WATERSIDE LABOUR

Dominion, Volume 13, Issue 183, 29 April 1920, Page 4

WATERSIDE LABOUR

RECENT CONFERENCE CRITICISED

HINT AT SECRET PACT

HARBOUR BOARD'S REPRESENTATIVE

"ELBOWED OUT"

WHERE DOES THE PUBLIC

COME IN?

. That the terms of the new waterside labour agreement were cut and dried by the shipping companies and the men iit advance of the recent conference to settle them, was the complaint of the chairman and members of the Harbour Board a' yesterday's meeting. The secrecy of tho conference was also objected to, and members declared that the only way out was fcJie establishment' of permanent employment under the control of the hoard. One member, Mr. Turrell, who is connected with the New Zealand Shipping Company, opposed this scheme, and said the board would not be able to control labour any better llian at present.

"Discussing tho results ol' the conference, the chairman, Mr. J. G. Harkness, said vliat, speaking generally, during the conferences held, the impression left on one's miml was that tho principals on hoth sides had agreed to certain main •ssues before the conference was held. This might be true or it might not. Indications were not wanting that on the crucial points of the rate- of wages and the impossible conditions submitted there was some sort of understanding. There was no fire, no sincerity in tlifl pleading of tho employees for 2s. Gd., and on the side of tho employers (here was little or no desire to argue. Tfce conference was in this respect a striking contrast to its predecessor. The weakness of the whole business lies in the fact that it perpetuates a system of labour that i= dead and should be "deeuntly buried" with dispatch. There is no guarantee of increased work, greater efficiency, or be'ter results. The employer twvs in wages thousands of pounds nnnit ally and he lws no voice in determining who shall take his money; he cannot ••>ven select the men he desires to work for him. Such a condition of affairs can only breed distrust and misunderstanding, and it is inimical to the best in'crests of all concerned.

"With a due sense of responsibility vesting unon me," said Mr. TTarkness, "T have no hesitation in affirming that the day of 'casual' employment has passed, and it hehov»s the ljonrd to face the position and find a vpniedy nt once for exis'>ng conditions. Th» board should aniwint a canaille committee from amongst its nn»ml>ers, who c «' duty would be to consider what means eafi be do'-is»d to render waterside labour more efficient, more contended, and formulate some scheme of' permanent employment that will be s«iHsf<ictf>rv to tho employer find tho employed." ' Using the Public.

Mr. C. H. Chanman stated that it was the intention of tile Harbour Board that the conference referred to should be held in public, but the lioard's view was overrifUlpii by tho conference. Of the four Wellington members of the board, three vers out of the country at the time. The fourth was himself. He was appointed by the board, but ftranirely cnoutih tiie employers seemed to object to the board'? annointee. fie had been later "elbowpd off" the conference, ivhich meant tliat Welliißton was unrepresented. as the other three members were out of the country. There was evidently an understanding between the employers and the men that tli°v were Boi'iß to use the public for their own ends. Mr. 1?. A. Wrk'htt Oh, then the men were party to it? Mr. Chapman i I suppose 60-they fixed if all un in camera! Mr. C. E. Daniell believed that before thev went to the conference both parties (the shinpinff companies and the watersiders) knew what was sfoing to happen. He had hnd some experience of the same thin? himself. Instead of the public being represented at such conferences by its employers' associations and other bodies, it. lmd been asserted that "for-' ei»ners" in the shipping companies were allowed to dominate the proceeding, and so it. came about that they did it sub rosa. "I once more protest," said Mr. Daniell. "at having; to follow the lead of the overseas shipping companies, who have said, in this room, through their representatives, {'lint the\ were not ftoiiig to allow the narbour Board to do certain filings. The public is vitally interested, and yet when the board endeavour to work in the open, its representative here. Mr. Chapman, was, as he said 'elbowed out.'"

Demoralisation of Labour.

Continuing,' Mr. Daniell said lift was glad the members of the board had taken the stand for publicity they did at the conference. It was through the shipping companies that tho Harbour UoiU'd lost lmlf an hour's time with their men every day. The shipping companies had demoralised labour on the waterfront, and our men were kept idle half an hour through it. The men now knocked off at 14 minutes to 1 p.m., and if minutes to 5 p.m., and the conference had decided that the men should bo paid for such time—with whose money? Mr C. M Turrell (a member of the 'board, who is in the employ of the New Zealand Shipping Company;, took strong objection to the shipping companies being called "foreigners by Mr. Daniell; secondly, he did not think that Mr. Daniell understood the position. ilie companies did not interfere with tho boards in conference over the agreement. The chairman: To which wo are a P Jtr." Tnrrell: By your own volition—it suits the board to be so. Jllio shipping companies do not want to drag the Jlaihour Board at their heels, and the board if it likes can be left to make its own agreement in connection with its work; but he regarded the remark of 11 Daniell as to foreigners—(Mr. Daniell; i said overseas!")—as offensive. , Captain C. A. JTArthnr, speaking on Uie "fourteen minutes question, ««id that the Harbour Board was to blame for it, becauseit bad ordered, the cranes to be ill position" at fivo minutes to 12 anil n. if the board would make some arrangement now to. work the ? rane ® V? $ 12 and 5 o'clock something could M done, ho thought, to overcome l ie thing. Mr. M. Cohen agreed that the . time had come for the death and burial of casual labour. I Mr. J. W. M'Ewaii said he farmed such proceedings being open to tho public. He was not so sure that the si p ping companies got all their way oi thai fho watersiders held the trumpi ca.d throughout, but it was deal tlwt the employers were disposed to . c ,? nle H B some kind of arrangement witll t e watersiders if it were possible lakin„ tho agreement as a whole, as tnii>-,s were to-day the men were not oveinaid It was said that tho board umd not iuave been a party to the agreement, but unless they were what chance would the board have of getting laboui, Mr. Turrell: With your own pernmni'ut schemes uvpry cltfincc. Continuing, Mr. M'Bwan said there would never be a sntisfactui) settlement of the difficulty until the whole of the labour on the waterfront was under the control of (lie boald. fhe companies admitted they dul. not „ a square deal at conference* and if «. whv should they stand in the way of the 1-niii-d taking full control/ Mr. Turrell: Because they do not tnink the board could control labour any bettCMr M'Ewan said that at all events the board would not pay men for doing nothing ns the companies did loafing in the ship's holds. . Mr. M. W. Welch deprecated the bickerings between the board and tho snipping of man's "spiteful" references to the absence from the country of three Wellington representatives. If ho chose to be nastv in turn he could recall that Mr. Chapman -had been away conductins an election campaign when lie should have been in his scat on tho board, but he did not wish to do so, (Laughter.) In the agreement they were creating a basic wago for everyone in the Dominion. Skilled men now said to those on local bou» jes: "Look what tho watersiders are getting," and they quoted their wage per lour—and so it wont on and on, ana

lie did not know where it was going to L Mr. Cohen: Permanent employment ia the only curel Mr. Wright said he believed it was, and it was onlv by all parties, including the public, getting together that tho difficulty would be solved. The Law of the Land. Mr. Turrell pointed out to' tho board that it was by the law »f tho hind that wages had to be increased with the increased cost of living, lliey should blaino the legislators, not tho shipping companies. . The chairman said there was no friction between the hoard and companies, though there might be differences of opinion oil vital questions. The ouly difficulty was dealing with casual labour on the waterfront. His personal opm-. ion was that the difficulty would disappear if ail such labour were made permanent, and he wanted to see n. committee which would go into the whole question in its entirety, and bring down a complete scheme. Why should they not have a doctor, us the Oddfellows and Foresters had, to look after the men, and also establish a superannuation fund for all waterside workers? That was hia idea in a nutshell.