SHEARERS' DISPUTE

Dominion, Volume 12, Issue 302, 17 September 1919, Page 2

SHEARERS' DISPUTE

PAY OF SHED HANDS

CASE BEFORE CONCILIATION COMMISSIONER

A further stop towards a settlement of tho shearers' disputo was taken before tho Conciliation Commissions (Mr. W. Newton) yesterday, when the Hawke's Bay Sheepowners' Industrial Union of Employers cited'the Wellington Shearers' Industrial Union of workers for a new award. Tho assessors were: For the applicants, Messrs. Hugh Morison ' (Greytown). A„ D. M'Leod (Martiiiborough), and Henry Gascoyne (Murackakaho, Hawke's Bay); for the respondents, Messrs. J. Townsend (Wauganu'i), R-. Templeton (Wellington), and A. Cook (Clii'istelnirehi. 'I'liere were also present, the following Dominion representatives :-Messrs. H. D. Akland, president of the New Zealand. Sheepowners' Federation (ngent), P. H. Labat.t, secretary of the federation, L. A. Rutherford (Canterbury), and A D. Vavasour (Marlborough), for.the eheepow.ners;and Messrs. C. Grayndler,, Wellington (agent); H. Hodcereon (Marlborough), C Baldwin (Otasro). and Kateno Pukurua (Gisborne) for the shearers.. ■■....•

At the outset it. was pointed.out that tho tonus of the settlement would form 1 tho basis of a Dominion agreement, and would be-ratified by the. various, industrial district? as an award. The molt-' ter was 'originally before the representatives at a conference held in Wellington in Juno last, and again more, recently at Christchureh, when a number of important points in -dispute- were settled, and it was agreed that.thoso: points should lie adopted in respect to the present dis- ■ puto. and that argument should be r.oivfined to the remainiax disputed points which comprised the demands mado by tho Canterbury shearers and shed hands.. The respondents tabled the" Canterbury demands n's (heir counter-proposals I against those of the sheepowners, • which have already been published. ' ,:"

Pay of Shod Hands. ■..-■■■■ The point argued yesterday ' was, tho pay of shed hands. . "... ...'.' Tho rates at .present paid' 1 for' shed hands are:. Pressers. and wool rollers, £i. 2«. Gd. per week; all other slied bands,' £2: cooks, £3; assistant'.cooks, '£i,'. The rates per hour with ' tiie'' exception. of

oooks are Is. 3d. and Is. 2d. respectively. The shed hands are asking.for.!pressors and wool rollers JSS per. week or a daily rate of .£1.55.; other shed hands, £i per week; cooks for ten men,. ,£6 per week

and up to ,£B. Tho discussion was .opened, by"'Mr. Grayndler, who moved that- the pay ,of shed hands be discussed, arid in .doing so ho stressed .'he need for-increased rates, in view of the depreciation in the purchasing value .of the- sovereign. A pound would not buy now what it could

!in 1915, when the rates, of pay were

jE2 ■ 15s. and ,£2 17s'. Cd., and-to.'obtain n similar -purchasing valuo :£i would be, reouired to-day. That- .sum'., was .only a bare living wage to-day, and ho.argued that the present wages were an insignifi: cant purchasing power when, compared with the increased cost of living. ■ . ■ Mr. Morison: In thai? case the cost, of living affects the employer. -.•.-•■ Mr. Grayndler, continuing, said that the increased value of exports of pastoral products during the past four or five, years was, according to 'official statistics, between thirty and fifty millions. The sum total of the increaso : that was king asked for was a very small' proportion of this increased value—indeed,, their de-

mantis were very reasonable It was no use the employers-; talkiug about: tho workers and the employers coming together unless tho employers were prepared to pay a wago that permitted the workers to live. The 'Arbitration' Court laid down a bare living wage, and if-the shed hands got a bare living wage they would not be getting a great deal less than that which they were now asking for. At "present tho elied bauds were not gotting ft' living wage, and- to -compensate them' for'the amount''Bf' travelling "thev did they required a little more khan a living wage.' The n 15s. or 17s. 6d. paid to-day could not bo consider; fed a reasonable wage "when compared with the wages in the city,. Thelites thev w ; ere asking were being paid ■in other pails of tho. country. ;•. Mr M'Leod seconded the motion that the shed-hand question be dealt with, Ho congratulated the last speaker on the. manner in which lie bad stated his case. Ho would like to point out that the vast maioritv of. eheepownerS' m New /leuland were small men, and, further, that the statements regarding the money made from the .industry were incorrect, for when compared with the '.statistics, it would be found that.a.vast'majority ot employers had not made' anything .like tliß amount asserted by Mr.. tiruYnuler To cite an experience, be said that as against pre-war prices the shoepowners were paying up t0.66 per cent, increase on their output. . Mr. Templeton: You would not be fair to ask tho workers to carry .the.loss ot the industry on their backs?' •

Mr. M'Leod: No. Continuing, he said that he had been vorv carefully into tho statistics, and'he : desired to placo on record the figures he had obtained respecting the sheep holdings in New Zealand in 1918. ' There were twenty-six million sheep either owned or held in twenty-three ' thousand flocks, and out of this huge total there were only 1150 flocks of over 4000 sheep. • Mr. Grayndler: Those are the men who obiect to pay the increased wages'.' Mr. M'Leod continued .his statement; and said that of tho six million sheep m the "Wellington province there'" were 248 flocks of over 4000 '. sheep. In the Hawke's Bav district there ' were - 450 ilocks of over 4000 sheep, and m Auckland, whore there wero two million sheop, there were only forty-eight'.flocks of over '4000 sheep. Out ; of the half a million sheep in tho Featherston comitythere w«re only, thirty-four,flocks'.of. over 4000 sheep. Bevertittg to the employment of shed hands, tho speaker said that . evefv four-stand shed ho knew of employed two pressera, anil 'any man . wliq could not put out two bales an hour was having a very easy day. Fourteen or sixteen bales a day was a very comfortable day's work for two men. He. was pleased' fo see that the parties got on so well with the Canterbury award.. As to tho hours of work he was satisfied that.if a ballot wero taken between the employers and the shearers 80 per cent, would.vote for the existing hours. He also expressed the opinion that the weekly rate of pay'should bo done away with and an hourly rate accepted. ' However, ho concluded that it would be hotter to adjourn, as the sheepow.ners present had not had an opportunity of discussius the point, from a Dominion standpoint.. ■ Some discussion took placo on the mutter of Australian shearers being in New Zealand, audi Mr. Grayjmller said tnot when the Military Service Act was introduced in Now Zealand an attempt was made to get Australian shearers to come to New Zealand. ' A few came, but tho total could bo counted on tho fingers. The New Zealand Shearers' Union was in touch with the Australian "Workers Union, but tho New Zealand union did not influence tho Australian union as to stopping tho shearers from coming to New "Zealand. Tho Australian' union knew -that there was' n dispute .on in Now Zealand,' and advised their men accordingly. Tho New Zealand union represented overy shearer in the • .Dominion with the exception of tho small farmer. Mr. M'Leod said that in a year or two there would 'not bo any shearers' leitthcy wero all becoming, small farmers. As to the Australian shearers the Farmers' Union passed a resolution not to omploy any Australian shearers during tll ° war. , • „ ~ .„ „ Continuing, Mr. Grayndler said if the rates of pay wero not improved there was going jo be trouble in Now Zealand. "I'm not saying that as a threat," said Mr. Grayndler. Mr. Gascoyne: I tako that as a threat.

Mr. Grnyndler: It is not'a threat. 1 am giving it as information for those concerned in tho industry. Information cannot be taken as a threat. Mr, M'Lood: It would bo just nts roasouablo for us to make a threat that we aro not going to pay tho increased wages. Considerable argument ensued- as to whother tho shearers' representatives would niako a proposal as to tho hourly rato to bo paid for shed hands, and on resuming after tho luncheon adjournment, Mr. Grayndler said that ho had

discussed the hourly rate and arrived at the conclusion that tho' ralo should bo 2s. Id. per hour, but should not, on an average, bo lower than tho minimum weekly rate throughout.- the shearing season, ihoro would have to be a'clause'to protect tho worker from receiving less than a minimum weekly wagelor a 48-hour week.' ■ ; ' ■'

Mr.- M'Leod asked if in tho event of tho shearing having commenced and a', mail who had worked, say, 10 days, left owing to illness, on what scale, his pay " would be computed. \ Mr. Grayndler replied that ho'could be paid tho hourly rate but not loss'than tho minimum weekly, rate. Ho claimed that the sheepowners could afford to pay double tho-pre-war'.rates for shed'hands without inflicting any hardships on tt.e industry. Tho waterside • workers, who in pre-war days wero getting: Is. '3d. per hour, wero now getting 2s. 3d. and 2s. (id. an hour. -

Mr. M'Leod said that, these figures did not include keep, and that phase must be' kept in vie\v.

Mr. Grayndler admitted this, but said that the shearing employment only lasted for a few weeks, whereas tho watersado ■work was "of a permanent nature.' Mr. M'Leod said that his side could not admit right away 'that tho' statement of £i a week-was a living wage be- I cause he knew that there wore thousands in New Zealand living on less than that. ■■■'..

A voice; Existing! . /Mr. M'Leod pointed out tliat every-rise ■in wages in one department of industry' ; was used against, tho workers, and flu? :cost of living would .soar still higher, iho. omployers. had to ; guard',■ against' ' this. He said that where as iri I9U it ■ cost him £2- to shear 100 sheep, the cost ■to-day was £1 10s'., ... ~ Mr. Cook, said that the argument'put forward by the other side of the tablo .was never near.tho point., "110-was asking for M per week, or 2s„ ld.'.per hour, ■ «ud.ho; claimed that a married man' with'' -a family, of.' eay,' two could not possibly" live on loss than £i per week, and even ' on that sum it .was..difficult .to bring, up a family. Other industries'in New Zcu.'' .laud had realised the need for.increased * wages to combat' the cost of living', and"'' in,tho thrashing industry., jn.Canterbury,. ' ■where men were assured of continual employment for three to tivo mouths' iu tho : '. ;year,' they hail been "receiving Is. 9d. per hour and found. . This was unskilled ' -.labour.''', ,T)i , e.shce'powriers..ha'd granted • ono section of tho workers 1 -the sliearera -j-a living wage,, but objected, to pay; it .to the other, section., ' The' average' shearer shore COO 'sheep .'per week, and on tho .agreed, rates of pay. lie wo.ulil thus ' receive £$. per week, and yet-tho enw ' ployors objected to pay the.shed hands': ii'living wage. "-'He- urged that. every effort should be mado to effect a settle--ment. The.Natives wore .waiting for a decision of' this conference before they ' went on to the-boards., "You are going * to havo a'repetition of-'tho trouble whicli • occurred sohio yeaYs ago when the shearers; were' not :puid a reasonable wage," ■' said the speaker. "Wo don't want' to"' go out on to the industrial field again.", Mr. Piikitnia 'urged-that all tho Natives lie had interviewed desired JJI per ■ day and keep, and pointed out-that'tho Maori'farmers had agreed'to pav this. At this stajfothe .conference adjourned' till this morning, when the sheepowners will make their proposals.' '■'.-.