FLAXMILL INDUSTRY.

Manawatu Herald, Volume XLI, Issue 1979, 20 May 1919, Page 3

FLAXMILL INDUSTRY.

AGREEMENT WITH MEN CANCELLED. , HIGH WAGES AND FREIGHTS AND LOW PRICES. (Manawatu Standard.) The New Zealand Flaxmillers’ Association has given notice to the secretary of the Manawatu Flaxmills Employees’ Union of Workers that it is their intention to cancel the agreement dated 4th December, 1917, existing at the present time with the union, respecting the wages and conditions of employment. Ihe notice is given in accordance with clause 4, which provides for the cancellation of the agreement by giving 14 days’ notice.

The agreement- in question was substituted for the award which is still in force, hut its operation was suspended by mutual arrangement between the employers and the union. There is a very material difference in the rates of pay provided for in the award and those actually obtaining under the agreement. Taking the minimum wage as a basis, the men are at present being paid from 4s 6d to 5s per day more than the award stipulates. For instance, under the award the minimum for the lowest paid labour aas approximately Is 2d per hour, while under the agreement which the employers are now cancelling it is Is f)d per hour. In replv to I lie notice served on him 1)v the Flaxmillers’ Association, the secretary of the union, Mr P. 1. Robinson, has written to the secretary of that body, notifying him (hat a general meeting of the union will be bold at Palmerston North on Saturday next (o consider what action will be taken. The reply scut |>y Air Robinson also stales: “1 note that you do not slate whether it is your intention to enter into an agreement to take (tic place of the one vou propose to cancel, lni.ormali.on ou this point would be of value for our meeting on Saturday.’’ Speaking to a Standard reporter, Mr Robinson stated that the union considered that the action ou the purl of the Flaxmiilers’ Association was a prelude to an attempt to make a cut in wages, which proposal ho considered was likely to meet with strong opposition on the part of the employees. THE EMPLOYERS’ VIEW.

Enquiries made by a reporter amotiy; llie members of the Elaxmil]ers’ Association went to show that I lie eaueellaliou of the agreement is a step to a general resumption oi. (laxmilling in the Manawatu district ad, an early date. At I lie same lime (lie emplovers cannot see their wai dear to maintain (he present high rate oi; wages, which, it is pointed out, was never intended should remain in force for all time. .1 ho rate of wages under the agreement was fixed while the prices ruling for the lihre were very high, being then about £OS f.o.b. Wellington. The market has now fallen to under .030 per ton, and the millers have decided at a recent meeting that it is impossible to continue paying Hie present high rale of wages. The rale of wages paid by the (lax industry has been considerably in excess ol that obtaining under other industries, and that it was understood that this was to he subjected to revision is borne out by a paragraph in the agreement between the parties, in which it is expressly stilled that the scale of wages was agreed lo on account of the high rate obtaining for the fibre at .the time the agreement was made. Further, if urns pointed out to onr representative, on behalf of the Flaxmiliers’ Association, that the emplovers do not intend to simply fall back on the award and endeavour to hind the men down to its provisions. The notice was being served on the union with the idea of both parlies entering into a new agreoment, the scale of wages of which would be more in accordance with the rates ruling for the fibre. BLEEDING THE INDUSTRY.

A gent lonian who is prominently associated with the industry pointed out to our representative that one thing which \vas helping to keep down the local price of the fibre was the excessively high shipping freights. Whereas before the war the rate was 84s per ton, plus 10 per cent., ii had since risen to £ls per tun. plus 10 per cent, in addition to the freight (here were various other charges which ran the cost of delivery to London up to nearly £2O per ton. The llaxmiilers all fell that, seeing the war had now been over several months, it was high time a substantial reduction was made in these freights. In their opinion there did not seem to be anything to justify the shipowners in maintaining their rates at such a high figure, especially us (here were now practically no risks on the voyage to London. “The fact of the matter is,' ; remarked one miller, “that the shipping companies are skimming all the cream off the flax industry. At the present scale of freights obtaining, even supposing it cost the shipping companies 100 per cent, more to build during the war than it did before, one trip would pay for the cost of the vessels carrying our produce.’’ The speaker added that unless something was shortly done in the matter the position would be very serious, not- only as regards the (tax industry, hut other industries of the Dominion as well.