THE ARBITRATION CONFERENCE

West Coast Times, 17 April 1914, Page 1

THE ARBITRATION CONFERENCE

WANT REPEAL OF ACTS. LABOUR ACT AS A •• PERNICIOUS MEASURES." (per press association.— coptrihhtA WELLINGTON, April 15. The Arbitration Unions’ Conference to-day adopted a report containing the following clause:— “'llmt the Labour Disputes Investigation Act, 1913, is the most pernicious measure and subversive of principles laid down by the Industrial Conciliation and Arbilraton Act from its inception, and that this conference stiongly insists on it repeal.” Other clauses in the report which were also adopted urge:— "That the trial registration tinder the Act and cancellation of registration must be of entirely voluntary character by bona hide workers in the industry and that where the union decides by a maority". vote as required by th© Act to cancel its registration, it shall not lose its legal status thereby and it shall not be competent for that union or any other union in the same industry and same locality to he registered without the consent of a majority of the members of such union.” ” That it shall not he competent finally union to refuse membership to any worker employed or desiring to he employed in the industry covered by the union.” “That the Police Officers Amendment Act, 1913, he repealed and the right of peaceful picketing be placed on the same footing as under British law.” “ That no union .shall agree lo appoint linyone to sign any industrial agreement until a special meeting lias been called and a ballot of the union taken under Section 107 of the Act of 190S, and that registration of any union or its rules shall he subject In appeal to the Court.” OFFICIAL STATEMENT. The following is an officially supplied statement of the other decisions arrived at;— In regard lo section It’S, sub-section (bl, dealing with permits to work, it was agreed that two days’ notice instead of six should be given for hearing such application for a permit. Be Locknuts.—ft was decided that section 1 should ho made to read as follows (the new words being shown in parenthesis): “In this Act the term lock-out means the net of an employer in closing his place of business or suspending or discontinuing his business or any branch thereof (or discharging any of his employees whoso places are tilled by other workers within fourteen days after the discharge, (lie discharged employee being at the time capable of performing the work allotted to him.”) Then follows a further definition of “lock-out” and what “inconvenience to workers ” means.

Section (i, dealing with unlawful strikes, should, in the opinion of the conference, bo deleted. In connection with sub-section .'t of Section 9, requiring the serving of notices to employers and workers before striking, and inflicting special penalties with regard to strikes and lockouts in certain specified industries, a motion suggesting that this portion of the Act he deleted Was carried.

A similar course was taken in regard to the penalty for unions that could not meet the amount of judgment. 1: was decided that three days should ho substituted for ten days in "sub-sec-tion 2 of section GO, in which it is stated that a worker shall he deemed to he considered dismissed within the mean ing of the section, if ho is suspended for a longer period than ton days. Another remit carried was that the following new section should be added to the Act; " That it shall he obligatory upon an employerito grant leave of absence to any employee when he has been elected by the union to attend to any union business or as an assessor to attend the Conciliation Council that governs that particular dispute, irrespective of where he is employed.”

The conference resolved to urge the Government to amend the Act in the following direction; That in the event of a dispute arising between employers and employees an advertisement in the local papers and an announcement in the Gazette shall he a sufficient citation io the employers and employees involved in the dispute. It was resolved that Section 11 of t]ie Act of 1912 should be amended io read as follows; ‘‘That a. sitting of the Court he hold in the cities of Auckland. Wellington, Christchurch , and Dunedin once in each two months, to deal with any dispute which is referred to the Court, and that all decisions be given within thirty days from the date of hearing of the dispute."

Another recommendation carried was as follows: " Xo person or corporate body shall he exempt from becoming parlies to an industrial dispute, nor shall they concur nor shall they he exempt from the provisions of an industrial agreement nr award of the Aihitratinn Court.’’

The conference adjourned until tomorrow.