THE STRIKE BILL.

Auckland Star, Volume XLIV, Issue 303, 20 December 1913, Page 8

THE STRIKE BILL.

AUCKLAND WORK—US' LOSSES , ESTIMATED. i AT LEAST £200.000 FOR THE PROVINCE. In expressing his gratification this morning that the strike was now virtually over, the Mayor (Mr C. J. Parr) ' remarked': "This has probably been one of the most foolish strikes in the history of industrial disturbances. Over a trumpery dispute between 35 shipwrights and their employers at Wellington the whole country was set on fire. The Federation of Labour was of course at the bottom of the whole business. By hanging up work on all the Dominion's wharves they thought to bring the employers to their knees in aimost no time. This move, however, failed. The.n they put into practice the syndical theory of the general strike, calling upon every worker in New Zealand to down tools in sympathy. Looking hack, one is - amazed" at two things—first that, there are labour leaders so ignorant of the history of general strikes as to think for a moment of using this weapon at all. It always spells suicide for the wo.ker. The other consideration that surprises one is that in Auckland some 6.000 unionists, comprising fifteen unions, were actually prevailed upon to follow the red-fed. leaders in their attempt to paralyse the community. It is right perhaps to add that in Auckland it has since transpired that the great bulk of the unionists were averse to coming out at all. but were simply bounced into it by a militant small reel-feel, wing in.league with the red-fed. officials. The result was a foregone conclusion. The general strike is no use to the worker under any circumstances, and the leaders j who counsel it are their worst enemies, j "But at what an enormous cost has | this awful experience been bought," j added tbe Mayor, "Thousands of men i have lost their wages for weeks, with all the attendant privations. On a conservative estimate 7,000 men were out I of work in Auckland for a fortnight at j least. Reckoning their average earnings at £2 10/ per week, this means a loss in wages of £35.000. Since then, you can ; say 2,000 men have been idle for four | weeks, and. as many of them were , skilled artisans, the average would not be less than .'brut £2 15/ per week. amounting roughly to about £2.'>,000. As a matter of f-.ict. the workers of Auckland must have lost at least £60,000 in wages. "There can be no doubt also that the business and shipping community has suffered, and trade has not yet got backto normal. Prom conversations with merchants and shipping men. I should think their returns this year, as compared with last year, will show a shrinkage of close on £100,000 lost during the strike period. Although in some cases business men may partly recover their les-. mm-ii of it. especially in the softgoods trade, is absolute. Farmers have also lost heavily from various cause* As an instance, one farmer with 3.000 sheep told mc his clip will not be worth half its proper value through ' his inability to get the sheep shorn in time, and the consequent damage to the clip througb burr and stain. Altogether, at a rough estimate, I should say that the Auckland' province has lost in one way and another in the six weeks of the strike at least £200,000. No one has ■ reaped any benefit from this mad folly , of a few agitators who wished to show their power. It lias been a most unfortunate business, and T cannot help thinking we have all learned some valuable lessons from it. I ran only hope that now it is past a better and kindlier . feeling will be engendered between em- I ployees and employers, and that the men will cease to believe the foolish teaching I of the I.W.W. advocates that the boss is his natural enemy."'