LABOUR DISPUTES.

New Zealand Times, Volume LXXI, Issue 4405, 11 July 1901, Page 5

LABOUR DISPUTES.

Wellington conciliation BOARD. (Own Correspondent.) MASTERTON, July 10. The Wellington Conciliation Board sat at Masterton to-day to hear the evidence of country printers in the dispute between the Wellington Letter-press Machinists’ and Lithographers’ IJnicn of Workers and the city employers. The members of the Board present were Messrs Grewes (in the chair), D. P. Fisher, Collins, Field and Flockton. Mr A. Walsh represented the Union, of Workers, and Mr W. Clement Cargill appeared for th© country printers. Mr Cargill submitted that there was no dispute between country printers and employers, and that if a dispute should arise, it would be advisable that a separate district be made.

The chairman said the industrial districts had been defined by an Order-in-Council, and it was not within the province of the Board to alter the boundaries.

Mr Cargill said he was prepared to show the impracticability of the demands. Any award specialising any particular branch of work in a country office, would be impracticable. William Charles Nation deposed that h 0 had had forty-five years’ experience in the trade in all its branches. Country offices could not compete with those in the oity on account of double rail carriage and difference in machinery. City papers had a larger turnover, and comd buy more largely. Experts were not needed to attend to machines in country offices. To Mr Fisher: There was not the do« maud in tho country for the same class of work as was executed in the city. E. H. Waddington (Masterton) stated ho found that th®re was continual competition by Wellington printers. J. R. Nicol stated that his jobbing hand did machining as well. His hands worked forty-five hours a week. If they had to pay the demands of the union for overtime because Easter Saturday was made a compulsory holiday, it would b* very hard on them. J.’B. Emmett stated that he had been a printer for about seventeen years. There was a great difference in a machinist in a city and country office. In th e °ity a man was a machinist pur* and simple. A country machinist could not get employment at a city office. At the afternoon sitting, witness, recalled, stated that, in his opinion, the work in country offices was not sufficient _to give constant employment to machinists.

Andrew Nicol, in the employ of E. H. Waddington, said travellers from city firms canvassed Masterten. He thought wages should be lower in the country than in the city as the oost of living was not so high. ' J. H. Claridgo did not consider then was any danger of country, firms competing with city firms. He did not believe iq apprentices, as indentures were not worth the paper they were written on. He did not consider the proposal of th 6 union aa to hours would work. Mr Walsh, representing the union, stated that ne was prepared to accept the ruling of the Arbitration Court that the working hours in each week should be regulated according to the special requirements and circumstances of each employer’s business, so long as; the hours did not exceed forty-four in the week.

The Board adjourned till tomorrow, when one more witness will bo called by the employers, and addresses will be heard.

THE WEST AUSTRALIAN RAILWAY STRIKE. PERTH, July 10. Matters in connection with the railway strike are quiet. It is rumoured that the Ministers, who hold office only on. sufferance, are likely to resign, and leave' the settlement of the strike to their successors.