CHRISTCHURCH TRAMWAYS TROUBLE.

Dominion, Volume 5, Issue 1471, 20 June 1912, Page 4

CHRISTCHURCH TRAMWAYS TROUBLE.

With, tlis. memory .'of the local tramwaymen's strike still fresh in ■ their m'lii.ds, Wellington','.people: have: naturally hseu much- interested in 'he trouble between, the Chr.istchuvoh tninnyaymim and the Christdnireli Tramway Board. Tlirs men last- week ■ issued, throu'gh their, union, a no- . tiqc that unless certain . ..supposed: grievances were remedied within ia; few days, they would leave their ears on Monday afternoon next... for ii couple of hours (following the Wellington men's method) to consider their next .action. The. Board ' issued for publication yesterday ■■ ■ a lengLhy and detailed: ,i:eply to the allegations, and- complaints of the Union, iliijd' of ' a. kind that must have made, most : Wellington citizens envy ■ Chi'ist- ; elm rch Hie possession pi" a con troll iiig; authority marked *by coolness . and' courage. The, Board in its resolution set out f its;d.b"sire^'to ''iiiaintaiii? cordial relations- with the men. and ■. its anxiety to. attend to reasonablecomplaints;, it added an expression of its conviction.'of; the 'loyalty and keenness vfj&j majority ;of the ;ctn : plovees, aiid .wound* up .with a. firm; declaration that.any. hian'who deserted his . duty or jailed to' report for duty.at the appointed tiilie would, lie. .deemed, to have left -.the, service without notice, and have -rendered' himself liable to .any'penalties'.entailed. . It is' unnecessary for. us, since every Wellington citizen, has probably dons it', already' for. tlim? self,. t;r>. contrast this."attitude with; oil in a similar situation. The ae- : .tip/o"f: tlie'-■ oKristchu B; nv i 1 li .sharpen;, : even now; in this time^cif? tramways _ p.eaci;, _ the thoughtful citizen's indignation with. those time-servers on our City Council wlic.se anxiety for ..a little, cheap, popularity .persuaded, them, to be-ipy-the city's interests as they did. So.far as we can see the only gricw auco of the . Christciiureh men. that . may ..possibly be reasonable, as*! he'--iiig partially relates to . "broken shifis." The ■ Union, how-.. ever v atfcnfpted; to make a case by • publishing a long series.of what- the Board showed to'be utterly unfounded pVmplaints. The .secretary, of the. Union, for instance, said tho.'.cn'r-shed night shift \veye compelled to eat their meals iiv ii ittrtv.' . draughty, room : unfit for . human-' i/cings. The Board;. replied that the. men. were paid't.o clean the-room, , and that no complaints had bcea made Chaigcs that . "thousands of pounds" worth of. materia 1 liad been. purchased and !■ Had proved utuisablc,-' that patent brake blocks had-, boeu: discsu'ded, that. w;ood purchased ' for ' brake, blocks had been burned, that • the. Board bought AVestport coal -at ; high rate, that the. W'estport ccjal •firod ; the these, ch.arges'were shown to be absolutely! unt.rtie, and the. Union has not even; attempted to traverse tile' Board's iepb

■ The question of broken' shiits. is always a cliflicult one, but it appears to bp very probable that a heavy discount. be- made on the Union's claim, in view of its obvious read.inebs on other points to take, libeiy ties with the. truth. The men - on whose, behalf the Union is ready, or was ready, to rnake war on. the : city, '"vverc.. : rt score of hien on tlie; "spare list."' It . : is, impossible to believe, that the B.oard has any desire to oppress any section, or any number,' of its employees: it has every motive' fpi:'np.t : Utoing(*sP. ■ Nor is the- Board ■a. mere jnoiithpieCfe for 1 the managing oflicia.ls.:.e.ven the Union has not. charged that against it. . T,he fact' remains that a section,of flic liien : a'lte;, dl'sco'iitc; ritgcl v'■'l>l.vt before.it.'p'r/i-. coeds to' grant those, specific iatlo.\:ia>; tions demanded, it is fhe-.husiness of •the Board to satisfy it self,'first. th;it- : the. city's . interests ; .will be' safeguarded, and second, that the ;dis-. content is real and vital,, and not the, .mere product of asii-atcr" rhetoric. The public is ' always - ready to support- any l^'^ulSliQ 1 employees, i^a.dyy.-indeedv--&err s ;on' the side pf' gehe.rpsityi';bub;t^ will never, tolerate'having a pistol placed- at, its head by-any!- section -or any class. During our own tramway strike,, to be sure, and. during other strikes, 'the,pub 1 ic''..\vas often . referred to. as the enemy of "-theworker," but in a norma 1' mood every workingman knows that this is grotesque as well as untrue. ' Thi Christ.church tramwaymcn have i!\;idently lieen impresseii ,by the (iri'nness of the. Board, and are hoping that tlie new Board wihfcli'iVsjioitly lo be c.lected will be. more, anieniible. to pressure. Unless the Chris.tch.itrch people are very different from, the people ,of other cities the agitators wh.o are niislea<ling the (.'inistc.hurch tramw.aymen 'will' 'd.ißcps'ef."tivai; they i.i.a.ve h'i;a(!.e; a serious mi'stake.