WAGES CUT EXEMPTION

Taranaki Daily News, 1 August 1931, Page 6

WAGES CUT EXEMPTION

COURT’S ATTITUDE DEFINED SPECIAL GROUNDS REQUIRED. TWO APPLICATIONS WITHDRAWN ‘ ..1 _ . 4 By Telegraph.—Press Association. Auckland,. Last Night. The attitude of the Arbitration Court toward applications for exemption from the general order reducing award wages by 10 per cent, was outlined by the President of the Court, Mr. Justice Frizer, when the chemical manure workers applied for exemptiqn to-day. Mr. Justice Frazer said that when # an application for exemption .was brought before the. Court some special grounds which would place the portion of the worker® on a different footing from those of employees working under other awards was required. .Unusual conditions relating to the trade in which the applicants were employed could not be taken into consideration a® the facts had- been before the Court previously when the award had been made. In framing awards the Court had endeavoured to allow fair yages to employees in comparison with men employed in other industries, and if an application for exemption wete brought forward because the trade was one. calling for unusual hours or unpleasant conditions of work these factors could not be taken into consideration as they had previously been considered when the awards were framed and could not be allowed to weigh twice. “I cannot see that any. special unpleasant conditions are. a ground for an application . of this sort,” he stated.. . . ..

Mr. Purtell, for the applicants, said he would withdraw two further cages to be heard by the Court —applications brought by the Auckland -Plasterers’ Union and the Caretakers’, Cleaners’ and Liftmen’s Union. “I have been shockingly treated,” he declared. Mr. A. L. Monteith, employees’ assessor, stated that in his opinion the words “special provisions” and “relevant considerations” permitted Mr. ]?urtell’s argument to be allowed by the Court

“The majority of the Court looks at it in a different way,” said Mr. Justice Frazer after the employers’ assessor, Mi*. W. Cecil Prime, had stated that if the Court were to grant the application the workers would be placed in a different position from those in other industries.

Mr. Purtell then withdrew the application.