Hock Lee Bus Company Dispute - Appointment of Court of Inquiry
Note from transferring agency: The following file has been declassified. MOM has checked the file, and find that the file does not contain any explicit record that MOM’s powers under Part XII of the Employment Act have been invoked in obtaining the information. As such, the bar from publication or disclosure under section 102 of the Employment Act does not apply.
This file concerns the appointment of a court of inquiry in connection with Hock Lee Bus Company Dispute of 1955. It begins with a submission from the Commissioner of Labour D.I.Goodwin to Labour Minister Lim Yew Hock noting the increasing friction between the company and union from February to April 1955 which included a 4 hour stoppage of all buses operated by six other bus companies on 27 April and suggesting the setting up of a Court of Inquiry.
The Labour Commissioner views that not appropriate to appoint a High Court Judge as they should be kept for “disputes of the highest importance” (Page 48). The documentation for the appointment of District Judge F A Chua and his terms of reference are captured in the file.
The court held its first sitting on 30 April and had seven public sittings till 13th May 1955 (N.B. The actual violent Bus Riots took place on 12 May 1955). During the sittings, Mr Lee Kuan Yew, acting for the Singapore Bus Workers Unions called 16 witnesses before hearings were adjourned on 13 May, 1955. On 18 May, then Labour Minister Lim Yew Hock (he became chief Minister in 1956) wrote to Judge F A Chua noting that as “agreement has now been reached between the parties to the dispute, the Court of Inquiry should be discontinued.”
A suggestion from Judge F A Chua to grant the Court of Inquiry to compel the attendance of witnesses is discussed with the AG’s office and turned down.
The file also refers to a 9 May 1955 request (Page 27) from Supreme Court Justice E.N. Taylor for information in connection with a separate Inquiry Commission on Police action for the Hock Lee Bus Strike. The Commissioner for Labour (who appears to be also the Permanent Secretary) writes to the Labour Minister on 10 May 1955 describing the Inquiry Commissioner’s request as “embarrassing” noting that no members of the Department or Union Officials were present at the incident. (Page 22).
There is also a report (Page 26) which indicates that a free public employment exchange has existed since 1945. The workings of the employment exchange are explained and reference made to a tripartite Labour Advisory Board being available to consider problems.
Feb 1955 - Aug 1955
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