STATEMENT BY MR. M. M'LEAN.

Dominion, Volume 4, Issue 1041, 2 February 1911, Page 5

STATEMENT BY MR. M. M'LEAN.

OBJECTS TO OUTSIDE INTER. BUT WILL DEAL WITH HIS OWN ■ MEN, ' 'By Telegraph-Press Association.l

■ ChristcKurch, February 1. ,-\, .statement in .connection with : the Arthurs Pass tunnel-workers' dispute Mr - Murdoch M'Lean, one of the tunnel contactors. He said that prior tbl-S clay afternoon Inst he. had not been aware that there were any grievances, as the relations between the men and the con-n-actors for some time past could be described as fnirly amicable. On Monday last he was informed that the men wished to'jneet him ami he replied that while • he!.would meet'them at any time they liked he would not consent to any outsiiers being present. If they wanted to meet him they would have to meet him themselves. The men then' told him that Mr. Armstrong,- th 6 union secretary, would be present and ho at once declined to have anything to do with Mr. Armstrong. The men would not express imy grievances or say anything about the matters they wished to discuss. ■ A., meeting. was held whictf he - (Mr. M'Lean attended and one of the' tunnel n.en'explained the position, ilr. M'Lcan's reply was that he was quite prepared to meet his own men individually, or collectively, but that he had had enough ■of outside interference.. Mr. Armstrong was at that meeting, and his presence was objected to by Mi\ M'Lean. After this meeting there. was no resumption, of work", and now there is industrial war-' fare-at both'ends-of the tunnel. ■•

■"''" '■" •'. The Grievances. ; i Regarding -the msn's grievances.. Mr. M'Lean said that they • had never, been . communicated to him by -the union or ■ anyone else. Ho was satisfied, that the { majority of men in the tunnel were quite satisfied with the existing conditions ' and that if they had been left alone by agitators they would not have.come cut. The claim for overtime rates of ' pay was a very small grievance indeed, ' as overtime was rarely worked, and work on Sundays was never done except, it could not possibly be avoided. Regarding the late shift on Saturdays, and tho first shift on Mondays, it had been represented to him that the men wished to work the. full eight hours. At present they worked, seven hours, and were paid for a seven hours' shift. They did not work eight hours after tho notice was put up, and he accented that as an indication that the men did not wish to have those shifts extended to eight hours. The contractors had no wish for eight hours to be worked oh those shifts, and were (mite content that the men should work and be naid for seven'hours. A notice had been put up withdrawing the former extension of shifts. '

Work in Wet Places. The disnute regarding "wet plaws" was most "important, but lie did not see that tho nien had any grounds for complaint. "Under tho ,old; award, when tuunel-nien were 'affiliated with the Iningfthua Miners' Union, shifts in wet places were to be of six hours; The pay was to he for eight hours. The.award 'Was now of no effect; as the men were now affiliated with a different union. Tho position was that at thsir own request they worked eight.hours in '-et places, and got ten h ours' pay. Tho contractors would bs quite willing to let them work six-hour shifts and get payment for eight; There were occasionally differences of opinion as to what constituted "wet nlaces," but there would always be a difference. Mr. M'Lean stated that ho was quite willing that the clause in tha old awftrd, which provided that the present Public Works Engineer should determine disimtes as to wet places, should be brought into operation again. Hβ was perfectly willing to discuK the wholo situation'with his own me"n; but he objected to any interference by outsiders, who, in his opinion, were responsible for the trouble. "The Press" special reporter at OHra adds:—"The union here contains ;i majority of tunnel workers, but then , is n. fairly numerous non-union minority. The non-unionists caina out wi,th , tm> unionists, though a number cf them sro 'by no means satisfied that the strike will bring any advantage to the workers as n whole."