MAGISTRATE’S COURT

Evening Star, Issue 23701, 8 October 1940, Page 9

MAGISTRATE’S COURT

TUESDAY, OCTOBER 8. (Before Mr J. R. Bartholomew, S.M.) UNDEFENDED CASES. Judgment by default with costs, was given for the plaintiffs in the following undefended cases:—Anderson’s Motor Bbdy Works Ltd. v. J. Keacli (Balclutha), costs only (13s) ; Dalgety and Co. Ltd. v. E. Elder (Timam), £7 4s Bd, for goods supplied; Direct English Distributing Company Ltd. v. Dennis Crosbie (Mossburn), costs only (£1); Briscoe and Co. Ltd. v, A. S. Napier, £3B 10s 3d, balance owing for goods supplied. ’JUDGMENT SUMMONS J. Foster was proceeded against by Charles Begg and Co, on a judgment summons for £ll 3s 6d.—Defendant, who did not appear, was ordered to pay the amount claimed, with costs (£1 3s), forthwith, in default 12 days’ imprisonment, ' BREACHES OF AWARDS. Inspector of Awards (Mr C. H. Hoskin) v. Steel’s Firewood Company Ltd. (Mr E. J. Anderson).—A claim for a penalty of £lO for alleged breach of the New Zealand motor and horse drivers’ award and for a ‘similar penalty in respect of each of two breaches of the coal yard employees’ award. Mr Hoskin, in presenting the case, said that it was claimed that defendants had, between October 16, 1939, and March 9, 1940, employed Alexander Douglas Finnie as a driver and Robert John M'Callion and James Vincent M'Callion as yard employees outside the ordinary hours and failed to pay them the prescribed overtime rates. Two sets of hours, said Mr Hoskin, were embodied in the coal yard employees’ award, 44 hours for the winter period (April to October) and 40 hours for the summer period, and the men had not been paid for . extra hours worked on Saturday mornings during the latter period. Evidence'was given by Alexander Finnie, Robert M'Callion, and Ronald Crawford. Mr Anderson, for the defendants, submitted that no overtime was due in the case of Finnie, any claim in this case having been offset by extra time off given at Christmas and by a sum of £ll which the complainant and his wife had received when they had taken over the business temporarily. In the case of the M'Callions. counsel submitted that She proceedings were out of order in so far as the person cited in the original award was X. K. Steel, and not

Steel’s Firewood Company Ltd. The amending of this mis-citation was a matter for the Arbitration Court.

The Magistrate said that in regard to counsel’* contention in the case of the M'Callions he did not see that the miscitation affected the position, and an amendment was not -necessary. His Worship indicated that he did not look with favour upon the manner in which the wages book had been adjusted. In the case of Finnie, he would take into consideration the aspect of personal gain and’inflict a penalty of £2. In the other cases there had been a persistent breach of the award, and a penalty of £o would be inflicted in each case.