FORESTALLING PARLIAMENT.

Timaru Herald, Volume CI, Issue 15399, 16 July 1914, Page 7

FORESTALLING PARLIAMENT.

STATUTE TO BE OF NO EFFECT. A DISPUTED AGREEMENT. (Per Press Association.} CHRISTCHURCH, July 15. A curious spectacle was seen to-day of assessors in a sitting or a Conciliation Council -weighing a motion which on the face of it> seemed to usurp some of the powers of the Legislature. In its bald form the motion read—- " In the event of any legislation being passed affecting hours of work in woollen mills, such legislation shall have no effect, during the currency of this award.'"' - To explain the position it should be said that woollen mills, which employ large numbers of females and boys, now work 4S hours per week, and that Mr T. M. Wilford, M.P., has introduced an amending Bill in the House of Representatives to limit the hours of women workers to 4-5. The employers' assessors, before entering upon consideration of the claims made to-day, wanted the . question of hours settled, and ■ suggested some agreement. To this one of the labour men responded by proposing the motion quoted, and the matter dropped for the time being, the employers understanding that the proposal had been agreed to. At the end of the sitting this question cropped up again, and the union men were then loud in their denial of any such motion. Onc< individual oven went so far as to say to the Press reporter that if he reported the motion they would repudiate it. The fear of the* labour men was that if any publicity were given to what the employers certainly regarded as an agreement, any chance of Mr Wilford's Bill passing Parliament would be gene.