THE DRIVERS' DEADLOCK.

Wanganui Chronicle, Volume LX, Issue 16824, 29 November 1916, Page 4

THE DRIVERS' DEADLOCK.

Per Press Association

WELLINGTON, Nov. 28: Representatives of the carrying trad«, employers and drivers, met in conference to-day, the Hon. Herries presiding, to discuss the matters in dispute.. The meeting was private, and lasted all day { and adjourned until tomorrow morning at 10 o'clock, having been unable to reach a satisfactory decision, though it is hoped that further discussion -to-morrow will open a way out of the deadlock.

THE WORKERS' VIEWS

(Special Correspondent of "Auckland

Star.")

WELLINGTON, Nov. 24. The drivers' dispute, which has been dragging on in one form and another for the best part of a year, seems now to hare reached an extremely critical stage The employers have' admitted the inadequacy of the wages provided by the Arbitration Court award, by offering to raise the minimum rate for single-horse drivers from £2 12s a week to £2 17s 3d., and for two-horse drivers from £2 16s to £3 Is 8d; but the men are standing firmly by their original demand for £3 and £3 6s. respectively. At the time of writing, - neither party appears in the least inclined to give way to the extent, of a single shilling, but they are both conferring with the Minister for Labour. Mr Herries, and tho Acting Prime Minister, Mr Allen, and these gentlemen do not despair of assisting in bringing about a settlement. 11l the meantime, the active forces of militant; Labour —the miners, the watersiders and. the Trades Council—are gathering behind the drivers and if tb,e woi-st should come to the worst, the country might be involved in a very serious industrial upheaval at a time when all its energies should be bent upon winning the. war. The unrest and uncertainty occasioned by the dispute between the drivers andTfteir employers have naturally set the workers on th G wateir'front talking even more freely than they usually do of the afctitud,e of Labour during the war. One of them, an intelligent man earning good wages, and quite content with his own position, discussing the matter this morning, insisted that it was a great mistake to suppose that any large proportion of the workers were "looking for trouble." There were a certain number of men, of course, who were sfclways raedy to assist in stirring up strife, but these constituted. a very small proportion of the whole body, and their influence had steadily declined since the strike of three years agb.- But the married men were face to face witii •t very cruel problem in the increased cost of living, which, he contended, was much larger than the statistics showed. The man who managed with £2 10s. per week before the war. was new running into debt with £3 per week, if he was lucky enough to get it, and unless the employer gave him more money or the State afforded him =ome relief the spirit of discontent would spread. This, as far as can he gathered from sober-thinking responsible men. whose whole efforts would be devoted towards avoiding trouble, is the feeling prevailing amonpst the city workers, and the essence of the problem with which the an±horitfes have to deal.