STROKING THE TIGER

Rotorua Morning Post, Issue 5295, 7 January 1947, Page 4

STROKING THE TIGER

I * | ; A LL the persuasive powers of |i Cabinet and of Ihe Federaq | tion of Labour have been * ! brought to bear to induce the ! waterside workers , to resurne j nonnal hours. As was generj. ally anticipated, the dead-line : was reached yesterday afternoon without any response : anywhere to the Government's | request that the requirements 1 of shipping in the ports shoulcl be met while negotiations on wages and other disputed maLters were re-opened, and ~ without any eounter-proposals, whieh might have indicated a sineere desire to effect a , settlement, being brought forj ward. j The Waterfront Industry* Commission is in abeyance j and uireetions- issued by the | various control authorities since j 1S40 have been cancelled, but j not all of them. The rules : relating to the eentral, pay } ofhees and labour bureaux | remain in force, so that some j of the principal benefits of i commission" control, and in | the meantime at least, the j prevalling rates of pay, remain | unchanged. I" Respoiisibility for the next j move, then, is placed squareiy i upon • the shoulders of the j unionists, if they desire coni- ! niission control to be resumed. ! If they make no move to ' hand the dispute over to the Yederation of Labour, as is ; suggested — with the prior condition that the men make themselves available for overtime work — it will be open | for either the employers or i the unioir to institute direct ! negotiations for a new award. ■ If the workers refuse to agree j to arbitratioii, -an application • | for the deregistration of the I um'on could be made and if : this were granted, there is 110 ! doubt that a new body woqld ' quickly be formed. The ruling hourly rate of 3/5 hd gives a I weekly wage for 40 hours of £6/19/4, and with# overtime, j including work at week-ends, ' an additional £3 to £4 can j regularly be earned, and there ; are the further advantages of ; meal money, when meals are not provided, and pay for ' statutory holidays. Do the rank and file consider that any Court award, having in mind the fact that skilled tradesmen are receiving 3/2 J and 3/3 an hour, could take ; ' such an exalted view of ' their | : unskilled services that they ; could fairly be conceded a rate substantially in excess of ' these figures? : ; , On the whole, it can be ; claimed that the waterside | workers have had a very good ; run indeed and it seems in- ! credible that they, as indi1 viduals, are unaware .of the | fact. However, they dare not j say so either publicly or in private meeting, when the | floor is held by men who for j so long have held sway over i their activities, their minds j and manners. The solid backi ing that the Federation of : Labour has received from i constituent unions and the'; j syggested forming of a volun- j j teer force from Ihe Maoris of : j the East Coast are reflections i i of the thoughts of other j I workers every where on the I I demerits of the union's case, I and the possibility the pro- ; ! posed action by the Maoris | j aird others taking early shape j | may soon cause the dumb in i ! the watersiclers' ranks to raise | | their voices, and the blind to j | see..