H.—ll.

The workers contended that he was incompetent and that his general demeanour was repugnant to them. Efforts to effect a settlement of the dispute by the Conciliation Commissioner failed, and proceedings were instituted against the workers concerned under the provisions of the Strike and Lockout Emergency Regulations 1939 (Serial number 1939/204). The workers were convicted and ordered to come up for sentence within twelve months if called upon. The slaughtermen employed at the Auckland City Abattoirs ceased work at noon on 16th January, 1942. It was alleged that insufficient labourers were employed and that overtime required of the labourers was excessive. On the Monday morning following, a stop-work meeting was held, and the slaughtermen ceased work at 2.30 p.m. Fifty-three workers were proceeded against for taking part m the stop-work meeting and strike on the Monday —ten cases being withdrawn. )be remaining workers were convicted and ordered to come up for sentence if called upon with 12 months. Arising out of this stoppage the registration of the Auckland Abattoir Assistants and United Freezing -works Employees' Industrial Union of Workers was cancelled in respect of that locality which comprises the area covered by the abattoir established and maintained by the Auckland City Council (see New Zealand Gazette, 26th January, 1942). When further restrictions were imposed upon the issue of petrol for private cars, employees at the Westfield Freezing-works used the buses more extensively. As a result, overcrowding occurred— this being accentuated by a restriction on petrol issued to the bus-proprietors. Arising out of this, the mutton-butchers stopped work at midday on 15th January. Court actions under the Strike and Lockout Emergency Regulations 1939 were commenced against 123 slaughtermen. Five cases were not proceeded with for various reasons, but the remainder of the men were convicted and ordered to come up for sentence within twelve months if called upon. As a number of these men subsequently took part in a stop-work meeting on 6th March and some in the freezing- works strike referred, to later, 116 men were ordered to come up for sentence. In 83 cases, a sentence of one month's imprisonment with hard labour was imposed. Six men who were concerned only with the stop-work meeting were fined £2 and costs. Eight summonses could not be served, and in 20 other cases proceedings were withdrawn or otherwise dealt with. Upon a rehearing the imprisonment sentences were reduced to convictions. , , _ _ . Boners employed at the Westfield Freezing-works ceased work on 16th January, 1942, alleging that the carcasses were not thawed out sufficiently. Court proceedings were commenced against 14 men, but the cases were subsequently withdrawn as the employer had apparently not made it clear to the workers that they were expected to continue with the work. Three hundred and twenty-nine freezing-workers employed by R. and W. Hellaby and Co., Ltd., Auckland, ceased work on 12th March, 1942, when the firm refused to permit representatives of the Auckland' Abattoir Assistants and United Freezing-works' Employees' Industrial Union of Workers to address female employees in the preserving department. Another union—viz., the R. and W. Hellaby, Ltd., Westfield Meat-preserving Workers, Slaughterhouse Assistants, and Freezing-chamber Hands Industrial Union of Workers—exists, and this is the union apparently recognized by the employer. The dispute assumed a more serious aspect when, four days later, 1,595 workers employed by the Westfield Freezing Co., Ltd., ceased work in support of the Hellaby strikers. On the 17th March the trouble extended further when 307 employees of the Auckland Farmers' Freezing Co. at Southdown and 73 freezing-chamber hands employed by the same company on the wharf struck in sympathy with the original strikers. Finally, on the 18th March, 16 bacon-workers struck work. Altogether, 2,320 workers were involved in the dispute, which lasted 10A days. As a result of the strike, the registration of the Auckland Abattoir Assistants and United Freezingworks' Employees Industrial Union of Workers was cancelled in respect of that locality which comprises the area lying within a radius of twenty-five miles from the Chief Post-office in the City of Auckland. The award was therefore cancelled in respect of the works concerned. A number of the men who took part in this strike had previously been before the Court in respect of a strike on 16th January (for details of their cases see a previous paragraph). Three hundred and thirty-seven other men were prosecuted, 213 being convicted on 12th March, 1942, and sentenced to a month's imprisonment. Two hundred and nine of these cases were reheard on 27th March, and on undertakings to resume work being given, sentences were reduced to convictions, workers to come up for sentence if called upon within twelve months. The other 4 workers appealed, and on review 1 was fined £2 and costs, 2 were fined £1 and costs, and 1 was ordered to come up for sentence if called upon within twelve months. Remaining cases were dealt with as follows : 38 fined £2 and costs each, 2 fined £1 and costs each, 14 ordered to come up for sentence if called upon within twelve months, 65 withdrawn, and 5 service not effected. Twelve of the 16 bacon-workers were convicted and ordered to come up for sentence if called upon within twelve months, 3 were fined £1 and costs each, and one was convicted and discharged. Strike and Lockout Emergency Regulations 1939. These regulations were designed to facilitate the settlement of industrial disputes, and provide for the setting-up by the Minister of Labour of Emergency Disputes Committees (see Serial number 1939/204, as amended by Serial number 1942/29). Four Committees were set up during the year, and a satisfactory settlement was reached in each case. LABOUR DISPUTES INVESTIGATION ACT, 1913. This Act provides machinery to deal with industrial disputes not coining within the scope of the Industrial Conciliation and Arbitration Act, 1925. A strike or lockout of workers or employers may take place where there is no agreement or award in force under the Industrial Conciliation and Arbitration Act, provided that a certain period —about three weeks has been allowed for the investigation of the dispute and for a ballot on the question at issue as hereafter mentioned. Notice of the dispute must be given to the Minister of Labour, who may then refer the dispute to a Conciliation Commissioner, who calls a conference of the parties, or the Minister may appoint a Labour Disputes Committee to investigate the matter. After the expiration of fourteen days a ballot of the workers or employers, as the case may be, is conducted by the Registrar of Industrial Unions on the question whether the recommendations made for the settlement of the dispute should be accepted or on the question of striking or locking-out. After the expiration of seven days following the notification of the result of the ballot the parties may strike or lockout. Only nine ballots have been taken under the Act since 1913, and in none of these cases did a strike take place.

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