THE MINERS.

Auckland Star, Volume LIV, Issue 110, 10 May 1923, Page 13

THE MINERS.

JJOME»T<TO S CONFERENCE. TO CONSIDER ORGANISATION. •FEDERATION OR DISTRICT UNIONS? One of the most important conferees jet held in connection with the • .T5 of Vow Zealand, says the "Post" Tb> take'plaee in Wellington on July I when representatives will be present ink the different mining districts !hrou"hout the Dominion to discuss the ' .mestion of future organisation. Circu?»r? calling the delegates together were , pn i out this morninjt by >lr 1. O'Rourkc, secretary of the Now Zealand Miners' Federation. Mr. O'Rourkc lias, *i t returned from the West Coast, Sere be and Mr. J. Roberts, secretary f the Alliance of Labour, have been addressing meetings of miners in the interests of this federation and of the .alliance of Labour. ever since tlie Arbitration Court's awards respecting the miners came into operation in October, 1921, there has been a good deal of discontent among the men, particularly on the West Coast with respect to the rates of MT awarded and the. alterations in con-, ditions imposed by the Court. At one rttge last year it was actually proposed to resist the Court's award:* by downing took but the proposal was not taken mi'whoMieartediy throughout the different districts. On the West Coast a conference of miners ivas called, ostensibly to decide upon a policy of hostility to the Court's award, so far as it re- . luted to the Coast, but the upshot was that the delegates assembled resolved to a new form of organisa- - tion for the miners. It was agreed to advocate the creation of district miners' federations as opposed to the. national form of organisation which was brought into operation in 11)15, and -extended in - 11)17 to include the men engaged in gold ■ Kiincs. Really, the promoter* of the district federation idea conceived it as ieillß a morn effective means of at.tauking'the mini) owners than the Dominion federation method of organisation, but ',t he.project does not appear to liav« gained much support outside the West i'oaist, and even thcro tbe majority of tile unions are reported to be disposed to'favour ihe continuance of affiliation .with the New Zp-alarhl Minors' Federation; In Blackball, however, arid to tome extent in Millerton, there are some -iricri- vrlio are seeking to pursue the distriftt cchemo ami ta induce the rainere to break away from tbe Dominion federation* aod tfie Alliance of Labour. As a mult of his visit, and that of Mr. Bofwrft, to -the West" Coast, Mr. o'Kourke stated fhat the bulk of the Ceding among tlie miners generally on I tip; Coast was in favour of the present federation and the alliance. Recently Huller District Council of the . I Jlinera' Federation considered the whole subject of organisation and .decided to recommend to the unions" who had relaxed in their allegiance to the Dominion federation to reaffiliate and attend the conference which is to be 1 held in AVellington, on 4ta July. The-Blackball! •'and- Millerton unions •re anxious to hold at Reefton within the jiear'raiure a conference of-all unions : on the coast to consider various matters Kitting to the miners. The intention lo convene this conference was arrived rtirfpre the Arbitration Court made pronouncement increasing the mijWTvages slightly, it having previowjeen decided to formulate a-course tfffion in anticipation of the Court reOKK.wages. This step not having been "•p by the original motive »rpe conference has been dissipated, - felfue gathering may yet take "place to ttneifer the matter of organisation, as . WlPisa. proposal lately carried by the. fill* "Miners _Union to'make an" effort; v to IMitin ail: advance in wages-amounting to"15 per cent.- Staunch supporters of' tie federation, however, incline to the opinion that the. suggested Keefton conference, if it'does take place, will not by more than the representa- : tnnei of the Jlillerton and Blackball Mions. ; Ihe decision to hold the Dominion' ; conference in July is favoured by all saaions on the Coast with the exception -.of Blackball and Millerton.. Though it is not thought that the conference will o?part from the existing form of national organisation involving affiliation with the ■alliance, of Labour, it is not, unlikely - that a "decision" will be reached to link ;en ,«]1 the separate miners' unions in , ,««h mining district into one. union for tbe-whole of the district: This would meari'the abolition of the multitude of : KBall unions which exist through the ■Dominion • and-. their consolidation or '4*P.rption, into one union only for each 'fctrjot; with an ' executive- council for "■»•». .Zealand meeting in Wellington. :W(re the majority of the delegates to the.conference to favour the district ' jjmon scheme, and yet have no national ■"I}'- Commanding authority over tlie ;*oole of the miners throughout the Dominion, it would mean that the miners »ould automatically drop out of the •alliance of Labour, the constitution of ;.-.:*nirn-only allows for the affiliation of Maustriee organised and federated- on a ■Mnonal basis. It is because these as'Bi *^ c ma '-* er w '" c discussed K«at the coming conference will be ■omentous so far as the Xew Zealand Miners' Federation as" it-exists at pre--Si I s concerne(i - Tliere is a'chance, -«.J by .federation supporters to-be re- ' »o»e, of the federation going "out of **'««nce'-and: the division of the miners J s^,8 r ? u P*i each contending for especial ;!*y*.»nd'improved wages and Working 'for* ° ns ' "? their own particular vdis- '»««.:. The 'possibilities of this occnir'S^" 6 . altogether discounted by worn miners' leaders striving ; ".?5» k * the miners' national solidarity »«ulmore. active force, and any separat- '<■■ S-S^^P^ ,, ' o move will be strenuously »#i»iE the July conference. " - wing to the calling together of the •W conference, the baUot for the elec•,J*'?/*I officers of the Miners? Federation, fcu C iLi Waß ' to have closed on June 15 » J«.n«n postponed as in the event of : _~ = *y«tem of organisation being altered :!,7**«? w>11; be necessary in the method "»Ppointi«» the miners' officials for any • . *»iv .tonsntated . body or bodies.