The San Francisco call., 1907-06-30
NEW ZEALAND LAW Of
ARBITRATION IN PERIL
The Land Without Strike"
Threatened With Big
Labor Struggle
Discomfort SPREADS
Exhaustive Report Is Made
on Island Industrial
Conditions
Discomfort SPREADS

Special Agent Harry r. Burrill, in a
report dated at Wellington, February
"a, describes the operation of the in
dustrial and Cancellation act of New
Zealand. He writes:
The arbitration court of New Zea-
land is a tribunal created to arrange
industrial relations and keep peace be-
tween employer and employed. The
colonys arbitration law has been ac
claimed as having made this "a country
without strikes" and yet the slaughter
men of New Zealand have recently
shown their discomfort by adopting
measures calculated to paralyZe one OF
the leading industries of the country.
The industrial conciliation and ar
bitration act was first passed in 1894,
and has been frequently amended in
order, it is explained, to retain its
flexibility and utility in face of new
difficulties. 1t provides, generally
speaking, for the proper registration of
unions (both employers and en-
ployeesO, the regulation of industrial
pursuits the enforcement of industrial
agreements. the establishment and the
duties of boards of conciliation, the
court of arbitration. awards, and pun
ishments for violation of awards.
1t also provides that when an in
dustrial dispute arises the relationship
of employer and employe must con-
the nature of strike or lockout.
There must be no taking part in
strike or lockout or proposing, aiding
or abetting such proceedings. The
status quo ante must remain unbroken,
even though the time occupied In the
perliminaries of reference, such as
taking the vote of union on the
question of referring dispute to board
or court, may be considerable. If de-
q N c ad in low
the person concerned, whether union,
association, employer, or worker, is
liable to fine not exceeding E100 in
case of a union, association or en-
ployer. and &10 in the case of a
worker. The dismissal or suspension
of worker or discontinuance of work
by a worker shall be deemed a de-
fault unless the party charged with
such default satisfies the court that
such dismissal or discontinuance of
work was not on account of the dis
pute.
1t also provides that every employer
who dismisses from his employment
any worker by reason of the fact that
the worker is member of an indus
trial union, or is conclusively proved
to have dismissed such worker merely
because he is entitled to the benefit of
an award, order or agreement shall be
deemed to have committed 8 breach of
the award. order or agreement. If,
during the currency of an award, any
employe, worker, industrial union or
association, or any combination of en-
ployers takes proceedings with the in
tention to defeat any of the provisions
of the award, every such employer,
worker, union, association, and every
member thereof respectively, shall be
deemed to have committed a breach of
the award and be liable accordingly.
No worker shall be subject to a fine
merely because he refuses to work at
the rate of wages fixed by any award
or industrial agreement, unless the
court is satisfied that there was an
intention to commit a breach of the
act A worker is deemed to be dis
missed if suspended from work for
longer period than 10 days.
The last provision is the one which
the striking slaughtermen declare alb
solves them from blame, but the gov
ernment has taken a different view OF
the case and prosecutions have re-
suited. The employers insist that the
argument of the workers that they did
not strike, but simply ceased work, is
merely subterfuge, and that it is
immaterial whether the outbreak con-
stitutes a strike within the technical
meaning of the term. They further in
sist that If the employers had declared
for reduction of wages, as the men
did for an increase, and had refused to
employ them except at a lower figure,
they could not have fallen back on the
excuse that they did not lock out the
hands, but merely ceased to employ
them. They contend that such action
would properly have been called a
lockout, and for the same reasons and
by the same reasoning the action of
the men was a strike.
PUNISHMENT FOR AIDING STRIKERS
Punishment for striking or abetting
the strike is provided for by the law,
but its practicability is open to grave
doubt. The fine or Imprisonment of the
hundreds of men engaged in the strike
may be recorded and the provisions of
the law vindicated, but the effective
ness of such punishment is not quite
so apparent. After the strikers have
undergone the penalty there is no law
compelling them to go back to work.
By placing their late employer under
the union ban 1t would be extremely
difficult for him to resume business
He could not get the men. Therein,
the employers contend, lies the one
SidedneSs of the act, and, moreover, If
he breaks the law he must take the
consequences. He cannot change his
business as his men can change their
place of employment. His money is
invested and he can at all times be
found to answer for violation of the
law. The defects of the law, which
was admittedly designed to prevent
strikes and lockouts, are keenly de-
plored by both sides to the contro-
versy, but it is useless to speculate on
what additional legislation may be en-
acted to strengthen it, for wide di-
versity of opinion exists as to the
| means necessary to make 1t effective
STRIKE OF sLAUGHTERMEN
The strike of the slaughtermen has
caused general regret, as it temporarily
embarrassed one of the greatest indus
tries of New Zealand and created a
feeling of additional uncertainty among
the employers of labor that it is feared
may check large investments of capital
in new industrial enterprises This
strike hit New Zealand in vulnerable
part Her prosperity has increased
proportionately with the expansion of
meat exports. and for several years
New Zealand has steadily extended her
pasturage and increased her sheen as
the market opened wider The indus
try Of which slaughtering is an integral
part has been great factor In the de-
velopment and prosperity of New Zea-
land, and she is now confronted by a