NO BREACH OF AWARD

Southland Times, Issue 24230, 13 September 1940, Page 6

NO BREACH OF AWARD

Country Work In Dispute

CASE BROUGHT AGAINST BUILDERS

(United Press Association)

DUNEDIN, September 12. Holding that no breach of the award had been committed, Mr J. R. Bartholomew, S.M., in the Magistrate’s Court today, delivered his reserved judgment in favour of the defendant in the case in which the inspector of awards proceeded against Downer and Co., Ltd., of Wellington', on a claim for £lO .as a penalty for an alleged breach of the Builders’, Contractors’ and General Labourers’ Award in failing to pay William Lyall Johnson overtime pay between September 23, 1939, and April 20, 1940. Briefly, the case rested on the interpretation of the award in its reference to country work. On September 23, 1939, a number of men began work for the defendant company on building tunnels for the Dunedin City Corporation at Waipori Falls. They were paid on the basis of the country work clause, which provided an extra penny an hour for overtime. In the claim the chief question at issue was whether the agreement for the country clause to operate had been entered into between employer and employee. The work, his Worship said, was admittedly country work as defined by the award, which stated that the employer might agree with any worker that in respect of specified country work all time worked in excess of the prescribed hours should be considered overtime, and paid for at the rate of Id an hour in addition to the ordinary rates.

WORDING PERFECTLY CLEAR The evidence given for the plaintiff suggested that it was considered that a formal agreement with the men collectively was necessary. The wording of the country provision was, however, perfectly clear and simple. The request by the employer acceded to by the worker with knowledge of the position was all that was necessary to constitute an agreement. The final effect of Johnson’s evidence was that such agreement was not disputed so far as outside work was concerned. In view of his evidence, his plea of ignorance regarding the conditions governing tunnel work could not be accepted. “The worker having carried out work under the agreed conditions,” his Worship concluded, “the country clause of the award has been complied with, and there has been no breach of the award. Judgment must, therefore, be given for the defendant company.” Fourteen days were allowed to enable the question of an appeal to be considered by the Labour Department.