HUNTLY MINERS OUT.

Dominion, Volume 7, Issue 1886, 21 October 1913, Page 8

HUNTLY MINERS OUT.

$ FIVE HUNDRED STRIKE. COMPANY'S NOTICE TO THE UNION. MEN'S LIABILITIES. (By Telegraph.—Proaj Association!) Auckland, October 20. In accordance with the decision arrived at on Saturday tlio Huntly coal miners struck to-day. This morrting, before thownino whistles blew, the streets were quietly lined with pickets. Any miner who apparently intended making for tho pit-head was quietly buttoniholed and, in .the majority of cases, talked out of his purpose. The result iVas that, when the whistle blow, only a handful of men wercf prepared to commence work. These consisted mainly of shift and surface hands and truckers.' These men intimated that they were not in sympathy with the strike, and expressed the opinion that more ,mcn would bo back at work to-morrow. This romains to bo seen. As it is over COO men are on strike. So far as tho men who have gone back aw'concerned it is stated that not mora 7 than seven members of tho union resumed. Altogether tliore are about 40 men at work in and about the mine, but tho number includes deputies and niombers of the Engine-drivers' and Firemen's Union (which is a separate body) and engineers who belong to the Amalgamated Society of Engineers (an entirely klißtinct organisation).

Feeling of Directors. Mr. E. W. Alison, chairman of directors of tho Taupiri Coal Mines, stated to-day that tho directors met this morning, and much, astonishment and regret ,was expressed at the action of tlio union 3n defying the Jaw and disregarding tho .very,explicit terms of the agreement, ffhe directors can hardly conceive that the majority of tho men aro fully informed as to the actual position and the serious consciences which may ensue. 'In viow of this they l resolved to forward a notice to the union and to post it at the pii-hcads of.tho mines'. The also decidcd to notify tlio Inspector of Awards of tho action of the •jinion, and to request him to take such -steps in accordance with tho law as are Warranted by the circumstances. Companies' Notlcs to Strikers. The to sets forth the Irarious clauses of the agreement and Shen reads: — In the present case it does not appear that the union has done all in its power to prevent the strike, but has deliberately caused and led tho same. The provisions in regard to taking a secret ballot have been entirely ignored, and no notico of any kind has been given to the directors of the intention to strike. . It is clear, therefor, that tho union has deliberately laid itself open to an action for damages in terms, of the agreement, and that, at the option of the directors, the agreement may be suspended, leaving tlio hours, wages, and other conditions to bo fixed by agreement between the company and individual-workmen. This is not tho only result of tho action of tho union. Under tho Industrial. . Conciliation and Arbitration Act (Amendment Act), 1908, every • member of the union has rendered himself liablo to prosecution as a striker with a liability to a fino up to £25, payment of which may be 'enforced by execution against the property of the'person fined."

j "Victimisation" Catch Cry. / - I • ' , - Auckland, Octobar 20. ' At a mass meeting held in the "Union Hall atHuntly on Sunday it was stated, ' an reference to the sixteen miners who ihad received notice fronj tlio Taupiri ; Coal Company that their "services would he idispensed with, that the directors ihad been approached and asked to re- : instate the dismissed men, but had declined to do so. The directors 'stated that it was their intention to dispense .with the servicos of more miners at an . early- date.- Three of the dismissed jnon were members of the union executive, and victimisation was alleged. The miners present resolved almost ! to decline to resume work juitil the dismissed men were reinstated.. . Mr. Alison's Answer To It. Mr. Alison, chairman of directors, in an interview, said that with the approach of the warm weather there is a 'diminishing demand for household coal. '{Following its practico in previous years, (the company commenced the reduction of hands by giving notico of dismissal . (to sixteen men. There are now 583 ,jnen employed at the mines, a larger ' '-number than the company ever before iiad in its ,employ at this season of tho 'year. .Tho men who have been dis- ■ 'charged .have been dispensed with sim- '• 'plv because thero is no work for them. ■There is no foundation for the allesa- : ition of victimisation. Federation Invoked. Tho Hunt-Iy miners held a mass meet- ' ing this afternoon, about 300 being present, whon it was decided to appeal to tho now Federation of Labour to take : 'Up the case. A telegram from that body congratulated the men on tho stand ■taken. A meeting of members of tho ihigino Drivers' Union is being held to--but their attitude in the matter -fwill not be known-until to-morrow. CASE FOR MEN.

FEDERATION OF LABOUR'S VIEW: Mr.,P. H. flickey, secretary of . the iUnitcci Federation of Labour, made the statement yesterday with re.gard to the position at Huntly:— "As is not unusual in cases of industrial revolt, the causes leading up to 3tho Huntly strike have boon misrepresented through the press reports. The 1 press Association messago says that tluring tlio winter months somo twelvo hundred men aro employed at these coal mines, but witli the approach of summer and consequent decrease in coal consumption, the company always dispense with the services of at least 0110 or two hundred. As a matter of fact, ' itho company never employs more than (six hundred men, and had not oven that number engaged at the time the strike took place. As for shortening hands in view of slackness of trade, it lis significant to note that whilst the (company found'it incumbent to dispense with sixteen men in view of the alleged shortage of trade, at least fourteen men have been engaged sinco the notices of termination of servico were > innded tlio sixteen. The men maintain -that tlio attitude of tho company is : ono of intolerance towards unionism and that a number of active unionists wore deliberately sorted out for tho express purposo of intimidating tho union £ s a whole. Take, for' instance, some Wi>f the men dismissed. Tho men's check inspector, J. Patterson, a man who -eas elected by his fellows to make a periodical examination of tho mine in rnder to sco if the proper precautions isro taken to protect life and hmb.ls sorted out for dismissal; this despite tho fact that ho fas been in tho com- , pany's employ forifive years The cheek inspector's duties are of the most responsible natnro. I he carries out Lduties as they should be carried out, ho must necessarily clash with the management. Apparently a clash took riacc and ho is told to go. , In addition to tho sacking of this .official, who by the way, is also a union trustee, t.\o • other members of the union executive, Messrs Ward and Smith, have been dismissed; one with four years service < ™„d the other with, two years' service TV length of service of others of the dismissal men are three years, nine years, five soars, and thirteen years. Is

it reasonable to suppose that if tho reasons back of these dismisals wero only due to shortage of trade, men with thirteen years of service would be picked out and told to go? Would it not bo moro feasible to imagine that the younger and moro recently engaged men would b® tho ones selected ? If the trade were slack, why have newhands been engaged sinco the notices wero served upon the sixteen? Tho Huutly miners have not forgotten that last year no fewer than forty of their most active unionists wero cruelly selected for slaughter; their union officers and executive members summarily sacked; their union smashed, and a process of pin-pricking, irritating in the extreme, carried on. It is quite certain that there is not a, unionist in this country, when tho facts of the case are put before him, that will not endorse Huntly's attitude."