H.—ll

XXXIX

The employers joined in the order of reference are Messrs. Reid and Gray, Cossens and Black, Thomas Stevenson and Co., H. E. Shacklock, Joseph Sparrow, A. and T. Burt and Co., Barningham and Co., Brindsley and Co., J. Anderson and Co., G. Methven and Co., A. J. Thornicroft, A. Morrison and Co., Joseph Garside, Falkner and Co., W. Ingram, William Gardner and Co. The Chairman announced the recommendation of the Board, as follows :— (1.) The hours of work shall be forty-eight hours per week. The work shall be done between the hours of 8 a.m. and 6 p.m. on the first five days of the week, and between the hours of 8 a.m. and 12 noon on Saturday. (2.) Overtime to be paid for as proposed by the union. (3.) (a.) The minimum rate of wages for journeymen shall be 10s. per day, or Is. 3d. per hour, (b.) If any journeyman considers that he is unable to earn the minimum wage he may require the wage at which he may be permitted to work to be fixed by two persons, one of whom shall be appointed by such journeyman and the other by the chairman and secretary of the union, and, if such persons cannot agree, then by the Chairman of the Board of Conciliation, (c.) If the chairman and secretary of the union shall fail to appoint a person for the purpose of this clause for the space of forty-eight hours after such journeyman shall have given them notice in writing requiring them so to do, and naming the person appointed by him, then such wages shall be fixed by the Chairman of the Board of Conciliation, (d.) Any such journeyman may work for, and any employer may employ such journeyman at, the wages so fixed. (4.) (a.) The proportion of apprentices to journeymen shall be as follows: For the first one or two men, one apprentice; for four men, two apprentices; for six men, three apprentices ; for eight men, four apprentices ; for eleven men, five apprentices ; for more than eleven men and up to fourteen men, six apprentices ; and so on thereafter in the last-mentioned proportion. (6.) The proportion shail be calculated on the average number of men employed during the preceding twelve months, (c.) The foregoing recommendation as to the number of apprentices shall not interfere with existing engagements of apprentices, (d.) Any youth or man who has served seven years in the trade shall be considered a journeyman. (5.) (a.) Members of the union shall be employed in preferenoe to non-members, provided there are members of the union who are equally qualified with non-members to perform the particular work required to be done, and are ready and willing to undertake it. (b.) This recommendation shall not interfere with the existing engagements of nonmembers, whose present employers may retain them in their service in their present capaoities, or in any other oapaoity. (c.) Where members of the union and non-members are employed together there shall be no distinction made between members and non-members ; both shall work together in harmony, and both shall work under the same conditions, and receive equal pay for equal work. (6.) The foregoing recommendations shall be embodied in an industrial agreement, to remain in force for one year from the Ist day of June, 1898. The parties had till the 4th June to decide whether they would accept the recommendations.

June, 1898. Wellington. Plumbers' Dispute (to go before the Conciliation Board). —The proposals of the union were as follows :— (1.) That forty-five hours constitute a full week, made up as follows : Eight hours and a quarter on Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday, and Friday, and three hours and three-quarters an Saturday. (2.) The minimum rate of pay for fully paid journeymen to be Is. 4d. per hour. (3.) That all overtime-work be paid for at the rate of time and a quarter for the first two hours and time and a half afterwards. All work done before 8 o'clock in the morning and after 5 o'olock in the evening and after 12 o'clock noon on Saturday to count as overtime-work. Work done on Christmas Day, Good Friday, Eight-hours Day, and Sundays to be paid for at the rate of double time. On all other publicly recognised holidays work to be paid for at the rate of time and a half. (4.) That at tha least one fully paid journeyman paid at the aforesaid rates be employed in each workshop. (5.) That the proportion of assistants to fully paid journeymen receiving the aforesaid rates of pay be not greater than as follows: One assistant (meaning thereby men or boys receiving less than lid. per hour) to one fully paid journeyman paid as above as follows: Two assistants to two fully paid journeymen, two to three, three to four, three to five, four to six, five to seven, six to eight, seven to nine, and seven assistants to ten fully paid journeymen. (6.) That all wages be paid weekly. (7.) That members of the Plumbers' Union working outside the city boundaries be conveyed to and from the job, or be paid travelling-fare thereto and therefrom, and be paid ordinary rates for time taken in going to and returning from such job. Employers to pay all fares to and from a country job, and board of members of the said union while working there. (8.) Masters to provide men with soldering-bolts, iron-pipe fittings, tools, metal-pots, iron mandrels, and files. (9.) That preferenoe of employment be given to members of the union, provided there are members of the union who are equally qualified with non-members to perform the particular work required to be done, and are ready and willing to undertake it. Bakers' Dispute. —A decision was given by Mr. Kenny, S.M., in the case of J. Bingham v. J. E. Kilduff. This was an action brought against the defendant for an alleged breach of the industrial agreement between the " Wellington Master Bakers' Union and the Wellington Operative Bakers' Union, by having employed in his bakehouse a person who was at the time engaged as carter." Mr..Martin appeared for defendant, and Mr. Hindmarsh for plaintiff. The matter had been referred to on a previous occasion (see last month's list), when counsel for the defence argued that the agreement filed in the Supreme Court was hopelessly bad, as certain mandatory sections of the Act had not been complied with. First of all, the name of the organization as registered with the Registrar of Friendly Societies was not used in the document, it being called the Master Bakers' Association, instead of the Wellington Master Bakers' Industrial Union of Employers, as set out in the certificate of incorporation. His client had joined the union after the industrial agreement as between employer and employe was drawn up, and could have no knowledge of the latter's provisions unless they were set out in a document which clearly stated the names of the parties, as demanded by the Act. After hearing Mr. Hindmarsh, who admitted that an error had been made, his Worship held Mr. Martin's argument to be fatal. The agreement filed, by which the parties were supposed to be bound, was entirely misleading, there being no such body in existence as that referred to. In a civil case he might have been inclined to go further before deciding, but in a case which involved criminal procedure, as in this, they could not be too exact. He would dismiss the action without costs. Christchurch. . Bakers' Dispute (before the Conciliation Board). —The proposals of the union were, — (1.) Eight hours shall constitute a day's labour, including one hour for sponging. (2.) No member shall start work before 4 o'clock in the morning, except Saturday he may Btart at 3. After the stated hours are up time and a quarter shall be paid up to 5 o'clock, and time and a half after that time. One half-hour shall be allowed for