ARBITRATION SYSTEM.

Waikato Times, Volume 103, Issue 17366, 30 March 1928, Page 8

ARBITRATION SYSTEM.

PROFESSORS' VIEWS.

MR J. FISHER'S COMMENT.

*' OPPOSITION OF FARMERS.

(By Telegraph—Press Association.) WELLINGTON, Thursday.

At the National Industrial Conference to-day several delegates criticised the opinion expressed by the four professors, two of whom favoured the Arbitration Court while two were opposed. Mr J. Fisher (dairy farmers' representative) said that all four professors seemed to favour an organisation set. up in each industry to deal with its own troubles. The professors' suggestions had been helpful to the dairy industry which had sought its own solutions.

Replying to the discussion Professor B. E. Murphy agreed that a more even distribution of wealth was desirable. Professor Fisher said he wished to make it clear that piece rates must be considered in regard to the circumstances of the employment. While the discharge of men who did not give value for wages was always a remedy, the question of deciding what was value for wages was a difficult one. What He Wished to Combat. Professor Tocker, dealing with the distribution of the national income, said what he wished to combat was the suggestion that the Arbitration Court could be used as a deciding factor in the proportions of distribution. Regarding production the position was that if a worker's efforts merely produced something which could be sold at a community value for what it had cost he had earned his money, but it was not until he put forth sufficient effort to produce something that could be sold for more than he received in wages that he was benefiting the community. Professor Belshaw said if the Arbitration Court were abolished trade unions would be considerably weakened and the pace would be set by unscrupulous employers. He thought every endeavour should be made to build on the existing structure rather than to destroy the structure and start all over again.

FARMERS' UNION PROPOSALS. A statement was made to the conference on behalf of the New Zealand Farmers' IJnion by Mr W. J. Poison, the president. The union, Mr Poison said, considered the arbitration system to be unsound in principle and incompatible, with the system of free enterprise under which economic life was ostensibly conducted. Wages should depend on the mutual bargaining of unions on both sides, thus registering the condition of supply and demand. It was suggested by the speaker that amendments to the present Act should be made as follows:—(a) To make the penalty of a breach of the "preference to unionists" clause more effective; (b) to give third parties substantially interested in any dispute, for example, primary producers in the freezing industry dispute of two years ago, the right to appear before the Courtf (c) in making an award the ability of the industry concerned to bear an award should be taken into consideration; (d) that where possible the principle of piecework be adopted; (e) that farmers and those engaged in related occupations which arc in the main subject to the prices that are realised on the world's markets should receive exemption from Arbitration Court awards.

PAPER BY MR. STERLING.

ON BEHALF DAIRY. INDUSTRY.

CONCILIATION OUT OF QUESTION

By Telegraph—Press Association.) WELLINGTON. Friday.

A paper read before the National Industrial Conference to-day by Mr H. 11. Sterling, on behalf of the dairy industry was confined to the presentation of the fact that the original ideal of the arbitration system, conciliation, had become lost sight of in a mass of rigid regulations, placing conciliation out of the question.