THE SLAUGHTERMEN'S STRIKES.

Otago Witness, Issue 2872, 24 March 1909, Page 25

THE SLAUGHTERMEN'S STRIKES.

PAYMENT OF FINES. CHRISTCHURCH, March 17. An echo of the slaughtermen's strike occurred at Christchurch yesterday, when ! a number of men whose fines remain unpaid received notice from their employers that they had been instructed by the Inspector of Awards to withhold all wages due to them pending extinction of their liabilities. About 30 men are concerned, the amounts varying from 10s upwards. The men intend to interview the Prime Minister and raise the point whether a penalty imposed under the old Arbitration Act can be enforced under a subsequent act. The men have been cited to appear before tdie magistrate on Saturday to settle what proportion of wagee should be impounded in satisfaction of fines. The men met at noon to-day and asked Mr T. E. Taylor, M.P., to represent their case to the Piime Minister to-morrow. Mr Taylor consented to do so. March 18. The Prime Minister was interviewed by deputations on matters of public importance. Mr Taylor, M.P., introduced a deputitioji of slaughtermen from the ChriPtchuich Meat Company's Islington •works. He staled that the company was asked by the Labour Department to withhold payment of wages due to t.everd.l men until the amount owing by them in respect of fines imposed on them in connection with a strike in the slaughtering trade two or three years ago was paid. Since the issue of the notice to the company the department fqund out that it had made an ei ror. and now a^ked that only the amount over and above £2 per week due to the men should be deducted in satisfaction of unpaid fines. Mr Taylor added that the men only started work two or three weeks ago. Since the commencement of the slack &eason hist September they had practically earned nothing, whilst they had run up bills with their tradesmen. They were willing to pay one-quarter of th-e amount owing on "the fines every fortnight until the fines were wiped out. He considered the department's proceedings were abrupt and severe. He questioned •whether the department had any right to make the provisions of last year's amendment of the Arbitration Act apply retrospectively in respect to the collection of these fines. Sir J. G. Ward, in reply, stated that he did not tliink tlie Government would entertain the suggestion that penalties imposed by the court should be remitted. If such a course were taken with respect to penalties imposed on the workers, then the employers would have an equal right to similar treatment. If that were done it would mean the preliminary steps to the abolition of the law. He saw no reason why in the present instance the men should not be allowed to pay in easy stages. The Government was far from being desirous to deduct from the men's wages amounts that would inconvenience them or their families He would be prepared to recommend the Laboiir Department to accept one-fourth of each amount due every pay day until the whole of the arrears was wiped out. He would telegraph to the Minister and ask him to accept payment in four instalments. A. member of the aepuiatijOii eaid i» j

did not believe in the company deducting j the amount from wages It was breaking j away from the Truck Act. They wished to pay the money direct to the Labour Department themselves. Sir Joseph Ward said he would include , a suggestion to the effect mentioned in his telegram to the Minister. Regarding Mr Taylor's point as to the retrospective action of last year's amendment of the act, he said he was advised that such retrospective action was right, and that the provision made in the act for the collection of fines had been intended to act retrospectively, inasmuch as the provision mentioned took the place of ' the provision under the previous Act imposing imprisonment, as a provision in the new act was not properly speaking retrospective. March 19. As the outcome of the deputation which waited on the Prime Minister yesterday, Mr W. H. Hagger, officer in charge of the Labour Bureau heTe, has received instructions to accept payment of arrears of fines due by slaughtermen in respect to the strike two or three years ago in four instalments, the amounts to be paid direct to the- Labovy: Department's' Tepre*eentatives. The instructions apply to the men at Belfast and Fairfield as well as to J those at Islington. ' 1