issue 22949, 29 January 1938, Page 16

UNION ACTIVITY

EFFECT OF AWARDS APPLICATION IN FUTURE NEW METHOD FOR DISPUTES ' [BY TELEGRAPH —PRESS ASSOCIATION] CIIRISTCHURCH, Friday A forecast that 1938 would probably sco greater activity 011 the part of trade unions in New Zealand than any other year in the history of the country, was made to-day by Mr. D. I. McDonald, secretary of the Canterbury Employers' Association. Thousands of workers and employers throughout the Dominion were covered by the caretakers, cleaners and liftmen, clerical workers and motor mechanics' award, explained Mr. McDonald. Practically every employer bf labour in New Zealand would bo affected by one or other of the awards. Many unions wore immediately taking advantage of the new method of creating disputes which was brought about by section 5 of the Industrial Conciliation and Arbitration Amendment Act No. 2, 1937. This section no longer made it necessary for the unions to cite all employers in any one industry. It wjis sufficient if tho union cited tho registered association of employers. If no such organisation existed, then it was sufficient if a number of representative employers acceptable to the conciliation commissioner were cited. Under such circumstances all employers in an industrial district concerned in any industry to which the dispute related would bo deemed to be responsible parties as though they had been actually named. "In other words," said Mr. McDonald, "once an award is made in future it will automatically apply to every employer who employs any worker covered by that particular award. The onus is on the employer to find out whether he has to comply with any particular award. The Department of Labour in Wellington has the question of notification to employers under consideration at the present time. It appears that tho only logical method of notification is by means of nowspaper advertising."