RAILWAY TROUBLE.

Hokitika Guardian, 8 February 1924, Page 4

RAILWAY TROUBLE.

RUMOURS OF STRIKE BALLOT. I .MEN'S EXECUTIVE AND THE MINISTER. WELLINGTON, Kcb. (i. Tiiere is some concern ill official circles oiof the prospect ol serious trouble aiming rnilv. ay men. I lie lion .1. G. Coales, .Minister ol Railways, is reported to have had scwnl inter views with the executive ol tile Ainal gamated Society of Railway Servants, which hits been meeting in Wellington since Monday to consider the wages qoe-lion and other matters aliening working conditions. Ibis erganiatiojt teprojouta t lie Second Division of 9 the set vice excepting the locomotive men, who are also making a strong .! ■■ ilia in I for in. id' .a d wages. The request, of the Amalgamated ] Society of Railway Servant, have been i before i lie Government- lor some months, and lie- po-iiion lias become seriou.'iy strained owing to the .Minister's inability to give a iinal decision. The suggestion is that the railwaymen's executive will not agree to lHither delay, hut will take a ballot to ascertain ii' their members, over ten thousand in number, will layout' immediate cessation of work to enforce an increase in wages, and the setting up of a hoard of inquiry into working emiditoiiK, such as was asked for in the petition to Parliament last session. WILL THEY WAIT'r The whole position seems to centre around the question whether railwaymen will he content to await the Minister's full investigation of conditions in the railways, affecting not only employees, but freights and important improvements. Ihe Amalgamated Society’s executive interviewed Mr Coates last December, and from details which are now available, it appears that the former president. Mr \V. Sullivan, of Dunedin, who retired shortly afterwards, pointed out that railwnymen believed, on the outbreak of the war. that they were about to get an increase of a shilling a da\. They waived any requests tinder these conditions, bid eventually were toned by the increased cost of living to demand concessions. Various bonuses were paid, to a tola! of six shillings a day. Then the Public Expenditure Act was enforced. Two cuts were made amounting to toil shillings weekly, and speaking at the Ministerial deputation stated that railway labourers and ihe hulk of the society's members arc nowpaid a basic wage of C 3 10s weekly, with deductions for superannuation. “I know something of the feeling of j the men.” said Mr Sullivan, “and 1 do not think it will matter what the executive' may think should he done, hut sooner or later a crisis will come and the men will take matters into their hands. Tt gives me no pleasure to look hack on 1920. because I do not like strikes, but T feel it my duty to make it clear that if anything does happen in the future it cannot lie said “ wo have not warned you repeatedly of t the position.” t Mr Coates on that occasion dealt | with the difficult financial position of S the Department, adding: “Personally f T cannot help thinking that the shot tj or week has a tremendous eflect on j the returns we are expected to make J at the end of the year, and your DcE part inept has much shorter hours than | any other in the public - service, f am [ travelling as hard as T can getting into touch with the requirements of the | Department, both from the Govern- | nient policy point of view and to see ! that the results we should be able to i get are reasonable. I would prolor to 1 let the matter stand over till February or March, when I hope to finish the whole investigation.

Since this interview Mr AV. Connelly has been appointed president of the society, and the demand among its members for a prompt reply to the executive's request has grown until that body has apparently been obliged to take such action as to cause concern in official circles. It is quite probable that the Minister’s proposed tour in Otago and Southland, commencing on Thursday, may be delayed.

Mr Connelly, approached by a representative of the ‘‘Lyttelton Times tonight, was unwilling to comment on the situation, though lie confirmed the fact that the executive had made certain represenations of an urgent na-