NO SETTLEMENT

Timaru Herald, Volume CLVI, Issue 22998, 15 September 1944, Page 4

NO SETTLEMENT

Westport Shipping Dispute (N.Z.P.A.) WESTPORT. Sept. 14. No settlement was reached yesterday in the dispute in connection with the allegedly poor quality of coal used for bunkers on an overseas vessel, although other ships in port were bunkered. It was stated by an official of the Union Steamship Co. that ships in port were being bunkered with the best quality of bunker coal available. The Under-Secretary of Mines (Mr C. H. Benney) declined to comment on the dispute yesterday. Yesterday morning a meeting, was held between seamen, watersiders and firemen. An agreement was made on the future supply of bunker coal. In the afternoon a meeting of seamen was held from all the vessels in port. At the conclusion the Union executive in Wellington was communicated with. A coal company official said yesterday that the coal supplied as bunkers to the ship under dispute was the best available. As far as screened coal was concerned it was impossible to devote a great deal as bunkers’ coal. The major portion of the output was assimilated by the railways and essential industry.

Agreement Not Kept (N.Z.P.A.) WELLINGTON, Sept. 14. Referring to the report from Westport regarding the shipping dispute on the West Coast, Mr F. P. Walsh, general president of the Federated' Seamen’s Union, said that the report was both misleading and inaccurate in that only one of the ships was loaded and. provided the bar was workable, could go to sea. Owing to the bar conditions no vessel could leave Westport, but in the event of the bar being workable to-night the Kaimai, which loaded for Wellington, would sail. The ether vessels in port were still loading and the dispute in respect to bunker coal affected only the Kaikorai.

Some months ago an agreement was reached between representatives of the Government, Union Steamship Company and the Seamen’s Union regarding the quality of bunker coal to be placed in vessels going overseas. That agreement was not kept in the case of the Kaikorai and all the crew was requesting was that the agreement be .’dhered to.

“I am pleased to advise that arrangements have been made between the Government and the Company’s representatives for that agreement to be carried out,” Mr Walsh concluded.