AUCKLAND TRAMWAYS.

Taranaki Herald, Volume LXVIII, Issue 16758, 7 June 1920, Page 3

AUCKLAND TRAMWAYS.

MEN’S ILL-JUDGED ACTION. NOT GENERALLY SUPPORTED. Per Press Association. AUCKLAND, June 5. The heavy downpour to-day added gl’catly to the inconvenience caused by the tramway strike. Queen Street was more than usually full this morning, owing, no doubt, to the influx of people who intended going to the races. Before ICR o'clock, however, the races and all sports were postponed, and in the afternoon tho city 'was practically" deserted. Queen Street establishments generally 7 report good business, which is attributed by some to the fact that tho country people, once in the city, were forced to shop in tho main street. Extra train facilities have been provided to meet tho heavy passenger traffic from tho suburbs. In connection with the offer of mediation by the Minister of Labour, who asked tho Conciliation Commissioner (Mr. Hally) to get in touch with tho parties with a view to effecting a settlement, difficulty arises from tho fact that the tramwaymon are not working u%der an Arbitration Court award, but under an agreement between tho Tramways Union representatives and tho City Council. Mr. Hally interviewed officials of tho Tramwaymon’s Union this morning, and the position of alfairs was explained to him. Tho tramway employees were to-day served with tho following notice;— “Owing to the motormen and conductors having ceased -work, tho service is entirely suspended, and the department regrets it has no other course open to it than to give notice to other employees that their services wall not be required, as there is no work for them. You are hereby notified that your services will not be required after Saturday, 12th inst.” A copy of tho following resolution, carried bv the Newmarket Borough Council, has been forwarded to Mayor of Auckland; “That the Newmarket Council strongly deprecates the action of tho tramway employees concerned in the present strike, particularly in view of the fair and. reasonable treatment accorded them during the recent wages dispute, and desires to congratulate the Mayor of Auckland on the stand ho has taken in the matter, at tho same time assuring him of the unanimous support of this council in any action found necessary in maintaining the efficiency and discipline of the service.” Other local bodies interested have adopted similar resolutions. NO SIGN OF SETTLEMENT. AUCKLAND, June 6. There is still no sign of a termination of the strike. None of the motormen or conductors applied for work during the week-end. The Mayor and the special committee of the council set up to act in conjunction with him in the matter, made the following official announcement;—“The council is standing firm in its decision to require that disciulino and authority must be uphold, and this is fundamental to a settlement.”

The Tramway Union and the Auckland branch of the Transport Workers’ Advisory Board held meetings on Saturday to further the situation, and no decision was arrived at with regard to future action, the meetings being adjourned. Members of both orgarfisations met again this morning and this afternoon, when Mr. J. Roberts, national secretary of tho Transport ■Workers’ Federation,_ was present. Up till 15 o’clock no decision had been arijjved at. While the tramwaymen are on strike the jockeys, for whom they struck, are at work. This situation is unlikely to be altered. Judging by a statement made by representatives of the Jockeys’ Association on Saturday, the position seems to bo that the dispute with the racing clubs and racehorse owners being sub judica, the jockeys fear to lose their moans of employment if they join their sympathisers in striking. They will, therefore, ride at the races tomorrow and again on Wednesday unless something unforeseen occurs in 'the meantime to change their attitude. Tho railwaymen, as a body, are opposed to the strike, and to any idea of joining it. TJioy can see no reason for the strike, and none why they should participate in it or bo drawn into tho dispute. The Amalgamated Society of Railway Servants is to meet to-morrow morning, but members interviewed during the week-end expressed the opinion that it was quite unlikely they would recede from the position they have taken up. They stated that it is erroneous to suppose they are affiliated with the Transport Workers’ Federation. Their only connection therewith, they stated, was that their president was also president of tho Transport Workers’ Advisory Board. There is considered to be no reason to believe, therefore, that any railwaymen in either branch of the service will refuse to take out race trains to-mor-row morning or on Wednesday. They say: “The jockeys are riding and the totalisator employees are working. Why, then, should we refuse to run the trains to the races?”

The attitude of the waterside workers is also against actively joining in the strike, unless their hands should he forced hy any action of the shipowners. They state that they have obeyed the edict of the Transport Workers’ Advisory Board declaring races “black” to the extent of refusing to load or discharge racehorses on to or from vessels. They are not disposed to go beyond that at present. Similarly the seamen, affiliated, like the waterside workers, with the Transport Federation, are confining their sympathy with tho jockeys and strikers to refusing to carry racehorses on their ships. A point of some tribulation to the tramwaymen is that the action of the seamen and the waterside workers is on all fours with their own refusal to take out race cars, and that while they have lost their positions in consequence, no such fate has befallen the other two bodies of workers. The tramwaymen would appear, therefore, to bo alone !in their action. That many of them are realising just how foolish they have been is evident from the remarks of those seen during the week-end. A surprisingly large number are, from all accounts, in the dark as to why they are on strike at all. “We were guided by the spirit of unionism,” said one, “but it looks to S ( T j 1 > 0 °' ,ls ns we bad been made tools ot. Another man admitted that in the first stages of the strike some of them thought that the City Council would give way to them and seek to settle with them on their own terms. I hoy were beginning to recognise now. however, that they had misconstrued tho fair spirit in which the council had met them in regard to previous disputes and the new agreement, into a sign of weakness. Tho number willing to”continue on striko for tho sake of a very doubtful principle, however, was stated to bo dwindling daily, j