MINISTER AND JUDGE.

Dominion, Volume 5, Issue 1434, 8 May 1912, Page 8

MINISTER AND JUDGE.

. "A FOOL OR A QUIBBLING LAWYER." »• FURNITURE TRADE AWARD, ;A deputation representing tlio Wellington Furniture Workers' Union nnd the Furniture .Trades Congress, which met recently at Duncdin, waited upon tho Minister for Labour (the Hon. G. Lauronson) last night to lay before him several requests for amendment of tlio labour laws and other matters, some of which had been laid beforp former Labour Ministers. Mr. 11. lloriarty, who was the chief spokesman, referred first to the recent Wellington case iu which an employer had been charged with breach of award in,'paying atfapprentice only 10s. a week instead of 12.5., which latter amount was thei minimum wage for apprentices under the latest award.. The magistrate gavo judgment for the defendant, basing Ins decision on .two judgments-of Mr. Justice fjim, who had said that where a second or ia.fcbr award is made in connection with tlio samo industry, such second or later award is not intended to interfere with contracts of apprenticeship duly made m accordance with tlio provisions of any earlier award. Mr. Moriarty said that tho matter was of far-reaching importance. Since tho. easo waj decided last week he had had. letters from tho country showing that employers were treating the boys how Ijiey liked. Ho asked that the Act should bo amended to make it clejir' that the apprentices'.should in all cases get the benefit of higher wages when such were, provided.for in a .new award, although it really seemed quite clear already in the sense the union had read The Courts, however, bad taken another view. Workers' Compensation. The congress at Duusdin had in favour of an amendment ot the Workers' Compensation. Act to mako it compulsory for all" employers to '' insure' their workmen. At present all the large employers ■ did so, .but. .some .ot.: the. smaller, ones.' did not, and it was -m just those, shops, -that accidents ./n.ete most likely;:".;to ; occur. .-. Iho did iiot know whether their employeis had • ensured them or not, and'it was sometimes impossible to recover adequate compensation. He. cited-a case in «Inch • a lad-was badly injured, and his employer at iii'st paid liiin. half wages 'during disablement. Then, there 'being no insurance, the employer gave him a five J l '? I ®, contract at .£3 10s. a. week, but beio e Ion" got into difficulties- and ■ le tr the country, so that tho injured' yoiuh was left in' the lurch. , •' The congress also wished for ellectno le"islation to prevent insurance companies, i from: inducing men'.-to compromise their compensation claims. Legislation denning when a. worker is deemed to be. (tismi«cd was also desirfd. In one instance, a number of non-unionists had been put oli' on account- of shortage ot work, auci takeii on again in a'few days. Ihe union held that this was a fresh engagement and that the preference .clause- sliou d havo been-applied,, but'the . Court held that,■ the .relationship of master and seivant had not ceascd, and that the nonunionists could therefore: bo.emploj'ed. aS: they were." . Employers' Agents. •'Another of-tho- conference related to conciliation councils. Mr. Mori-' ar ty traversed the conflict between the union and Mr. Hally (Conciliation Commissioner) when ho (Mr.. Moriarty) refused- to go -on witli- Mv. UrcnfeJl,..tho was present. - Agents • wore n Th(-v "£ng6udcmL a . bittei.. reeling, awl. greatly delayed tlio • settlement 1 of- dis-putes.--He suggested-a simple amendment of the .Act, to provide tbat.no agontjjo permitted to appear at a Conciliation Council "without the cbnsent of all P'J 1 " tics, i'urtber, in consequence , of 3i\ Ctrenfeirs int'erfereticc,: tm - 'congress also , asked that no party to any. dispute not appearing het'ore the Conciliation Council slionld he allowed to appear Worn the _ Arbitration Court This suggestion arose ••from the tact tliat when the -agreement come to before tho council in AVellinglon. was about to como liefore tho Court, .Air. Grenfell tried to get the employers together to opposo it. ;\fr. Moriarty also complained of tlio action of the'Abritration Court ill striking out picture-framers from tho award. Tliis could not have been done if tho Court had understood the conditions of the trade. The Court had also struck out, as beyond its jurisdiction, a. clause forbidding emnloyccs making furniture at their, homes* outside working hours. Such at-elauso was'"iiecessary iii the interests of tlie union and its members. . The Labour Department. , He also asked for an amendment to give a nni'ofrthe full costs when it won a':case before the Court, and in this connection he complained of the refusal of the Labour 1 Departinent to take up cases of brcaeli of award in response to tho requests of the union. His union had for tomo time given up seeking the assistance of the Labour Department, as they iad ceased.to trust it.. He thought that -with proper administration a great deal of tho industrial trouble of the present ti'mo would pass away. Tho union had had this question brought before Parliament, and Mr. Wilford, though a supporter for many years of the party in ■power, took tho matter up, but quite a different line was taken by Mr. M'Laren, who was 'their only Labour member in the House, and nothing was done. Tho Department was still unwilling to tal;o up cases and always looked for excuses for the employers. The union, thorefore, now asked that the Department should be directed to consult the Crown Law Office before refusing to take up a case. T]ie inspectors of awards/were not paid sufficient.'and were therefore in danger of being bribed by employers. Mr. Moriarty also asked that nil the decisions of tlio Arbitration Courts and other Courts on labour question's should be printed in the "Labour Journal."

THE MINISTER'S REPLY. . DISAGHISES AVITH JCDGB SIM. . The Minister expressed appreciation of the friendly (one of .both., speakers, to■v.'ards 'the employers. ■ In -regard ' -to judge Sim's decisions affecting the wages of apprentices, the Minister, said tliat to biin. as a- layman,' they seemed extraordinary, arid to his mind no man, unless Tie was a fool or a quibbling lawyer, could rend the section in any other way than the union had road it. Ho thought it was quite reasonable that employers should be compelled lo ensure their workers, just as a mortgagee could insist on insuranco of the pronertv on which he had lent money. The decision -of tho Arbitration Court as to wlien employment reased seemed to liiin extraordinary. Ten da-vs was too long a period to fix. In ■regard to agents appearing at Conciliation Councils, the obiect of the councils was that there should be no one there to foment mischief. They should be coun-; oils of conciliation in reality.'as well as in name., but if aeents were allowed Jo. come and foment trouble, the whole ob-. iect and end of conciliation would be destroyed. He thought it would not bo' practicable tn prevent men working at home and selling tlie- things flier made, but he would have the matter inquired into. He. would se° that all decisions in labour ea=es were nnblished in the "Journal " He thought the deputation's requests in the matVr of taking caws before the Court, and mo=t of the other re-noe-ts thev had laid before him. were fair and reasonable. He concluded with ft tribute of praise to the officers of the Labour Department.