ALLEGED STRIKE

New Zealand Herald, Volume 81, Issue 25050, 14 November 1944, Page 4

ALLEGED STRIKE

charged SOUTHERN TEST CASE LONG UNION MEETING (P.A.) WELLINGTON, Monday A waterside worker, James Henry Biggs, was charged in the Magistrate's Conurt today with being a party to a strike contrary to the Strike and Lockout Emergency Regulations, 1939, in that being a worker in the employ of the Waterfront Control Commission he discontinued his employment, such discontinuance having tho tendency to interfere with the delivery of goods in tho shipping industry. The defendant was one of 402 watersiders against whom summonses alleging the same offences were issued. His case is to be a test case for the remainder. Mr Cunningham appeared for the inspector of factories, who laid the informations, and Mr Ongley for the defendant. Mr J. L. Stout was on the Bench. No Work Done by Day Shift Evidence called by Mr Cunningham was to the effect that on October 11' the Wellington Waterside Workers' Union held its usual etop-work meeting for which provision had been made by order of the Waterfront Commission. Such meetings were to be held on the second Wednesday in each month and were to last for two hours from 8 a.m. to 10 a.m. On October 11 the meeting did not finish until shortly after 3 p.m., when the men went home. At about 11.20 a.m. the union advised that the meeting would continue in the afternoon. No work was done by the day shift that day. On Tuesday, October 10, said Mr Cunningham, one overseas ship and four other vessels were worked. On Wednesday, when the stop-work meetings was held, the vessels had not been completed and the men were still under engagement. They should have commenced not later than 10 a.m. Case for the Defence There had been a change coming over waterfront.control, said Mr Ongley for the defence. The commission ( had tried to vest control in the men and the union. The scheme in theory was that the commission should accept the work arid hand it over to the union. A conference of Waterside Workers' Union branches had been held lasting nine days and tho national executive of the union had prepared 'a report which was submitted .to tho October stop-work meeting in Wellington. A special meeting was called after the ordinary meeting. It went 011 until some time after 3 P.m. it had been said that stop-work meetings were delayed to obtain the benefit of overtime rates, continued counsel. To avoid any such suggestion in the present case the union told the men not to go back.that day. There had been no strike in the ordinary sense. The union executive had a very difficult job to do in keeping 2000 men quiet. It thought its action was in tho best interests of industrial peace. Now that tho men were working round tho clock it was difficult to see what other course they_could have taken other than extending the time of the meeting. Evidence along these lines was given by union officials. Legal argument will be heard tomorrow.