THE SLAUGHTERMEN.

Wairarapa Age, Volume XXV, Issue 10713, 18 March 1913, Page 5

THE SLAUGHTERMEN.

'QUESTION OF REGISTRATION. DECISION OF THE ARBITRATION COURT. REGISTRAR'S ATTITUDE REVERSED. (By Telegraph. — Press'- Association*) WELLINGTON, Last Night: The Arbitration Court to-day filed its decision in the appeal lodged by the 'Ngahauranga Slaughtermen's Unjlion against the refusal of the Registrar to-grant it registration, on the ground that members could conveniently become members of the existing Wellington Slaughtermen's Union. "It can scarcely he suggested," said Mr Justice Sim, in the course of the Court's decision, "that there is any_substantial diversity.of interest between the two Unions. Each exists, it may be assumed 1 , in order to .obtain, for its members the most favourable conditions of employment. ; and-the main point of difference between the two is as to the best mean*; to be adopted for attaining .this end. We think, therefore, that the Union is-not' entitled-to succeed en tW« ground. The* question, whether the .appellant... has established any other substantial reason for obtaining separate registration. The appellant comprises a large "majority .of the workers who are now engaged in the work of •slaughtering in the district. OF all the slaueh+f limen now engaged at. the' works at Ngahauranga. and Petone, onlrtt r ee are members of the "Wellington Union. are members of the appellant Union. wh'oK ha« mnd" an agreement ' with thetwo Meat rVvrnpanies as -u. —.,„.„,. j,-.,.,] rfiifn. conditions of em--nVTrrnoiit,. .n-' 1 if if vecristH?tion it is willing to have the terms agreed upon, embodied in an industrial or. an rn-ard. Th<> appellant Union nopeare, therefore, to i,„ ,i-.,;.:,— r , 0 ' rtC rtK+niniri vpn-i-ifi-a^ov, und«'-"th« Arbitration Act in order t'i take advnntarrfv of the provisions of that Act. The Wellington Union, on' the other hand, has net shown' any such de-R'te. It cancelled its registration under- the Act in. January la=;t. in order-to get rid nf an industrial agreement that on the exnirntion of tne term of that aF'-eemen*- its members might engage vi ?• stride withoti+i i»ir>n-i—?r'rT .njiv nn.-»)a.T,t>. T + mad'* "o a+ + "™,->t l^f r n, f-ii.^"^llp-'' ; on of

-Ui, j-Ti^.M"." + n?mvi>snn'ps «p+f,Tf> t l under the provisions of ,the Act; nor dirt it make any such attempt after it-had again obtained registration on 4th February. In these circumstances the rortsortah 1 " '"ferenee f o he drawn, is that the Wellington. TJnion obtained its new reeistration, not for the purpose of making uuse of the machinery of the Act to settle it.' disputes, but foy the pnrnose of blocking, if possible, the registration of anv other Slaughtermen's' Union. The object of the Arbitration Act is to pro-ride for the peaceful 1 settlement of all industrial disputes, by the machinery of conciliation and arbitration, and if would be intolerable if the existence o? a Union which..has played fast and! loose with the arVitration system, as the-Wellington Union has done, should' bar the registration of another Union, the members of which have a bona, fide desire to use the machinery <v .the Act. To held that t<» ■n* the position, would enable the machinery -.if the Act to be used for the verv nnrpose of defeating the fundamental object of the Act, viz!, to eeeure n settlement of disputes by eonei7 : ation and arbitration. The slaughtermen concerned should not be forced, we, think, to, accent the alternative of joining the Wellington Union, or of heing deprived of the benefit" of conciliation and arbitrat'on. There is the .further obiec* that und«r i + « rules the Wellington Union is. in effect, a, close corporation. MemTv»--*«hip can. onlv be- obtained proving to the satisfaction of that the-, applicant is a suitable p"r«"n to bpcome a. member thereof; Tt. is difficult to behave that nipmber-s of + h« appellant Union would He Vega* •d'" 1 by the Executive of tbe Wp-lb'norfr... T*,,; on ,-,<; persons suitable to become thereof, "-nd the evid?nc« "tiled by the ar> r >p. l l°ut Union wo* + " '-h<-.\v tint there i*-. towai-cK- the members of +hat U"ien on tV« nart of sn-Hi*. at of fh n of the Union. We thin!--, therefore. "th" x fo- tW-> rfflf""" fl, e Wellirrrton Union i>: not, a T'-nnn to . -'-'nVh m°mber". of the ai*->-" , l T '*" J - T'n-. ;,>,•, r;1 n the anr">!'-ir>+ •'■: e-'+itled '- recced in. its anneal. The Court reports to the Registrar that, after o>,: — v. in its n-ninio" the T?"<ri straps refusal to register the appellant Union should be waived." Mr dVlcCulloughu the employees' representative on the Court, does not' concur in this judgment. He thiriksl that the" members- of the appellant" Union can conveniently belong to the Wellington Union.