WIDER ISSUE.

Auckland Star, Volume LIX, Issue 229, 27 September 1928, Page 7

WIDER ISSUE.

LABOUR CONSCRIPTS.

Watersiders Must Have License

To Work.

UNIONS TAKE CHALLENGE.

(Received 11 a.m.) CANBERRA, this day. Mr. S. M. Bruce, Prime Minister, explaining , the regulations under the new Transport Workers Act, said that these would be administered by the Marine Department of Trade and Customs, which would issue licenses to all persons desiring , employment at ports where volunteer labour has been engaged.

No person without a license would in the future obtain employment as a waterside worker.

Steps had already been taken to apply the regulations to the ports of Melbourne, Adelaide, Brisbane and Fremantle, where the Beeby award was being flouted, but not at Sydney, Newcastle or Albany, where the Waterside Federation men are observing the award.

The conviction of any licensed person for assault on a fellow worker would result in cancellation of his license, while without a license he would be unable to obtain work on the waterfront.

A Bowen message states three more railwaymen have been dismissed by the Queensland Government for refusing duty.

The combined Maritime, Waterside and Transport Unions held a conference in conjunction with the Australian and Xew Zealand Council of Trades Unions. It was agreed that the challenge of the Federal Government that men must register for work in the maritime industry should be accepted. Speakers admitted that the entire maritime organisation must now join issue on this question, which is described as the conscription of labour.

The'conference also decided to test the constitutionality of the Act. In the meautime the waterside workers are to be asked to resume work at all ports under the new award to show that they are abiding by the decision of their own federation and to enable the union movement to fight the Federal Government on the registration issue.

The only hope of averting a general fight on the waterfront is that the negotiations now proceeding with the oversea shipowners and the Government may result in the Government withdrawing the regulations proclaimed under the Transport Act.

The seamen at Melbourne met again yesterday and confirmed their decision not to man ships loaded or unloaded by free labour. The owners are now making plans to enrol volunteer seamen. Somersault at Brisbane. There was an amazing development yesterday at Brisbane in the waterside dispute when, following the decision to resume work arrived at by secret ballot, another mass meeting was called and reversed that result.

The second meeting resolved to endeavour to induce the members of the Transport and Waterside Workers' Unions at all ports in Queensland to hold a conference on Friday. The object is to oflicially declare at that conference a strike throughout the State.

Tho decision reached by the secret ballot was rejected on the ground that some of the voting papers were destroyed. No proposal was made to hold a further ballot. The militant members had complete control of the meeting.

A statement was issued yesterday by the Oversea Shipping Representatives' Association. This said the shipowners realised that if the public-spirited volunteer workers on the wharves had not answered their appeal the disastrous strike on the waterfront might have continued for an indefinite period and have plunged the Commonwealth into chaos only comparable to an invasion.

"Is the control of oversea and interState shipping to be handed back to a union which has shown itself to be utterly helpless?" the owners ask. "If so it is possible to count the weeks between peace and renewed warfare. To expect those in so-called control of the waterside workers to honour any award or agreement is to credit the impossible. We might as well ask a professional incendiarist to turn fireman."

Volunteer labour had proved to the entire satisfaction of Australia that Mr. Justice Beeby spoke truly when he said of waterside work that it was by no means the hardest in the community and that the accepted policy of the Waterside Workers' Federation was to 'spin out the job." The results achieved by willing amateurs should be an "eyeopener" to the general public

Ports Working. At the weekly meeting of the Waterside Workers' Federation at Sydney yesterday the men decided to work all vessels which arrive at Sydney, whether they have been loaded by volunteer labour at other ports or not.

The Adelaide waterside workers- have declared the strike off. They will return to work under the new award.

At Hobart all the members of the federation are now working under the new award.

A meeting of sugar-cane growers was held at Mackay, Queensland. It was decided to offer the services of the growers in order to facilitate the loading and dispatch of sugar cane from that port.

The State and Central Committees of the Oversea and Inter-State Shipowners' Association at Melbourne decided to stand by the volunteer workers now working the ships. There is yet no detinite promise that the volunteers will be <:iven preference under the provisions of the new Transport Bill.