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STRONG SUPPORT
Union Leaders Favor
Conference
Union leaders yesterday expressed
firm support for the adoption of the
proposal in. "The Age" leading article
that the conciliation powers of the
Arbitration Court be invoked, and that
a conference of parties to the coal
mining dispute be called under tlje
chairmanship of Judge Drake-Brock-
man.
An. interesting contribution to the
controversy was made by the Federal
secretary of the Australian Railways
Union (Mr. J, P. Chappie), who put
forward the view that the Draxc-
Brockman award did not alter stan
dard hours- in the industry, but
created them, and therefore lin appeal
to the Pull Court for a variation was
not in order. Mr. chappie said that
although the Arbitration Act provided
that no singie judge should have power
to alter standard nours of work in any
industry, it was a question whether iii
this instance the section applied,
mere was, in lact, 110 alteration 01
standard hours, oecause prior to the
award no standard hours existed for
the industry. The judge had proposed
a standard 40-hour week for the in
dustry for the first time. He suggested
that i£ the matter were taken to the
High Court it might be found that the
award of Judge Drake-Brockman was
validly made, and therefore immune
from appeal to the Full Court.
The duty of the Government was
to provide the way to an early settle
ment of the dispute, continued Mr.
Chappie. The investigation of Judge
Drake-Brockman over a' period of nine
months and his considered finding
which the Pull Court had varied pro
vided sufficient grounds for the setting
up of some machinery to take hold oi
the dispute. Acceptance by the unions
of the award of Judge Drake-Brock-
man showed that the miners were pre
pared to adopt the findings of the
court. What they did object to was
the upsetting of the finding by other
judges who made little or no investiga
tion into the merits of the claim, but
acted apparently along the lines 01
recognised court policy, to the detri
ment of the workers concerned.
The State secretary of- the A.R.U.
(Mr. P. A. Randies) said he believed
railwaymen would endorse the attitude
of "The Age." The suggestion for
calling a conference should be heeded
in the right quarter, and the proposal
that Judge Drake-Brockman should
preside might provide the most hopeful
prospect of a satisfactory way out ol
the impasse. The longer the present
stalemate continued the worse for the
community. Members of the union
had expressed support for the mining
unionists, and would 110 doubt decide
to support them with a levy on wages
in their fight, but the sooner the par
ties were brought together by the Go
vernment the better. It was the
obvious duty of the Government ro
undertake the role of the third party
to bring the disputing parties into
conference.
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