ARBITRATION COURT.

Otago Witness, Issue 3396, 16 April 1919, Page 9

ARBITRATION COURT.

The Arbitration Court continued its sittings on the 4th instant. Mr Justice Stringer presided, and Messrs W. Scott and J. A. M'Cullough were in attendance. A COMPENSATION CASE. Margaret Sansom claimed from Stevenson and Cook the sum of £SOO as compensation for the, death of her husband, John Robert Sansom. The statement of claim set out. that the deceased was employed by the defendants at Port. Chalmers on May 18, 1918. repairing a boiler on the trawler Waitangi, and that at 6.15 p.m. on the date concerned, while in the course of his employment, he fell into the sea and was drowned. The defence set forth that the deceased finished work at 5 p.m., and that his death did not arise out of or in the course of his employment. Mr A. S. Adams appeared for the claimant, and Mr W. C. MacGregor, K.C., with Mr J. S. Sinclair, for the defendants. Counsel addressed the court and called evidence.

His Honor, after conferring with his colleagues, announced that the court had come to a conclusion that judgment must be given in favour of the plaintiff. The court was entitled to form a reasonable conclusion as to how the deceased met his death, and, while some of the evidence ha-d scarcely been satisfactory, still ho thought—and his colleagues agreed with him —that the court might fairly come to the conclusion that the deceased had met his death through falling into the harbour in some unexplained way while working on board the steamer Waitangi. The judgment of the court would therefore be for plaintiff for the full amount, with costs (£lO 10s) and funeral expenses (£24).

SAWMILLS AND COAL YARDS DISPUTE. CHRISTCHURCH, April 4. The Arbitration Court's award in the timber yards, sawmills, and coal yards' dispute has been filed. It fixes the minimum wages in sawmills and factories as follows:—First-class machinists, Is 7id per hour; second-class machinists, Is s£d per hour; other workers at the machines who are over the age of 21 years, and are not included in the definitions of first and second-class machinists, Is 3£d per hour; first sawyer. Is bj>d; other sawyers, Is 4£d. The minimum rates of wages for men employed in timber and coalyards are as follow: —Head yardman, £3 10s per week; orderman, £3 2s 6d per week; all other workers in the yard over 21 ycai-s. Is 3-? d per hour; casual labourers, fs 4id per hour; sawyers, Is 4jd per hour. In addition to the wages noted, a bonus of l£d per hour is fixed for all hourly workers, and 5s per week to all weekly workers.