THE WHARF TROUBLE.

Dominion, Volume 6, Issue 1845, 3 September 1913, Page 6

THE WHARF TROUBLE.

The Wellington Harbour Board cannot be congratulated upon the manner in which it has dealt with the difficulty on the Wool Wharf regarding the handling of the salvage cargo of the Devon. Tho casual hands having refused to work this cargo, the agents appealed to the Board, whose business it is to see that cargo is taken from the wharf to the shed, and the respon-

sible officer of the Board quite properly called upon the permanent staff to do what was required. This request met with a refusal. It was a clear case of direct disobedience, and should have been dealt with in a prompt and decisive manner. The Board, however, was not equal to the occasion, and, instead of giving the men the choice of doing the work or seeking employment elsewhere, the weak expedient of temporary suspension was resorted to. In the meantime the casual hands, having been promised an increase of pay, consented to handle the cargo. The whole matter is to be considered at an emergency meeting of the Board to be held this afternoon. The first question that should be discussed is whether it is worth while, in view of what has happened, to employ a permanent staff at all. These men receive good wages, permanent employment, and a number of special privileges, in order that the Harbour authorities may have a number of loyal, trustworthy employees who can be relied, upon to do their duty at all times, and to act in precisely such an emergency as that which has just occurred. If they fail in this respect, one of the main purposes for which they are employed is not fulfilled, and they may as well be disbanded. Unless these men are prepared to recognise that their special privileges entail the responsibility of special service and prompt obedience in circumstances when a special effort is needed to prevent the dislocation of the work of the port, those privileges should be withdrawn, and the men should bo allowed to compete in the ordinary way for any work that may be available. The excuse which tho permanent staff put forward for their refusal to handle tho Devon's cargo will not bear a moment's investigation. _ We are told that they feared that if they did their duty they might be called unpleasant names by other workmen. If' the staff consisted of two or three men their position might be made rather unhappy for a time. But there are sixty-five of them, and in any case the law of the land is strong enough to protect people from insult and violence on the wharf or anywhere else. . In view of all the facts it is quite plain that if the Board do not take effective steps to meet ±Ke situation 'that has arisen, they 1 may expect a recurrence of the difficulty at any time, and probably in an aggravated form. ' The Board owes something to the users of the port, and to citizens generally as well as its employees, and we trust that this fact will not be overlooked at today's meeting.