THE LOCO. TROUBLE

Evening Post, Volume XCVII, Issue 127, 31 May 1919, Page 4

THE LOCO. TROUBLE

GOVERNMENT'S REPLY /

REQUEST.NOT GRANTED.

The requests made recently by a depu S Ution from the society of loco; mev| which waited on the Acting Prime Minis-1 ter have been carefully considered by I Cabinet, and the following reply has beeng. forwarded to the president and secretary^ of the' Engine-Drivers, Firemen, andl; Cleaners' Association:— '■ B; "The Government understands that th«; details of, the Government scheme hav<||; never been thoroughly , discussed in a§ ; ". fair and amicable manner owing to t»e|.; refusal of your association to take P al'tf§: in any. round-table conference betweeiffl;. the Minister.of Railways and the Depart*, merit and-yourselves. The Governmentjl; believe that if such a conference had beenl.. held many misunderstandings would 1;; have been cleared up. Therefore, thea'p Government suggest to your association!;;; that such a conference be held, in whicbp Iho objections to the scheme may bel.B fairly stated to the Minister and to the ;j General Manager. , >; "The Government strongly recommend ;;', the association to follow the example of -i the Amalgamated Society, and accept ;;; the scheme, and give it a fair trial, v.itn | the belief that any injustices that may lU be found in the administration can be ':t better rememdied by round-table confer-1? ences than by threats of strike. . 3

"With respect to your request for arbitration on the matter: I! that means that your association desires to come under the Industrial Conciliation and Arbitration Act, I may say that the Government not only would have no'objection to that course, but would bring in legislntion to give effect to this,, provided that it was satisfied by ballot or otherwise that the majority of i,ts employees in the Second, Division. were in favour of such a course. . \ ' „

The Government, however, could not agree to a minority of the Second Division being under the Arbitration Act and the. larger portion boing outside the Act, nor could the Government agree to any arbitrators or conciliators being, appointed to act except under the provisions of the Arbitration Act." '■ '