SLAUGHTERMEN'S STRIKE.

Otago Witness, Issue 2762, 20 February 1907, Page 20

SLAUGHTERMEN'S STRIKE.

INCREASE IX PAY DEMANDED. IHE MIX^TKR OF LABOUR SPEAKS OUT. WELLINGTON. February 12.

A stuko is stated to ha\e occurred among.-t the slaughtermen employed by the Gear Moat Company and the Wellington Moat Export Company. The men are said lo ha\e demanded an increase of 25 per cent, in killing rates. There is an Aibitration Court agreement as to the rate, to be paid. The strike is a serious matter, as tho killing \ards are eaid to bo full, with large supplies coming forward. The trouble moans that about 120 men have ceased work, and if they continue out some 500 hands in all will be affected. Briefly put, the men are at pre=ent paid £1 per 1000, and they want 255. The companies offered 21s, and also offered that if tho award of the Arbitration Couit at the expiry of the present award wore fixed at a higher rate they would pay that rate from the present time, meaning that the men would get this a 6 back pay. Up to the present no settlement has been arrived at, thousrh the employers are hopeful. The men, who killed sufficient this morning ' for local supplies, deny they are on strike; they have merely refused to accept work | at the rate offered. ' Referring to the strike of the slaughtermen the- men .«ay that it is quite distinct from the union, which has for nearly three weeks pa6t done all it could to get improved conditions for its members. They wanted the rate per 100 sheep or lambs killed raised from 20s to 25» and no overtime to be worked, and work to cea c c at 12 o'clock on Saturdays, and dead cheep to

s be paid for at the rate of 6d instead of 5d 5 each. The rate of 255, it is stated, prevails} r in three of the Australian States, Tybjl«_ jgg ; other places a bonus 6ystem prevails, "on '" tucker " is provided. The request of 6dl , for " fixing up " dead sheep really has as 1 its object non-handling of these sheep af» t all, as men do not want them. It fr^i quently happened, it was stated, that _|J > slaughterman had a cut or an abrasion on , his hand, and it was a very simple matter* for blood poisoning to be caused, for iii > was never known whether a sheep had diedS r from accident or not m transit to the works. ! The industry as a whole was prosperous; : and the workers thought they should have r a share in the prosperity, seeing that the! cost of living had gone up in every respect. I They only got a few months' work in tha ! year, and it was only fair that they shouldl ■ be given a chance of making a fair wag<et ■ during that time. There had been a hint",, I said one spokesman, that men from Aus»« , tralia, a number of whom always find tJletp way here for the slaughtering reason, weT^l at the bottom of the present trouble, bujl that was not the case. In fact, in the Australian States, where the 25s rate obtains, it was New Zealand men who had atucfc ; ' out for that wage in the first place and got it. ' The crisis effects the Gear Meat Com- , pany and the Wellington Meat Export Company. The employers say that on January [ 23 the Slaughtermen's Union made a de- , mand for 23s per 100 all round, and barring overtime after 5 o'clock and after noon ons ! Saturday. In an erratic business like ours, the employers say, it would be utterly im-« I possible to carry on with such a stipulabioa I as to overtime. A conference was held L between the employers and the men, ans > the former offered 21s per hundred al| . round, overtime work to be avoided if pos* sible, but to be carried on where absolutely necessary. The proposed rates, it is pointed! [ out, are considerably in advance of thoeo L paid in Canterbury, which are: — Freezers, , 20s; boners, 15s; potters, 12s 6d ; with 2s 6d extra for freezers after 5 o'clock, and 1 13 6d for others, work to be stopped at ♦ o'clock on Saturday and a bonus of Is a I day to be paid. Aji award for twft yeare had been entered into on those terms.Tho employers further point out that the Wellington freezing companies, although paying higher rates, are charging farmers exactly the same rates as are ruling in 1 Canterbury. However, the men declined! the offer, and the employers suggested that 1 the matter should be put before the Arbitra* tion Court. This morning the men turned out, and! said they, would not resume work under ; 25s per hundred. As soon as possible the employers interviewed Mr Mackay, ChiefClerk "of the Labour Department, who senb out an inspector of awards to point outi to the men the position in which they had placed themselve6, to explain the act to them, and to endeavour to arrange a satisfactory basis on which work should be re-» sumed. The agreement under which the* men are working expired on August 1, 1906, but of course under the aot it continues in force until a new agreement is arrived at or an award given by the court: Finally the employers state that they havej every hope that the matter will be fixed up immediately. The agreement undev which the slaughtermen work was made om August 1, 1904-, between the Wellington) Slaughtermen's Industrial Union of Worker^ and the Gear Meat Company and the Mea<; Export Company. It states inter alia thafi the terms, conditions, and provisions set out in the schedule shall be binding upon the I union, and every member thereof, and upo» the employers and each of them. The schedule rates for killing are:— All sheep or lambs, not otherwise specified, £1 pet? 100; all rams, 5d each; all lambs requiring back sets, 5d each ; all sheep and lamba that are dead when brought to the works, 5d each; all cattle, 2s each; all pigs, la each; all calves, Is each. Wages are to be paid weekly. No slaughterman is to bo employed at weekly wage 6, and no slaughterman shall be required to- buy any carcase he may damage while slaughtering. None but competent men shall bo employed a« slaughtermen. The agreement also provides that no employer shall discriminate againsfa members of the union, and no employer shall, in the employment or dismissal of any person, or in the conduct of his business do anything for the purpoFo of injuring th« union* whether directly or indirectly. The retail trade is not likely to be seriously affected. ,„■!_• A. H. Cooper, secretary of the Butchers Union, says he did not know that the men intended to leave their work. The union met on Monday evening- to consider the employers' replies to certain claims, and the replies were con&idercd unsatisfactory. Thai men wore not prepared to wait for the*Arbitration Court to bottle tho matter, because ihc season will bo o\er before the court sits. A motion was carried unanl* mously to the effect that the secretary take tho necessary steps to cancel the registration of the union under the Arbitration Act. .so as to gnc the nr>n a legal right to strike. Mr Cooper says that one of tho men's claims is for payment for waiting time, which at times amounts to half an hour or throe-quarters of an hour. The men get employment only for about c even months each year. Air Cooper adds that a few years ago tho men were earning £6 or £7 a week, but now tho a\erago rate for tho twelve months is considerably less than art ordinary labourer would earn. On the) ' other hand, one employer asserts that working from 7 a.m. till 10 p.m., with time offi for meals, the men could now earn from! £6 to £7 per week fpr six months yearly, and could then go to Australia and find th«_ season there waiting. February 13. The slaughtermen who are on strike assembled at the Wellington Meat Company's works this morning, but no worljj was done. There was a good deal of merriment, genuine and simulated, amongsii

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them, but the mention of the word " blackleg " raised a frown, and there was some talk of ''pickets." There was no 'killing to-day, not even for' local consumption. On being interviewed by the Post on the subject of the strike, the Minister of Labour (the Hon. J. A. Millar) said it was with feelings of the deepest regret that he had heard of the action of the men. The department, both yesterday and to-day, had done all it could to point out to the men the folly of their action in deliberately breaking the law. Of course, a? the fundamental principles of the act (were attacked if they permitted any union tp strike at will, the unions were forcing the department into the position that action jnust be taken. "So long as any body of men," said the Minister, " are bound by law that law must be observed. There is a constitutional way of remedying their grievance, and the law mafces 6peciiic provision for preventing anything of the sort that has taken place. A similar case occurred in Auckland in regard to the tram,way strike -there After inquiry I came to the opinion that the blame rested equally oh the shoulders of the company and the men, and both sides have been cited to appear before the Arbitration Court for a breach of the award. In this case the blame appears to Test entirely on the men, and I am going to take the advice of the Crown Law Office with a view of bringing the men bofore the Arbitration Court, which will be sitting here within the course of a week or ten days. Both the union and the individual members of the •union who have left their work will be included in any proceedings that may betaken." Turning to another phase of the trouble, the Minister said:— "The reports of my officers show that a large number of Australians are connected with this strike, and that they openly avow that they did the same in Melbourne and got an increase of five shillings. Whilst they might be perfectly justified in doing it m Melbourne, where probably there was no award or price fixed by the wages board, •when they come to New Zealand they must observe the law* of New Zealand so lons as they remain here. It is unfortunate that many of the local men have been brought into the affair but all those who have taken part are liable, and I very much regret that such a thing should have occurred as we had begun to think m New Zealand that the days of strikes were over. There ie one thing certain, that neither employers nor employed can strike or lock-out and at the same time have the advantage of the Arbitration Court If they want to retain the right to strike at any time they cannot do so as a registered body under "the act. When a strike or a- lock-out occurs the department will take action at the earliest possible moment. As to another phase of the trouble, the Minister remarked that the mere passing of a resolution cancelling the registration would not dissolve the union. The union bad to go through the proper form ot going to the registrar, who would give public notice, so that objectors might have the opportunity of lodging objections, and then at the expiration of six weeks the registrar -would cancel the registration. According to the secretary of the Slaughtermen's Union there has been a spirit of discontent amongst the men for months past, and they had got tired of waiting for a sitting of the Arbitration Court, which apparently ,could not hear their case until after the close of the present killing season. They did not see any prospect of a sitting of the court m Wellington till the close of the year. A mass meeting of the men was held in the city to-day- They refused an offer on the part of the employers of 22s a hundred. Up to the time of writing the matter is etill unsettled, but it is understood that the men will agree to resume work if the companies agree to give them 25s a hundred. , This afternoon 1 saw Mr Tregear, the Secretary of the Labour Department. He deplored very much the situation that had arisen, and eaid that the law must be enforoed and the men punished for xgoing out on strike. He believed the local men Jbad been led away by a number of 'Australians, who by similar tactics had secured an increase of wages in their own country. The employers seem pleased that Mr Millar has decided to take prompt action, and that the Arbitration Court will be called together to do justice. "That's a strong man." said a shareholder in one of the companies to me this evening; "he is not a man who troubles about teeping his ear to the ground." WELLINGTON, February 14. The slaughtermen's strike has continued ?o-day, and owing to the large number of ebeep in the works and on the road the position is rather a serious one. The sheep at the works must deteriorate both in ■weight and in value. At one of the works 12,000 sheep are being fed on hay and watered from an artesian supply. To-day (frozen meat was used in connection with the city supply. This afternoon the employers "sprang another sixpence, and offered the men 22s 6d per hundred. The latter had previously signified their willingness to accept 235. At the Wellington Meat Export Comjpany's works this morning a number of sheep were killed for local consumption by one of the company's buyers, and tbree Rr'four other bands.