ARBITRATION BILL.

Press, Volume LXIII, Issue 19137, 21 October 1927, Page 11

ARBITRATION BILL.

QHANGE IN COURT. PAYMENT BY RESULTS. FARMING INDUSTRY EXEMPT. [THE PRESS Special Service.] WELLINGTON, October 20. An alteration in the constitution of the Arbitration Court, exemption of the farming industry from the scope of the Act, encouragement of piecework and payment by results, and consideration of the state of the industry concerned, and the Dominion generally, in the framing of awards, are the features of the Industrial Conciliation and Arbitration Amendment Bill, introduced in the House of Representatives to-night. The Minister's explanation of the measure was attended by considerable interjc tion, and a lively debate developed. When the Bill was introduced the Leader of tho Opposition, Mr H. E. Holland, asked the Minister if he would give as full an explanation of the measure as possible, as a great deal of interest attached to it. "You might explain," he added, "whether tho provisions are as were forecast in the daily Press, and if so, tell us how the Press . obtained this information." (Laughter.) "You have given me a rather big task," replied the Minister for Labour (Mr Anderson). "I leave it to you to find out how the Press got the foreeast. No doubt you know more about that than I do." Mr Holland: You are not suggesting that they got it from me? (Laughter.) The Minister: I am not making any suggestion at all. The Bill is a simple one. Mr W. S. Glenn (Rangitikei): Little and simple. Constitution of Court. "The constitution of the Court is altered," said the Minister, "but not in the way Mr Holland expected. The present Judge remains in office, and except for the settlement of industrial disputes, shall exercise jurisdiction alone. On every industrial dispute two arbitrators shall be selected to sit with the Judge on that' dispute. The arbitrators shall be selected, one for the employers and one for tho employees in tho industry affected by the dispute. Should it be necessary to sit in more than one place, the Judge will sit alone in all but tho principal industrial district, and the evidence will be taken down and communicated to the arbitrators, and a decision will be arrived at after consultation in the principal place appointed. If a recommendation is unanimously agreed to by all the assessors on a Conciliation Council, a dispute may be referred to the Arbitration Court for settlement by the Judge alone." Mr Sullivan (Avon): Is the Conciliation Council altered? Tho Minister: No,, it is too valuable. Mr McKeen (Wellington South): Why don't you increase the powerß of tho Commissioner?

Rural Industries. "The present nominated members , of. the Court will vacate office as soon as the cases now before the Court have been dealt with," continued the Minister. "Provision is made for compensating them for the loss of office. The farming industry is exempted from the operations of the Act. The farming industry includes all agricultural, pastoral, and dairying operations, and all work of other descriptions incidental to. those operations when effected on a farm. Dairy factories are also exempted from the Act. A Labour voice: Why? Mr Holland: How will you deal with disputes there? Proceeding, the Minister said it was laid down that in future there should be no provision in any award prohibiting employment under piecework rates, or in any manner calculated to secure payment by results. The Court might embody these provisions in 'any award, but notwithstanding the absence from any award or industrial agreement of thoso provisions, any employer might agree with his employees, or any of them, for payment at piecework rates, or according to the volume of work done, provided that in no case should tho basis of payment be less than the rate fixed by tho award or industrial agreement by which the parties would be otherwise bound. Mr J. A. Leo (Auckland East): The most reactionary Bill that has ever come down! A fit child of unfit parents! The Chairman: Order! "Ali assessors," said Minister, "must have been employed in the industry that is under dispute within the previous twelve months, and provision is mado that if any employer dismisses one of the assessors within six months of his acting as such an assessor, it will be prima facie evidence that the assessor concerned was dismissed because he had acted as an assessor. In cases were no two members of the Court are able to agree upon a decision, then tho Judge will decide. Ability of Industry to Pay. "In fixing an award the Court must take into consideration a fair standard of living, and also tho economic and financial conditions affecting the industry to which the award relates, and trade and industry generally in New Zealand. Where new methods of work are brought into being, the Court may amend an award to give effect to them In case of any dispute or strike, or where there is likely to bo a dispute or strike, the Minister may summon the parties to meet him, and irthe, per«mj so summoned do not attend they arc liable to a fine of £SO. That's the Bill." The Labour Leader. ■ The Leader of the Opposition who inaugurated the debate, said the Bill mi|ht be described as reactionary in Ch " r aC Lysnar: Call it progressive in eh MrHo r iland: This is a measure about which I the industrial organisations have not been consulted so far. I hope the Minister will give ample time for the measure to be considered. You will not tell us you circulansed the unions. . . , The Minister: They circularised me,, and the Bill embodies what they asked for They asked for alterations in the 'constitution of the Court. Mr Holland: They did not ask for exemption for the farming industry. A Government member: They have got it, though. Mr Lvsnar: It is a necessity. Mr Holland: The Minister has not told us how he is going to deal with industrial troubles when they arise in the country. Mr Lysnar: They don't arise there. The Minister (to Mr Holland): I

will tell you that when we come to the second reading. Mr Holland: At. the presont time we have what tho Minister himself has described as a constitutional method of dealing with industrial disputes, but ho has removed it as far as tho rural districts are concerned. There should be something put in its place. All that is left for the settlement of a dispute there is the striko or the lock-out. Mr Lysnar: They don't striko in the country. Mr Holland again asked the Minister to inform the House what time he proposed to give the industrial unions and the. workers in rural areas to express opinions on the proposals in the Bill. "Extremely Drastic." Mr Sullivan (Avon) supported Mr Holland's request for further information. He said the provisions of the Bill were extremely drastic, and it should be sent to a committee. Mr Parry (Auckland Central) wanted to know whether the Minister would refer the Bill to the Labour Bills Committee. The Minister: Have you ever known a Labour Bill that was not referred to the Labour Bills Committee! Mr Parry added that there would be a good deal said about the Bill afterwards. It was an attempt to aim a deadly blow at trades unionism in an underhand manner. Mr Vcitch (Wnnganui) said the Arbitration Act required amendment in certain directions, and if the Bill went on in the ordinary way a great deal of evidence wUuld have to be takon on the subject by the Labour Bills Committee Time was short, and he suggested that tho Bill should bo deferred until next session, and the Committeo called together during the recess to go into it. Mr McKeen (Wellington South) said this was one of tho most reactionary measures they had seen for maiiy years. Generally ho condemned the proposals in the Bill as outlined by tho Minister. The Government was now striking a blow at the method that had prevailed in settling industrial disputes. This was only an attempt to apponse the discontent that had arisen in the rural districts. It was placing tho worker in the farming industry at the mercy of tho unscrupulous employer. Mr Lysnar: The question is a very simple one and tho Legislature should decido it, and not a committee. Somo of tho leading men in the Labour Party have asked for a chango in the constitution of the Court.

Tho Leader of the Opposition: Namo one Labour organisation/ Mr Lysnar: I refer to the agitators. He reeommonded the Labour Party to take their gruel. Mr Tapley (Dunedin North): Why should wo waste tho time of the House talking now? A Labour membor: Why are you talking? Another Labour memjber: Why don't you sit down! Mr Tapley said it was no use to labour points at' this stage of the proceedings. 'Labour Members' Opposition. ' Mr Armstrong (Christchurch East) said tho Labour Party had gathered that the Bill did not contain many proposals of any 'use to them, and there would be a considerable waste of time before it went on to the Statute Book. There had been industrial peace in New Zealand for a long time, and why dis- j turb it now! The Bill would play into | the hands of a section who were neither the friends of the Labour Party nor of the Reform Party. The proposed amendment struck a death blow at arbitration in New Zealand. The systom had never worked more smoothly than it had dojie during the past three, years. Where was the agitation coming, from, unless from some intellectual 'misfits? Mr McComba (Lyttelton) asked where had these ideas come from. He suggested that they had come from some wild and woolly extremists, who were to be found in the Reform Party. -He criticised adversely the provisions of the Bill, as far as they had been outlined by the Minister. He did not object to the bringing in of the expert assessors where necessary. In regard to the exempted industries, if there was going to be peace, it was obvious that it would be a dictated peace—dictated by the employers. >' ■ , Mr Howard (Christchurch South) said there was not a country In the world where the employees and employers were on such good terms as in New Zealand at the present time, but the Government had been commanded by their bosses outside —not altogether the farming community—to change the Arbitration Court system, and -00 would prefer to wait to hear what the proposals really meant after the Committee had reported <m the Bill. Mr Fraser (Wellington Central) said he had no doubt ,ho could find unionists that would support any proposal to destroy or abolish the Arbitration Court. He was speaking to such a man the other day. r The Minister: Do you think I would be a party to that!

Postponement Suggested. \ Mr Fraser: lam glad*to hear the Minister say that he would not be a party to anything that would destroy tho Court. He thought it would be a retrograde step to abolish the permanent assessors.- He asked the Minister to take the discussion pro forma, then get evidence taken before the Labour Bills Committee, and then, before opinions were crystallised, before people were committed, before speeches were made containing moro heat than light, before the battle was joined, evidence tie taken so that the Minister could come back fully equipped with all possible knowledge of the matter, and then go on with his measure. , Mr Savage (Auckland West) asked for a definite assurance that the Bill would go to the Labour Bills Committee, and that plenty of copies of the Bill would be available for distribution among those interested."

Opportunities to Offer Evidence. "I said before that the Bill will go to the Labour Bills Committee, but I intend to take the, second reading first," said the Minister. "Plenty of copies will be available, and opportunity will be given for everyone who wants to be heard to give evidence, but I am not going to stand any stone-walling. Perhaps I had better not use that expression. Mr Holland: It is certainly mentary. The Minister: Well, no undue or protracted delay. I do not intend to let it be held up. Mr Fraser said he was pleased to hear the Minister say he was the only one who had seen the Bill, and he hoped that he would retain it in his possession. He thought the Minister was making a very serious mistake to take the second reading before sending the Bill to the Labour Bills Committee. The Bill was then reported from Committee and read a first time.

POINTS FROM THE BILL. [THE PBBSS BptcUl Strrie*.] WELLINGTON, October 20. The conditions surrounding the appointment of arbitrators, the retirement of the present nominated assessors, and the exemption of farming industries from the Act, are elaborated in the Bill which was circulated late to-night. It is provided that when an industrial dispute arises and is referred