The Guardian And Evening Star, with which is incorporated the West Coast Times. WEDNESDAY, JUNE 19, 1929.

Hokitika Guardian, 19 June 1929, Page 4

The Guardian And Evening Star, with which is incorporated the West Coast Times. WEDNESDAY, JUNE 19, 1929.

THE AUSTRALIAN COAL CRISIS. Tins protracted continuance of tliej deadlock in the coal industry in New South Wales is beginning to react seriously upon the public. Its effects, says the ‘Otago Times,’’ are no longer limited to the distress created in the mining districts themselves. The metropolitan areas are being made to feel the pinch in the curtailment of services up. n which they are largely dependent. The gas companies are being compelled to reduce their supplies, and even hospitals are, as a consequence, being'placed in unwelcome straits. Moreover, there seems to be a prospect of a breakdown of supplies of coal for the State railways which consume over a million tons per annum ’The deadlock began, it may bo recalled, with the closing of several mines on the ground that, under existing conditions, they could not lie profitably operated. These mines have .remained idle. Compulsory arMituution. conciliation, and Government intervention have failed to produce a working agreement under which they might he reopened and carried on. As far back as September last the Premier of New South Wales sought to bring about an agreement between the coal-

owners and the employees for a “modus opcrancli’’ pending the results of an investigation by a commission. He explained that not only was an immediate reduction in coal prices necessary -O' enable coal mining to lie carried on, but also that su.-h a reduction would be reflected in every dependent industry, and that leading industries had given guarantees that, given cheaper coal, they would reduce quotations for commodities at once. The endeavour to reach a temporary agreement was unsuccessful. During a period of nine months the position Inis, ,n fact, gone only from bad to worse. : The miners have latterly sought a resumption of operations on the basis that obtained before the closing of the mines. The owners take the standpoint that this is impossible because the reason they were unable to carry on was that they were being beaten in their accustomed market by overs.cn.-, coal. Decently the president of the Northern Collieries Association said: “The owners are as anxious as anyone to see the collieries reopened. They are suffering in a financial sense as severely as any other of the interests concerned;- but ‘as the tion of production compelled individual owners to close their collieries they naturally will not consider re-opening unless there is some prospect of a reasonable adjustment. Two preliminary conditions of reopening are that owners shall in future have freedom in selecting and dismissing their employees—without which there cannot tie efficient working—and that the mines, in common with the Government and the owners shall contribute something towards a lower price for coal.’’ By the other side the question of the mine-owners’ prolits has been brought heatedly into the discussion. In a statement in the Federal Parliament in March Mr Bruce placed a measure of blame on both the mine-own-ers and the miners for the position that had arisen. The basic wage in the coal industry in New South Wales is higher than in other industries, but, when the old prices for coal were not lieing maintained, intermittency of employment was the result. The industry had, in fact, in Mr Bruce’s words, become utterly disorganised and almost demoralised. In these circumstances, a Royal Commission was sei up last month by the Federal Government acting in conjunction with the State Government to investigate tin conditions in the coal industry and tr consider the question of reorganisation oi it in its own interests and in thos' of the general community. The in quiry will be an exhaustive one, and i 1 is expected to last many months Meanwhile it is. all-important that there .should be a successful effort tr set the coal industry once more ir operation pending the results of tin investigation. The whole commonih in New South Wales is in danger o' being made,, to suffer, and there is nothing more certain than that if the present deadlock is prolonged for eve l a few days, the State will be con fronted with a crisis of exceptions'’ gravity affecting all classes of tlir people.