B.001C/N.002
21 January 1942
Newcastle Morning Herald and Miners' Advocate
Melbourne, Tuesday.- Enforcement of the National Security Regulations to cancel exemption from military training of coalminers on strike is to be considered by the War Cabinet to-morrow.
Following the receipt to-day of official reports on hold-ups at Neath, Lambton, Elrington, Corrimal and Excelsior collieries, a Government spokesman said to-night that the causes were so trifling that the actions of the individuals responsible were disgusting and disgraceful.
Although no official statement was made, it is understood that the Government is unable to take any action pending an order by the union to the men to return to work.
Sydney, Tuesday.-Urging immediate action, the Chairman of Directors of the Excelsior colliery at Thirroul, where the miners went on strike to-day, sent a telegram to the Coal Commissioner (Mr Mighell). The telegram claimed that trouble was due to the men in their twenties, 75 per cent of whom were unmarried.
The Southern District Miners' Executive decided to ask the Federal Government to take action against the company for alleged breach of National Security Regulations by altering existing customs and conditions of employment. It was alleged that this arose from the refusal of the company to promote a wheeler. The President of the Southern Miners (Mr F Lowden) said he expected the mine to work to-morrow.
The mine manager (Mr Dalziel) denied there had been any breach of the regulations. The agreement with the miners stipulated that a wheeler should be promoted to the coal face at the end of each quarter, but at present the quarter was in its currency, he said. At the end of the period promotion would occur automatically.
Mr Dalziel said that yesterday the officials told him the miners would be prepared to leave the decision to the local reference board, but to-day the men said they would not go to work unless their demands were granted.
Referring to the company's telegram, Mr Mighell announced later that he would immediately refer the plea to the Minister for Supply (Mr Beasley).
The Minister for Information (Senator Ashley) disclosed to-night that at the request of the Miners' General Secretary (Mr Grant) he had agreed to refer the alleged breach of the National Security Regulations by the Excelsior Company to the Prime Minister (Mr Curtin) and the Attorney-General (Dr Evatt) to-morrow.
Corrimal mine, which was idle over the rearrangement of work of clippers underground, is expected to resume work to-morrow.
Mr Grant announced to-day that acting on a request by the Northern Executive, he was arranging a conference with the Federal Minister for Labour (Mr Ward) to discuss the National Security and Regulations recently gazetted and the coal position generally.
"We desire to have the position clarified," he said. He added that they had been informed that the regulations were drawn up and promulgated without Mr Ward's being first consulted.
"The Government in making the regulations to control employers and employees in the coalmining industry framed the regulations in such a way that they allow the men the loophole of striking when and where they please without any penalties being able to be imposed, because unless in each specific case they are instructed by their union officials to return to work no penalties can be imposed," the Secretary of Northern Collieries Ltd (Mr H Gregory Forster) said to-day.
"To boil the whole regulations down, it means just this, that the men can still continue to strike and stay out on strike until ordered to resume work by their executive, and only then can any action be taken," he added. "The executive, it must be remembered, is appointed by the men. This will not stop strikes on the coalfields or anywhere else. And the Government should know it.
"We have had strike after strike over the past 11 days, since these regulations have been gazetted. When one reviews the alleged cause of these stoppages one will find that they all could have been settled had the Government brought in regulations to fully control the men, namely that men cannot come out on strike without incurring immediate penalties. Further had the Government pegged wages, hours, and conditions, as was suggested, these strikes would not have occurred. The men would know what their conditions, hours, and wages were, and that it would be no use for them striking for better conditions.
"These regulations, which have been stated to be most stringent, what do they do? They merely provide that a man, if counselled by his union to work, and he refuses to do so, may, if certain action is taken, be eligible to become a member, if fit, of our military forces, home service.
"There were 500 men on strike yesterday, openly flouting the Government of this country. What does Mr Curtin intend to do?"
Replying to a statement by officials of Richmond Main miners' lodge, the Superintendent of J and A Brown Abermain Seaham Collieries (Mr J Johnstone) said in Newcastle last night that he did not see that any good purpose would be served by continuing the controversy since the lodge's statement was obviously designed to put the management in the wrong. The statement was not consistent with fact.
"The genesis of the dispute was a resolution carried by the lodge, that all the personnel of the afternoon shift had to be given work on Sunday night at penalty rates before the mine could resume work," added Mr Johnstone. "This was done notwithstanding the fact that the established custom had always been for the management to bring in only sufficient men for essential work on such penalty shifts. It was the refusal of the manager to accede to the lodge's demand that brought about the stoppage. Statements such as those submitted by the union officials are provocative in the extreme and are not conducive to industrial peace."
A deadlock has been reached in the dispute at Elrington colliery.
Yesterday, when the lodge held its fifth meeting to deal with the dispute, it decided that there would be no return to work while the former Rothbury man remained in employment.
The management has refused to remove the man from his position because it contends that his employment is in accordance with the policy of the Miners' Federation.
"We are now in exactly the same position as we were in on Friday last," the Secretary of the lodge (Mr W Gordon) said when he discussed the dispute last night. "The lodge has decided that there will be no return to work under existing conditions. The matter has been referred again to the northern executive."
Mr Gordon said that the object of the meeting yesterday was to secure the attendance of an officer of the executive. No official was present because of the sitting in Newcastle of the Northern Reference Board.
The meeting yesterday was well attended by members, the secretary said. The majority that carried the decision was not large.
After a day of idleness, Neath miners last night accepted a proposal for the holding of a conference at Newcastle to-day to discuss their dispute.
The trouble yesterday was over the filling of a vacancy on the coal. Shift men and wheelers claimed the right to promotion. Their views were in conflict with that of the management, which contended that as there were already five probationary miners in the colliery it was entitled to secure the services of an experienced miner.
The Secretary of the lodge (Mr E Ingles) said that the men decided at a meeting on Monday night to defer the matter and refer it to officers of the Northern Federation. It was not possible to contact the manager, so the proposal was placed before the under-manager. Yesterday morning the men turned out for work, but the manager insisted on his right to employ a man experienced at the coal face. The men then left the colliery.
Mr Ingles said last night that there would be no work at the mine to-day, because the management had not sounded the work whistle. The lodge would be represented at the conference which Mr Connell had called, and which would be held in Newcastle this afternoon.