AN ANXIOUS TIME. THE POSITION LOCALLY.

Otago Witness, Issue 2817, 11 March 1908, Page 37

AN ANXIOUS TIME. THE POSITION LOCALLY.

(From Our Own Correspondent.) "* GREYMOUTH, March 8. The Blackball situation is full of interesting possibilities, which are causing those directly concerned a great deal of anxiety. In the first place, it is recognised that, even if the union is fined for causing a strike, the actual position may remain a* at present — viz., that the miners will still demand the reinstatement of the dismis6ed men, the introduction of the ballot when men are to be dismissed, and half an hour's crib time. Perceiving this, Mr Lomas made a tactical move on behalf of the department in asking the union to bring under his notice anything which it contends is a breach of award, so that he could place it, before the Crown Solicitor, and/ascertain if it had a justifiable caee. If the union does so, it will enable the whole matter to be threshed out in court. If not, proceedings under clause 15 will simply be taken, and these would -last but a short time, as all that is necessary to prove is that the union passed a motion which caused the strike, and beyond this the court could not go. Mr Lomas also suggested that the parties should meet in conference over a fresh award, go through the items seriatim, agree on all possible, and that all matters upon which no decision could be arrived at be referred to the Arbitration Court, which -would be asked to deal with the matter at the special meeting this week. The union strongly opposed the suggestion, which therefore fell to the ground. It is understood that the' Blackball Company is quite prepared to fall in with the latter suggestion. That there is a very strong feeling amongst West Coast miners antagonistic to the Arbitration Court is evidenced by the fact that a motion at the Westland Trades and Labour Conference— " That the council has no confidence in the Industrial Concili«.tion and Arbitration Act " — was only defeated by one vote, 10 voting for and 11 against. All the Blackball delegates supported the motion, contending that eipee the introduction of the act the cost of living had gone up by about 30 per cent., while wages had only risen 8£ per cent., so that the workers were actual losers. It was stated that the court at Westport had refused to accept evidence as to the increased cost of living. This decision waa & very sore point with the inineca^ ivho had, complained to Ministers.

Other speakers upheld the principle of arbitration, but condemned in strong terms ■the present administration. One point of dissatisfaction was that when employees wanted the court it was months before they could get cases heard, while, on the other hand, if there was anything against the workers the court quickly hoard the matter. In proof of this the Blackball strike was instanced. There was a oharge against the uiiion, and the court came around to the Coast in double quick time to hear it. GENESIS OF THE STRIKE. (Prom Our Own Corrtssponidbnt.) WELLINGTON, March 7. Mr 3. B. Burns, an Australian, who was secretary to the Socialist party at Greymouth, out who has now gone to Sydney, throws some light on the genesis of the Blackball strike. In an interview he gave to a New Zealand Times reporter Mr Burns states that about two months ago a branch of the Socialist party was formed at Blackball amongst the miners. " After we had started this branch, the men began to agitate to abolish the quarter-hour crib and have the half-hour, which was the time universally aliowed to the miners ,on the West Coast. The Socialists ran this movement through the union. The resolution was passed unanimously by the union, and put on the books, and then the men gave the manager notice that they were going to take the half-hour. The two first to take it were Tom Milligan (secretary of the Socialist party) and P. H. Hickey (the man who formed the branch)., and, of course, naturally the manager took proceedings against them, sacking the men. On the morning of the strike the manager went into the mine as usual on his rounds, and said nothing. When he went round again at midday he told Hickey to go out of the mine as he was finished with him and did not want him any longer. He said to Hiokey's mate (Bromilow) that he cou'.d stop on, and passed on to the other men concerned, and told them they could go. They asked for an explanation, but he declined to give one. - He then went back to Bromilow and told him he had better go out too. Bromilow asked why he should have to leave his work, and the manager leplied that he had his reasons. AH the men (seven in number)- then left the mine, leaving their tools inside. NOT ON STRIKE— ONLY WAITING. A meeting was called that night, and the miners decided unanimously that their mates would have to be reinstated unless the manager could give some reason wh# they were sacked. The award of the couii provided for preference to members of the union. At the came time there were men in the mine who were not union men, while those who were sacked were members. A deputation waited on the manager to ask the reason of the dismissals, but tho reply was unsatisfactory. The deputation waa then sent back again to say that the miners would not return to work unless their mates were reinstated. The manager asked if that meant that the men were on strike, and the reply was, ' No ; we are only waiting until the others go to work, and then we will go.' The manager stated that he was sacking the men who had been taken on last. He wished to keep in employment married men and those who possessed property. The reply of the deputation was that Bromilow^ who was sacked, was*a married man, and Fox, another of thoee dispensed with, was not only a. married man but he had only eight months ago bought a house from the manager himself. Mr Leitch said he did not know that this was the case, and yet," exclaimed Mr Burns, as if to show the thinness of the argument, " when he sacked these seven men he had another 10 waiting to start work the following morning; yet he told the men he was short of hands." "CABLING OUT." Another meeting was held at which all the miners on the Coast promised the union support. The next event was Mr Leiteh's promise that he would reinstate the men who had been sacked, but he refused to pay them for the time they had lost. The union refused this, and asked that in future, when men were to be dispensed with, it should be done by ballot — what was known as a " cable out." Mr Leitch objected to thi6 on the ground that it would be injurious to those who owned property in the place if they lost their jobs. The union rejoined that the young men were willing to give way to any married men with families who might be "cabled out." REDUCING HANDS. The reduction of hands which is referred to requires explanation. There are two shifts of miners at Blackball, one going in at 6 o'olock in the morning and the other two hours later. Under the eight-hours bank-to-bank clause the first shift comes out at 2 in the afternoon, and the second at 4. The truckers must, of course, be available for tho whole of the time of working, so that they are required to put in a ten-hours' day, from 6 a.m. to * p.m. When the union claimed that the truckers' day should be reduced to eight hours, the manager replied that to do this he would have to reduce the hands, otherwise there would be too much work for the truckera to do in the eight houre. When the reinstatement of the men was refused, the whole of the men (about 140) went out. Practically all the miners in Blaokball Taelong to the union, and the mine shut down absolutely. THE BRAND OF SOCIALISM. "If Hiokey had not been a prominent man amongst the Socialists," declared Mr Burns, " there would have been none of this friction. H« being a straight man, the company wants to get rid of him, as it doee of all the unionists on the Coast to-day. The resolution about crib time was prompted by the Socialist party, but carried out by the union. The manager was waiting about to try to catch the men, and the seven men who have been victimised are all members of the Socialist party. They are the committee. There was none of this sort of thing before the Socialist party was formed. Mur Leitch said he diJ not know that they were Socialists, yet he had been to the meetings and heard the men speak."

Mr Charles F. Pulley, the contractor for the King's wharf, at Wellington, has invented a deck-plaining machine that, in big jobd, at any rate should take the place of the old method of smoothing down deck planks with the adze. The machine, it is clairied* can do Ihe work of eight men.