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at an agreement, the assessors on either side may require a direction to be obtained from the Arbitration Court for the assistance of the Conciliation Council in its deliberations as to the minimum wages that should be paid to the lowest-paid group of workers in the industry in question, and the maximum ordinary hours of work without payment of overtime that should be worked therein." That means that if in any stage of the Conciliation Council proceedings, the assessors find it impossible to finalize an agreement without a fixation of hours and wages, they may adjourn their proceedings, and obtain from the Court of Arbitration, at the instance of either side, a direction upon those questions of hours and wages. That direction of the Court would not be in the nature of an award. It would be, however, a nucleus upon which an award must be constructed and an agreement must be reached. When that direction has been obtained on the question of hours and wages, the Conciliation Council to resume, and complete its negotiations, and reach an agreement upon the question of the terms and conditions which require to be embodied in the award. The final paragraph in clause 3 provides " that if 60 per cent, or more of the workers, members of the union, concerned in the dispute are females, reference to the Court shall automatically follow the failure of the Conciliation Council to reach an agreement." That means that in the case of female workers we realize they have not got the same footing publicly as male workers ; they have not got the same opportunity to organize ; they have not got the same strength in the organization ; and we are prepared to agree that in those cases reference upon all matters shall be compulsory instead of optional. Clause 4 provides, " That a majority of the assessors in any Conciliation Council may at any time during the Council proceedings agree to adjourn the proceedings for a period not exceeding one month, if it is considered that the adjournment might assist in securing a settlement of the dispute : Provided that there shall be only one such adjournment." That clause is an additional safeguard against the extremists. It means that if a deadlock is imminent the wiser and more level-headed of the assessors may bring about an adjournment of the proceedings for one month. That would give an opportunity for the assessors on both sides to consult their principals, and for careful consideration of the matters in dispute ; and it is undoubtedly a safeguard against the extremists on either side. Clause 5 provides, " That the award or agreement existing shall continue in force until the final disbandment of the Conciliation Council, or, where the matters in dispute, by agreement of the assessors as provided in clause 3, are referred to the Court of Arbitration, until the Court shall have made its award." It means that during the whole of the Conciliation Council proceedings, including conferences and adjournments, any existing award or agreement in the industry will continue to operate ; and, of course, if the assessors agree to refer the dispute for settlement to the Court of Arbitration, the award or agreement existing also continues to operate until the new award of the Court is made. Clause 6 gives power to the Judge of the Court of Arbitration to convene a conference of the parties to any industrial dispute which is threatening a strike or lockout; and it also gives him power to add as parties to that dispute representatives of any other employers or workers not directly concerned in the dispute, but who may render useful assistance in arriving at a settlement. It is further provided that " When any such conference is convened by the Judge he shall have power to order that any award or agreement in existence at the commencement of the dispute shall continue in force until the termination of the conference." That is the third safeguard, the third step in the complete investigation of the matters in dispute. You have first of all the Conciliation Council, which may be brought together at the instance of either employers or workers in any industry. There is, secondly, the power for that Council to obtain a direction from the Court upon the question of minimum wages to the lowest-paid group of workers under ordinary working-hours. You have next the power of the Council to adjourn its proceedings, preserving during the period of the adjournment the existing conditions of industry. And, finally, in cases where real trouble is threatening, there is a power given to the Judge of the Court to bring the parties together for such other purposes as he may think desirable in a final effort - to settle the dispute. If all those efforts should fail, then, sir, you have reached that final stage in which you cannot abrogate the right of the workers to take such action as they think fit, or the right of the employers to take similar action. I submit that that stage will be reached very infrequently, if at all. Ido not think that there is any serious danger of its being reached. I have sufficient faith in the good sense of the workers' organizations, and of those of the employers, in this country to believe that no case will prove to be incapable of settlement if the various stages that I have outlined are followed. Clause 7 is a provision to permit of the registration of national unions of workers in any industry wherein all existing unions of the workers, and all unions or associations of employers, are agreed thereto. If Mr. Smith had been here this morning he would have told the Conference that the employers in the shipping industry are prepared to agree immediately to the registration of national unions, so connecting up the waterside workers. Ido not think there will be very much difficulty in providing, by mutual agreement between employers and workers, for the registration of national unions in industry where such unions are performing a useful function. We have inserted this clause because the workers' representatives have frequently asked for it. I have heard workers' representatives before the Labour Bills Committee of Parliament on several occasions urging that such a clause as this should be included in the Arbitration Act, and I frankly admit that there has been some fear in the minds of the employers regarding the insertion of such a clause. There has been a fear that it might lead to the building-up of such strong national organizations of workers as to be a menace to industrial peace. But, sir, that fear is not in my mind. I have just suggested that I have sufficient faith in the good sense of the employers' organizations as to believe that no dispute will be incapable of settlement. I believe that the added responsibility of national unions will work for industrial peace, and it is in that belief that we have put forward this clause as one of our recommendations. The next clause, clause 8, provides that the Industrial Conciliation and Arbitration Act shall apply to all unions whether they are registered under the Act or not, or under any other Act, or not registered at %11. In our report we propose to recommend that the Labour Disputes Investigation Act be repealed,

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