A THREATENED STRIKE.

Temuka Leader, Issue 1771, 2 August 1888, Page 1

A THREATENED STRIKE.

Sydney. July 30. It is thought that a serious labor crisis is impending. The Maritime Conference has decided to support the Newcastle miners against the masters, and it is reported on good authority that a general call-out of seamen on coastal vessels is contemplated, though no reason for such action is assigned. If the threatened strike of seamen takes place it will be the largest known in the Southern Hemisphere, It is difficult to ascertain the exact facts in consequence of the reticence of the Seamen’s Union and Shipowners’ Association. The principal cause of the difficulty is the Northern Steamship Company of Auckland. The seamen having discovered that the Shipowners’ Association had subsidised and assisted the Northern Company, called a conference of delegates to consider the matter. They were determined to bring affairs to a crisis, and invited owners to confer for the purpose of settling the dispute, but the latter declined, at the same time expressing their readiness to refer to arbitration certain matters which bad been at issne for some time past, Subsequently it appears the owners agreed to a conference on the Northern Company dispute, and questions of overtime and overmanning, and made a proposal that lime for time should be allowed, 8 hours work only in the 2i, for the ordinary rate of pay. The latter proposal led the seamen to suspect an attack on the eight hours system and the prevailing rate of wages, and they intend to decline arbitration inc'uding these points, bolding owners responsible for a continuance of the strike against the Northern Company, The owners denied having any designs either upon hours or wages, but the seamen persisted in their suspicion and gave notice to all unionists to withdraw from Uieir vessels on a date hereafter to be fixed. At a meeting of consignees it was decided to assist (be captain of the Mariposa to unload that vessel if no immediate settlement of the diffiruty was attained. July 31. Should the shipowners agr e to confine the cosference to the New Zealand difficulty, it is believed that a meeting with the Seamen’s Union can be arranged.