THE PROS & CONS.

Dominion, Volume 6, Issue 1653, 21 January 1913, Page 6

THE PROS & CONS.

ANOTHER UNION. STATEMENT, '; ■ -BIE GEORGE CLIFFOKD'S REJOINDEIi. „ . ,■ , , . (By''Tolesrap'h'J4-P'reas 'Association.) ;;V'Christchurcli/'January 20. ■ , 'A meeting" of ..members, ,of .the' Canter-' .tury Slaughtermen's ;Union. was hold on 1 Saturday-night'.', There was a largo at-' , t«indaiice, ; and;proceedings were conducted . in camera! ./iosterday,. Mr.Gl';'. AVere,: ',' secretary'of ; ,tho;uniori, ; furnished tho following reply.! on -"behalf of, the union to' '. th'e.istatement byfth'o.Employers', Confer-; enco;at Wellington, published on Satur-. . 'day/'"-'' " : • '!■: . The'conference considers 25s.'per 100'nd'e-! quate remuneration for tj'e ivorlc pai'ormedy ,but:tay ,'unioui.'questions.-whether .thev t delegates "at,, : that; -conference are a.com-' : ; potent tribilnal to judge the value",of th 9 "" .iWorfo_, performed * by •; slaughtermen,, sinco! . none-of tliein haa. eyer, 1 performed such' work. Tho .conference confirmed-, the offer! ; of 275".' Gd.'per, .100 .which. was previouslyi made.' .. ; • •••.!.IMy > union.'.,wishes!>the,, position mado ' clear to tanners. Tho companies are !. offering 1 275. Gd. , The slaughtermen de-, inaifd JiO&'and the farmer is taking it for! . *granted', that tlie".extra.rateNv-iU'b'o passed: -,' on to him.-' A\>-will assuuHvthat.it is.' ' 'Then the extra 2s. ,6d.- per 100, over and' micro what the; coiripauie'ovnrc offering, -amounts to this: For furmers producing ■ ?500. .sheep. -br.-lambs,the,, amount•;ipasSca . ioii to; him will;|)0 125,;.0d;; ,a. fii.Vmer " •. 1000 sheep, 25sjj_asfarihecjwith . Jis; ami. so, on;;, Siimo'i farriers" have"saidj v "We will fight .thcm," but others sympa-' t. ... thise with .the .slauehteritien, stating- that' it is a "rotten job? r anOliejTsEouliFljfi'" well paid, and tnat. if some finality could be arrived at, they would recommend that ; ' a concession bo granted.- lam authorised to point out to farmers that the slaughter- ' men's goal in 1007 wtis 3Us., and no designs. ;". beyond that. As a matter of fact, I have • tho consent of the union to' make an ngrec-

: nient on the.bjisis, 0f;303. .for twenty years,, or more, unless ' the-sljiiiclitenueir get •30s'.« ■, now. The sanfelifitfltf wiU"be "'aged again at the end,of a.^short. period.- 'Now a ■farmer can-prhctically purchase perpetual peace and tiie gobttwiluo'£,tK'o,'ilaughl:?rr' k men , for- the .ftiliflim,; viz., 12s. od., 255.,.and £b respectively,, ■which the union considers very" cheap. . "Now" I {.'aniß'tO'-lte-'leai-ners'- clnusej l '' continued. Mr.'--AVere.'-i-"-Various-farmers . interviewed'-.'SOnto momhwsvbfi the'vttniort," expressing' regre.t'ithat.thoriinion'.is-'op-; . posed .to learners. ' I am ' instructed to say that the union /lues not oppose learn- , bi's.- What rth'e»'unibfi' wants; is .thafc. thole • learners b3Miittde"proficiSiU"Wcrrkfheit' ,ba- i fore Leiiig learncrs have been 'hurried through tho school' at some of. the works represented by ii.e ciiaiilman of the.' conference.'. They; started in -the' North Island,' itnd were discharged by' employers' thero' lis'incompetent. This'is-.wnat 'the union docs'not . want."-' !■!■' w

"Dealing w.ith,thc;prcference clause; Mr. AVere said"lt. is also. stated that the

.companies cannot. consent to an alteration of what are- called the preference conditions. ,I'heVconterenco calls it-.a balanced compromise, biit the .union questions very much whether, members 'on the conference we're anything'liko unanimous, on this tlicro arc', upwards of twenty companies in' the dominion, and the claiise Which the'tlhioi 'askS lor' Las been in, .operation oyer all tho coinpanics with tile exception uf tho' two Canterbury conlplthies.: This balailccd clause, mentioned by-tho-conference,' gives l employers tho right to dictate to tho uniorf bow it must manage its:business, but tho\ union considers that it can manago its own business, and claims a light to do so in this free country;- All that the union asks is to-be'on. the same ■ footing-as their co-unions,, in ..other., parts of tho Dominion. Tho new clause offers to take members without ballot or election, and what more can the. companies expect?" "In reference to; hours, Mr. Wero proceeded, "the slaughtermen consider eight hours'per day quite enough, but they are willing to give an extra hour if required at an overtime rate from 7'a.m. to 8 a.m. They consider this tho worst hour of tho day, since, for a seven o'clock start, those ,who. come a distance have to Itavo home befoJo ; G : a ( jn.'^.v' ; ' < -'f ■ SIR GEORGE CLIFFORD. v The statement, by.'Mr. Were was shbVn 1 to Sir Georgo Clifford. '.He, stated.(after hurriedly perusing -the-statements -made by Mr. Were) that he wns reluctant to wake any hasty comments: on so grave a refii-ai to entertain.' what had .been thought a generous • < Slaughtermen

—a refusal which extended not only to tho matter of wages, but also to cundi"tion's* carrying • most important consequences. At tho-first blush, however, it appeared' to 'him' that, as. to wages, no answer was given to .tho companies, but that Mr. "Were was merely making on appeal to the clients of tho companies for tlieir -support. - "This appeal is not altogether an ingenious one,"'said Sir Clifford. "To put the increased demand in another light,'it means a .rise of not less than .El per week to an average slaughterman killing 80 sheep per day. -. At present slaughtermen} in' all _ ordinary season throughout the Dominion, average (unless I am greatly mistaken) from £i to £5 per week, while'those who only .work : in this country for the cream of the season, earn much" more. If fiiis bo so, the companies' offer of 2s. 6d. per 100'(or practically IBs. per week) cannot be considered' otherwise than liberal.' To show the'cffect of this upon tho .'charges, which meat' bears, a proposal lfas already been received from tho ■ slaughtermen's, assistants to raise their wages to within 75 per cent, of tho highest wage made for each' day by those slaughtermen mqking tho highest tally. This addition to tho tax upon tho producer, who, of course, ultima:tely tecls the . outcome in- reduced prico .'obtainable for his stock, cannot ;bo at present foreseen, but must quickly accumulate."' _ , Questioned. as . to.' the conditions of labour apart from wages, Sir Georgo Clifford turned up tho actual terms .of the demand. As to learners he said:' "How can Mr. AYere pretend' that the only object of, tho demand is to secure proficiency in learners? Wo liavo at present a right to ; employ, one, learner .to' every eight 'slaughtermen; and to sulisfcituto .another learner for a proficient one. 'Now. listen ■■to," the . wording 'of the present;. demand, which speaks for itself• ' -. •/ .

■ "-'Employers may employ learners in . . their respectire factories. Each learner . shall'ba provided:\vith a. hook. Hooks : rfor -learners'shall be kept separate as' far as reasonably." practicable from the' hooks'of the slaughtermen. Learners .: ;shall -be employed in such ' proportion ' to. slaughtermen that thero shall, not be inoro than one learner every twenty .slaughtermen or fraction 'of . the'first twenty. 'No learner-shall be "allowed: to start ;while members of tho , uWdn aro idle. Gut boys shall be "given'. preference ; as' learners. A "learner, .. when capable of killing and ' dressing eight: sheep or lambs per. , hour for .'freezing'- -purposes, :to the, satisfaction,.of the foreman butcher, 'shall- be. 'classed as 'a. competent slaughtei;man,.ahd shall be transferred from "the- learner's class." Not more than ono eefc of learners-shall bo'allowed to work'in any one shed in any one-season!:"Each employer shall em-' . ploy a slaughterman to teach such:' learners,; and the. said . slaughterman shall-bo a.member of the union. His 'remuneration . shall :be tlio average tally of the boai'd.-- Learners shall.ba ' paid'for ■.slaughtering'done by them -.;..at-not le.s's't.han-the rates, specified 'in. .-.► this agreement.: Each learner - a member of some, union affiliated with. Slaughtermen's Federation..'. "Tho federation shall not fine or, in' r 'any way,'penalise any member thereof for becoming a learner under tho provisions 'of this agreement; or for ■teaching any such learners in accordance with the said provisions.' Each employer shall bo'entitled to have one learner in cach beef slaughterhouse, .. and -.such • learner' shall be/taken off ■ the mutton board. Tho. beef butcher ■ shall be allowed to employ labourers/

"As to the preference clause, I am .sure that, in this island,' the amendment asked for iwould entirely upset any 'control which might; in on emergency, be rightly! vested in. the management of any factory, and if Mr! Wore' 1 claims that his union should' manage: their own 'affairs, surely the organisers of: such-a complex business as .a large freezing factory must, for the efficiency; and tho good handling of meat (so vital to the whole farming community), s-eek'to-manago their affairs for tho-bene-' fit of .that community" Continuing, Sir, .G(eorge"Clifford said:— "No grievance |at' Any 'rate' has hitherto becomo apparent' arising out: of. thp "present' clauses. As to the hours of work, this- question : cf', "'fliUnagem¥nt ; f aJsUfiies great importance.. It needs, no imafjiha'tive power to foresee the result of making 'overtime* begin .the day instead'-of. ending it. Fancy the rush during that hour when' the'rate .'would be 455.' per JIOO -in' terms of the demand, I have no time to go into tho'other disadvantage of this charge, but I can assure you that they would be in the highest degree detrimental." .

CHRISTCHURCH ABATTOIRS. . NO TROUBLE LIKELY. - ' •> (By " Telegraph.—Press Association.} ~ , Christchurch, January 20. " "It seems iinliKely,'' in the event. of , a striko' by- tho slaughtormen nn; bury, that the Christchurch municipal, abattoirs will be affected. / . ' Councillor. C. D. Morria (chaimian of, the Abattoirs :• Committee of tlfc City , Council), in reply to a question bn the subject, .said:'"We aro working nndeif; a very satisfactory' award, and I have not heard, a-wliisper' of any discontent. The slaugJitermen at the abattoirs, I supposej have the best award of any slaughtermen in New Zealand, i They all seem -satished, and" I' do not anticipate .' any ..trouble. There is-'not .the slightest hint or suggestion ,of discontent,: and' the men say that they are satisfied with the award at present in operation. That award does not expire , till-September, , 1914." - SOME-MEN'S-WAGES. J s -! ! '.;'i:'2oo MADE IN EIGHT. MONTHS. . Hastings, January' 20. "With reference to*a statement'mado by Mr.-C. Were, secretary of the. Canterbury Slaughtermen's Union, regarding the earnin"s of slaughtermen at the Canterbury Freezing Works, a "Tribune" reporter was informed this morning that some butchers at Tomoana works earned .£2OO last season for eight months, and very few less than jeiGO. •