THE CARGO MAN'S PAY.

Dominion, Volume 5, Issue 1340, 18 January 1912, Page 6

THE CARGO MAN'S PAY.

THOSE CONCESSIONS. WHAT WILL IT COST OWNHES? Now that the cargo workers ot Ihe eight ports represented at tlio into conference have concluded an agreement with their employers, interest centres principal'v in the" question of what tho new agreement will cost-what additional an- • niiul outlay on the part of shipping companies and others intorexted.it will m'Vhouglilfnl' members, of the general public, who realise that ultimately I hey will have to foot the bill, are looking lorward not altogether happily to increased fares and freights. .... ,• •• i Waterside work is casual, it is divided up into a number of distinct branches, and walersidors are independently employed in each port by, numerous companies, and, in some cases, as at Wellington, bv the Harbour, Board as well,, lor these reasons it is difficult to arrive at an accurate estimate of the total-addi-tional annual outlay which will have to bo made in meeting the terms ot the new agreement. , . , ~ "The estimates of shipowners and others who were interviewed yesterday as to tue Int'd extra annual cost of the new agreement «ried from JEBO.OOO to -£120,000 per "'Mr W. A. Flavell (local manager of the Westport Coal Company) estimates that the additional wages, paid in respect of handling coal alone, under the new a-rcement, will amount throughout New Zealand to .£7OOO or .£BOOO a year. Other shipowners, among them Mr. C. Holdsworth (general manager of the Union Company) declined, meantime, to hazard an estimate, but Mr. Holdsworth expressed the opinion that his company would probably havo to bear-more than half of the additional outlay. Tho period for which the new agreement is to hold' good is two years, and it makes full provision for preference to unionists. The agreement will be laid before the Wellington Wharf Labourers Union either this evening or to-morrow evening. ' The position of those employers at Auckland who have taken steps to have a new award framed by the Court is a somewhat peculiar one, for even if the Court makes an award allowing the men less favourable conditions than those agreed upon round the table here, the award will be practically inoperative. All the biggest companies employing cargo workers in New Zealand were represented at the conference, and they agreed to pay the stipulated rates.in Auckland as in other ports. Practically the onlv company of any consequence trading'to Auckland which was not represented at the conference was the. Northern Steamship Company, and it does not seem nt all possible that they will, bo able to secure labour on cheaper terms than other employers, _ .■•„„_•, Mr. E. Semple, organiser of the l'ederation of Labour, stated last evening, in reply to a question, that he .assumed that tho new agreement would be fully applicable to Auckland. Fully eie.'ity per cent, of tho shipowners using the port of Auckland had been represented at the conference, and were parties to the agreement, and it was to bo assumed, said the federation organiser, that the minority of shipowners would fall into- lino with the majority. ___^__